The Project Car Works!!!

The boys have the project car working! And they are just thrilled!!

Thankful Thursday

"And whatever you do in word or deed,
do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks through Him to God the Father."
Colossians 3:17

Today I am giving thanks for GLORIA! We have just come back from a week spent in Texas where she lavished us with an immense amount of love and the blessing of her sweet presence!

Gloria, thank you so much!

• Thank you for graciously opening your home to us and letting us stay with you for practically a whole week... your home is definitely a place of refreshing, filled with the joy, love, and presence of the Lord.
• Thank you for loving us as if we were your own... it was such a blessing and a joy to spend time with you!
• Thank you for loving my boys as if they were your own grandchildren... I can not begin to tell you what joy filled my heart as I watched and listened to you love on them and to see and hear them love on you... David thinks we need to go back to see you in 7 days!
• Thank you for watching Richard's favorite movie with me and for making his favorite pancakes for us... I know that was hard for you to do, and I thank you for sharing those with us...
• Thank you for arranging the times of fellowship with your family... they are a blessing and a joy to be around. We are blessed to know all of you!
• Thank you for feeding us so well!
• Thank you for your prayers for each of us and for our family...
• Thank you for sharing the healing rooms and your church with us... both were special and touching times...
• Thank you most of all for sharing the love that Christ has poured into your heart with us... you are definitely a "filled to overflowing" vessel of His love and goodness!

I pray God would bless you tremendously as you have blessed me and my family... I pray He would hold you close through this new season of your life, and that He would give you very clear direction and guidance in the plans He has for your life, and I pray He would bless you with the courage and boldness to do whatever He calls you to do. May you be blessed with an outpouring of love from others as you have blessed so many with His love you so graciously pour out!


We love you and miss you! You are welcome in our home anytime!!

Wordless Wednesday (with just a few words)

This little girl was just fascinated with David...

We met her at a friend's wedding in Texas...

Aren't they just too cute?!!

The End of an Era...

Today was the end of an era for us...

Paul and David had their last day of preschool... I guess you can now consider them kindergartners... where has the time gone?

My little babies are not babies anymore, not even toddlers anymore... they are little boys...

I heard this song on the radio today and it almost made my cry. It was by Wayne Watson and about Water Color Pony's, how one day there will be no more water color pony's to look at and cherish. It made me want to cherish every single moment with my little men, to hold on just a bit longer...

Watercolor Ponies

Wayne Watson

There are watercolour ponies

On my refrigerater door

And the shape of something

I don't really recognize

Drawn by careful little fingers

And put proudly on display

A reminder to us all

Of how time flies



Seems an endless mound of laundry

And a stairway laced with toys

Gives a blow by blow

Reminder of the war

That we fight for their well-being

For their greater understanding

To impart a holy reverance

For the Lord





But, baby, what will we do

When it comes back to me an you?

They look a little less

Like little boys every day

Oh, the pleasure of watching

The children growing

Is mixed with a bitter cup

Of knowing the watercolour ponies

Will one day ride away





And the vision can get so narrow

As you view through your tiny world

And little victories can go by

With no applause

But in the greater evaluation

As they fly from your nest of love

May they mount up with wings

As eagles for His cause

As this is the end of an era for us and we get ready to start a new one, I will be taking a break from blogging for about a week or so, but I will be back! I am going to enjoy my family and savor every moment we have together as we embark upon a new era of our lives together...

Scripture Memory Verse

I have joined Beth Moore and tons of others ladies in hiding God's Word in our hearts this year. She is even having a free conference for all the ladies who are participating, but it is the weekend of my boys birthday so I am sure I will not be going... I wish I could! I know I have a dear friend in Houston I could stay with!

Anyway, here is my next memory verse for the month of May:

"Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love."
1 Corinthians 16:13-14

So do you have a scripture you are working on hiding in your heart? If so leave me a comment and share it, I would love to see it!


I read this this afternoon and thought it would fit right in with this theme of scripture memory and wanted to share it. It is from "Holiness, The Heart God Purifies" by Nancy Leigh DeMoss.

