trust

Tag

God and the Waves

  • July 27, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

Last week we just needed away.  A family friend graciously offered a place to stay in the panhandle of Florida and we packed up and spent a few days on the Emerald Coast with the pure white sand.  This is one of our FAVORITE PLACES.  The kids LOVE playing in the water, exploring, building sand castles and sea creatures, taking sunset walks and crab hunting at night. Oh…and the fresh seafood.   A couple of days during our stay, the ocean...

Sing and Be Happy

  • July 21, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

Often we sing this song in church. It used to be one of my favorites, probably because it was the one I first remembered learning. But I have discovered this song has a deeper meaning to me now than it did in 2019, or any year before. You have heard everyone say it, but I will type it yet again. 2020 will be a year to remember; and not necessarily for good reasons. This song has become very helpful and...

The Blessing Of COVID-19

  • July 13, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

We have been bombarded since March with negative news, dire predictions, financial hardships, and an unsettling uncertainty for the future. Personally, I have struggled with anxious and racing thoughts. I am still mired in uncertainty and overwhelmed feelings planning for a new school year. But what does this look from Heaven’s point of view? What if our forced quarantine, time off, shutdown was a gift to our weary generation? We have oft thought that we were the busiest generation in...

“Old” Friends…the best medicine

  • June 10, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

This past weekend was spent cooking, cleaning, washing dishes, decorating, giving directions, driving (a lot), buying groceries, making lists, 97,382 steps, running errands, finding people, cutting cakes, making punch, Sonic runs, steaming dresses, pinning boutonnieres, wiping up spills, asking favors, and a myriad of other tasks.  It was also spent visiting, laughing, catching up, hugging (sorry – no social distancing for me), staying up late with feet in the pool just talking, eating meals in the midst of great conversation,...

Brave–Make it the “in” thing….

  • March 30, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

But __________ gets to do it? Why can’t I?   If you haven’t heard those words come out of your child’s mouth, the time will come.  For most of us, we have experienced it.   The fact is our children–from the time they hit school-aged to the time (well, let’s be honest here–adults)…this is a battle we will face.   The fear of rejection. The fear of not fitting in.   The fear of missing out.  (FOMO) It is real.  Satan knows how to...

Friendship–No Better Friend Than Jesus (Part 1)

  • February 3, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, Two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes...

What Matters….

  • January 13, 2020
  • /
  • Blog

What matters.  As I dig more into my ONE WORD for 2020 which is CONTEND, what matters tends to be the basis in every area of my life.   In my relationship with God…what matters? In my marriage, what matters?   In my home, what matters?  Within my church family, what matters?  In my work as a teacher, what matters?  I think that the “preacher” sums it up in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:   Fear God...

Fear and The Roller Coaster…

  • October 21, 2019
  • /
  • Blog

His hands were shaking.  His heart was racing. Big puppy dog tears started streaming down his face.   He didn’t want to get on the ride.   Was the ride going to go fast?  Was it going to go slow? Would there be sharp turns?  Would it go backwards? Would it go upside down? The unknown had completely encompassed his 8 year old body and FEAR had now taken over.   This was what we experienced our first time at Disney over Fall...

Gentleness…

  • September 30, 2019
  • /
  • Blog

Several years ago, one of my students kept falling asleep in class.  It was frustrating.  He was a kid who had a reputation of being “tough”; not one of the other students would cross him.  Because of the “stigma” that came with him, I took his sleep habits as being disrespectful. UNTIL… We had a parent conference.  Little did I know he was babysitting his younger sister late at night so his mom could work (single family).  He wasn’t getting...

That Kid …

  • September 3, 2019
  • /
  • Blog

“That Kid” brings memories, some good and some not-so-good for all of us. We all have stories of kids who stretched the boundaries, talked incessantly in school, broke the rules, challenged authority, took risks, made us laugh or cry…you fill in the memory bank. I have thirty years in education and many stories of “that kid”. When I was younger, I, unfortunately, judged those kids pretty harshly. I sometimes equated childish immaturity as a life sentence. I thought I had...