"Reading, studying, memorizing, and meditating on scripture - these disciplines provide weed control and fertilizer for the garden of my heart, guarding and purifying me from sin and stimulating growth in grace.


No believer can withstand the assault of temptation and the encroachment of the world apart from a steady intake of the Word of God. (Nor can we feed on a diet of unholy reading material and entertainment and expect to have pure hearts or to grow spiritually.) Mark it down - your progress in holiness will never exceed our relationship with the Word of God."

That gives us some stuff to think about doesn't it? So how is your relationship with the Word of God? I pray that you have healthy doses of It daily!

Thankful Thursday

"In God we have boasted all day long,
and we will give thanks to Thy name forever."
Psalm 44:8

Today I am giving thanks for:

• The fact that I am feeling exponentially better! I have no pain, and my strength and energy have returned! Thank You Jesus!
• The way God speaks to me through various vessels...
• The gift of good books...
• The fact that right now my house is quiet and peaceful while the boys are napping and/or resting...
• Ice cream... I am going to treat myself to some when I get off the computer!
• Swimming lessons... my boys have been going for almost 2 weeks and they are loving them and doing very well!
• The opportunity to tell a wonderful and God sent nurse how much I truly appreciated her care for me over 5 years ago when I was in the hospital with pre-term labor for 2 weeks... her little boy is taking swim lessons when mine are, I had not seen her again since I was in the hospital. What a blessing to see her again and to be able to tell her thanks! I was in labor and delivery for 3 days and she took such extra and wonderful care of me!
• Lazy days of summer almost being here!
• One more haircut with my favorite hairdresser ever... she is moving far away to Washington state, but I did manage to book one more appointment on her last day! We will all miss her, as she cuts all our hair... what will we do?
• For life... and for the health, strength, and energy to enjoy it!

What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to stop and take time to think about the many things you have to give thanks for...

For more TT posts visit Lynn.

Word-Filled Wednesday

"If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness."
2 Corinthians 11:30

I am boasting in my weaknesses, for it is through them that I have found that God's grace is sufficient... His grace is enough for me...

What about you? Have you found that God's grace is enough?

For more WFW posts visit 160acrewoods.

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday's Together in the Word!

Welcome to Tuesday's Together in the Word. We are a group of women reading through the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs using the same reading plan and holding each other accountable. On Tuesdays we share what we have gleaned from our time of study in the Word. To join us and to read what others have to share visit DeeDee, we would love for you to join us! You can find a link to our reading plan on my sidebar.


I wanted to start today's post with an entry from my prayer journal from May 6, 2009:

I am experiencing deep physical pain - I am asking God to reveal Himself to me through this deep pain - to reveal to me the deeper things of Himself that I can only learn through this suffering.

Christ suffered deep, agonizing pain - tremendously worse than what I am suffering - and yet He focused on God and others first, before Himself, as evidenced by His Words from the cross.

Dear Lord, Please help me continue to have a heart for You and for others through this pain - enable me and empower me to be and do all that You have called me to be and do, even in the midst of my pain.

I need your supernatural strength and endurance, I need your grace to push through this pain until You bring me to the other side. I pray that I would not be in bondage to this pain - but that through You I would be able to live the victorious, abundant life you came to give me.

Help me to focus on You, help me to allow You to work on the deep things of my heart, to allow You to bring more freedom in my life so I can be more free in You. Please enable me to make it through the pain victoriously - and please give me wisdom and make it very clear the course of treatment You would have me to follow.

I Love You Lord,
Your daughter

Immediately following writing this in my prayer journal, I opened my Bible to my reading for the day and this is what I read...

Galatians 5:1
"It was for freedom that Christ set us free;
therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery."

The Lord began to impress upon my heart that it is not His desire for me to be in bondage to the pain. Through Him I can live victoriously through any difficulty, and I can live in the freedom that He came to give me. Freedom to live fully and wholly for Him... not in bondage to any earthly thing.

He also began to impress upon my heart that I am to "be" and not to "do"...

I looked up the meanings of each in Webster's, here they are:

Be - to have an objective existence; to have, maintain, or occupy a place, situation, or position;

Do - to bring to pass, to carry out, do another's wishes; to wear out especially by physical exertion;

Realizing that He is calling me to "be" and not to "do" has been very freeing for me this past week! Because you see, in the midst of my pain, I could not "do", but I could "be"... and I felt horrible that I could not "do" all the things I felt I should be doing. He has called me to "be" a wife and a mom. He has called me to "be" intentional about being a wife and a mom. He is not calling me to "do" all day long so that my house can be clean and spotless, or so that I can get everything checked off my to do list. He is not calling me to "do" all the various activities and opportunities that present themselves along my way, even though they may be great activities. He IS calling me to "be" with my husband and my children, to "be" with Him. It is in being with others that we can see the needs in their lives and in their hearts. And it is in being with them that we are able to minister to their needs and hurts. And most importantly, it is in "being" with Him that we are filled up and able to "be" there for those He has placed in our life.

I feel more free in my role as a wife and a mom now... more free to say "no" to those things that would take lots of time away from them. More free to stop house cleaning and have fun with my family, more free to just "be". Thank you Jesus!

Psalm 46:10
"Be still and know that I am God." NIV
"Cease striving and know that I am God." NASB

Luke 10:41-42
"But the Lord answered and said to her,
"Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things;
but only a few things are necessary, really only one,
for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."

Would you join me on this quest to "be" rather than "do"? There is freedom in it, freedom to live the life that Christ died for us to live... freedom to live wholly in and for Him!

Father God, Thank you so much for the freedom that can be found in You! Freedom from this world and from having to "do" what everyone thinks or wants us to do, freedom to "be" who you have called us to be, freedom to embrace our callings with joy! In Jesus name, Amen.

God's Faithfulness & Provision...

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress,
My God, in whom I trust!" ...

He will cover you with His pinions,
And under His wings you may seek refuge;
His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. ...

For you have made the LORD, my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place.
No evil will befall you,
Nor will any plague come near your tent.
For He will give His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.

Because he has loved Me,
Therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him securely on high,
because he has known my name.

He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him, and honor him.
With a long life I will satisfy him,
and let him behold My salvation.

Psalm 91:1-2, 4,9-11, 14-16

This past week the provision and faithfulness of my Lord has just amazed me and brought me to my knees in adoration of Him... my Master, my King, my Lord!

I shared last week how I experienced the power of praise in the midst of pain, and how sweetly my Lord lifted my pain so I was able to get some much needed rest. Well, His provisions and grace did not stop there...

My pain continued until Friday, when it lifted completely and has yet to return, thank you Jesus! Through my days of pain God graciously provided me with friends who prayed with and for me, and those prayers enabled me to have the strength and energy to make it through those days doing the wife and mommy things I needed to do... if you prayed for me I thank you from the bottom of my heart! And please continue to pray that God would continue to work out His total and complete healing in my body...

God has graciously provided me with a wonderful friend who I know is a friend for life, even if we end up miles apart one day. She selflessly spent much of her precious time researching information for me on the internet about my health issues and the use of supplements, herbs, and diet for successfully treating them... and even provided me with some supplements from her "stash" to use until I could get to the store to get my own! She called me every day and checked on me, and I know she prayed fervently for me... thank you Sandra! (She really needs to do her own blog so she can share her wealth of information with all of us!)

I am trusting God to heal my body and to cause it to work the way He created it to...

"Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask,
believe that you have received them,
and they shall be granted to you."
Mark 11:24

"and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one is sick,
and the Lord will raise him up,
and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him."
James 5:15

God's grace is sufficient! He has provided me with the grace I have needed to make it successfully through the hard days... During my times with Him in the mornings, I told Him that no matter the pain, I want to serve Him... I desire to be a vessel for Him to live in, to work in and through, even in the midst of pain. I refuse to allow my pain to be a stronghold that would keep me from serving, loving, and praising my Lord and Savior! I desire for Him to be glorified in my life, especially and even in the midst of pain...



And I wanted to share another story of God's wonderful and timely provision... Thursday evening my boys were playing Red Rover in the house, even though I had asked them to stop, and David somehow sliced the edge of his ear on the corner of the wall or baseboard. We had to go to the ER where he received 2 stitches... but even in the midst of this God had His hand upon us! Even when I could not reach anyone to send out an email request to church to pray, even when I could get none of my 5 heart friends on the phone... God was in control!

We arrived at the ER and signed in, and just a few minutes later the Mom of David's best pal (as he calls him) from 4K pops her head out to see if it was really us... and it was! She was working the ER, and was just about to get off for the night, but when she saw that we were there she stayed late...

• She got us back quickly and took extra good care of us...
• She arranged for her favorite doctor to be David's doctor...
• She found David some graham crackers and sprite to eat and drink...
• She made sure his ear was good and numb before they started working on him...
• And she even offered to take Paul home with her until they were done with David...

What a blessing she was! Even though we had a little drama in our lives that night, God was in control of when it happened, what hospital we went to, and who provided our care so that David would be a little less frightened and would feel loved on and special! How wonderful and faithful is our God!

One more example of God's amazing grace and His sufficiency to meet every need in our lives...

Yesterday was Mother's Day... and I, like most mothers, looked forward to being treated special with extra acts of kindness and love. However, my husband became sick with a stomach bug Saturday evening, so I knew that "extra" acts of kindness and love were most likely not going to happen for me this Mother's Day... being that I have two 5 year old boys!

I will admit that I woke up Sunday morning with a bit of a pity-me attitude... and I began praying that God would give me the grace to deal with being disappointed. I knew my husband did not plan to be sick, and that he would have definitely done something special for me, but I still felt sad... I really did not want to go to church by myself. I did not want to have to sit by myself on Mother's Day, I just didn't... but I decided to go; because I wanted to worship my Lord. And I asked the Lord to give me a good Mother's Day... and He gave me a wonderful day!

These words from one of the songs we sang ministered so sweetly to my heart...

Your grace is enough
Your grace is enough
Your grace is enough for me

Your grace is enough
Heaven reaching down to us
Your grace is enough for me
God I see your grace is enough
I'm covered in your love
Your grace is enough for me
For me

His grace is enough, and is all I need! We ended up having a nice lunch and time of fellowship with my parents at a restaurant and a park. I thoroughly enjoyed our drive back and forth as the boys slept while we drove an hour each way. During my drive I was able to focus on the Lord in prayer and praise and worship, even though I was driving through a down pour! And the boys and I went for a nice bike ride to the park this afternoon after we got home... I am tremendously blessed beyond measure!

How has God showered you with His faithfulness and His grace recently? I would love to hear about it!

Happy Mother's Day

These are some songs the boys sang at the Mother's Day Program they did for us at 4K. I thought I would share them with all of you! May all you Mothers have a wonderful Mother's Day!

Word-Filled Wednesday

"For I am the LORD, your God,
who takes hold of your right hand and says to you,
Do not fear, I will help you."
Isaiah 41:13

I am clinging to this verse, it brings me comfort... is there a verse God is using to minister to you today?

For more WFW posts visit 160acrewoods.

Wordless Wednesday (with just a few words)

James' boss gave him this...
it does not run, but my husband can fix anything...
so the boys have their 1st project car!

Tuesday's Together in the Word!

Welcome to Tuesday's Together in the Word. We are a group of women reading through the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs using the same reading plan and holding each other accountable. On Tuesdays we share what we have gleaned from our time of study in the Word. To join us and to read what others have to share visit DeeDee, we would love for you to join us! You can find a link to our reading plan on my sidebar.


This week's post is a bit different. I am not posting from the passages we have read together this week, although I did read them :) Rather I wanted to share with you how His Word brought me such comfort and peace...

This past week I have been dealing with some health problems that have been bothering me for a while, it seems they are getting worse and not better, and it is so frustrating...

I went to the doctor yesterday, they were very nice to work me in when I did not have an appointment. My doctor is a Christian, he has scriptures on the wall, Bibles in his waiting room, and worshipful music playing softly in the background. I sat down in there yesterday, after the rush of our morning activities plus dealing with my unexpected problems, and the sweet spirit in that room just brought me to tears... I sat there and cried in the waiting room, with 2 other ladies probably wondering what in the world was wrong with me... I felt like an emotional basketcase!

I had brought my Bible with me, and I stared reading in the Psalms, and the Lord brought such comfort and peace to my heart and mind... and more tears to my eyes, as the word's of the psalmist echoed the words of my heart...

I just wanted to share a few of the verses that ministered to me... how thankful I am that God's Word can bring comfort and peace in the midst of pain and hurting...

"Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." Psalm 5:1-3

"Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am faint; O Lord, heal me, for my bones are in agony. My soul is in anguish. How long, O Lord, how long? Turn O Lord, and deliver me; save me because of your unfailing love." Psalm 6:2-4

"I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. ... The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you." Psalm 9:1-2, 9-10

I also wanted to share with you the power of praise... Sunday night as I was lying in bed trying to sleep but hurting too badly to really be able to go to sleep, I began praying to my Lord and Savior; and then I began praising Him in the midst of my pain. Even though I had pain, and did not feel like praising Him, I made a conscious choice to praise my Lord and my Savior... and you know what... while praising my King and my God, the pain lifted and I was able to sleep. How precious is our Lord and Savior, and how worthy He is of our praise, even when we do not feel like it...

Hearing God in the Everyday, Ordinary Stuff...

I have been inspired and encouraged by my friend Tiffany over at Tea with Tiffany to Stop, Look, and Listen for God's voice among the ordinary things of my day... I have been so encouraged and ministered to in reading how God has spoken to her through the ordinary stuff of her days, that I have asked God to start speaking to me in the same way. I long to hear His voice more, to consciously stop, look, and listen for Him. I want to hear what He has to say to me...

And God has answered me!

Here is what He spoke to me through some rather ordinary road signs last week as I was headed somewhere with the boys... I can't remember where we went, but I can remember God so clearly speaking to me!


Life has been so very busy lately, so busy that I almost have not had time to even think, I have just had to do... does that make sense? As I was praying while driving, I looked up and the words on this sign just jumped into my spirit, and it was as if God spoke directly to me and said, "Stop... take time to be with me... everything else will fall into place..."

"Be still and know that I am God, I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
Psalm 46:10

Then I saw this sign on the interstate, where we can usually drive 70... it was as if God was saying directly to me, "Take things at a slower pace... slow down and enjoy this journey of life."

"But you will not leave in haste or go in flight, for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard."
Isaiah 52:12

Then I saw this sign, and it was as if God was saying, "Get ready, I have work to do in you and in others... be ready and willing for me to work in your heart and in your life, and in the lives of those you love."

"I am the true vine and My Father is the vinedresser,
every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away,
and every branch in Me that bears fruit,
He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.
You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken to you.
Abide in Me, and I in you; as the branch can not bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me."
1 John 15:1-4

And yet I came upon another sign... through this one God continued to speak to my heart; "Be cautious of the things ahead, proceed with caution, test everything against the scriptures..."

"Beloved, do not believe every spirit,
but test the spirits to see whether they are from God,
because many false prophets have gone out into the world."
1 John 4:1

And one more sign that my precious Lord spoke to me through... "The road narrows... the road I am on is a narrow road, you must make sure you stay on the narrow path, many will stray from this narrow path, but keep your eyes on Me, follow Me in complete obedience and surrender and your feet will be planted firmly on this narrow path."

"Enter through the narrow gate;
for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction,
and there are many who enter through it."
Matthew 7:13


"Strive to enter through the narrow door;
for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able."
Luke 13:24

I am praying that God would continue to speak to me through the ordinary things of my days. I am asking Him to help me keep my ears open to His voice and my eyes open to see the things He would have me to see...

What about you? Does God speak to you through the ordinary things of your day?

Scripture Memory Verse

Here is my 1st scripture memory verse for May... I am late posting it but I have already started memorizing it...

"I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me."

Galations 2:20

Below are videos of the boys practicing their scriptures they had memorized for the AWANAs award ceremony tonight. All in all they have memorized 66 verses over the past 2 years in Cubbies. Paul accidentally said the verse David had been practicing rather than the one he had practiced and got very upset with himself and would not try again to say the one he had worked so hard to say... but here is proof that he can do it! I am very proud of both of my boys!










What scripture are you currently try to hide in your heart?