Today was a long day.... I had my first international student come to Spring Arbor University!  :)  I'm so happy she is here!  She was the one with the 13-hour flight, but I feel exhausted from trying to make sure everything is all set for her....I kind-of feel like she is one of my kids :)  I stayed later at work to help her get a little settled into her room and then I left to let her rest.

She is really on my mind and heart tonight...I can't imagine what it must be like for her to be so far from home for the first night...praying for her and giving my anxieties about her having a great transition (the parts I cannot control) to the Lord!

Ink Well

I'm so thankful to be a child of God!

What a rescue...what a life change...what a privilege...what an inheritance!

He constantly fulfills my deepest need and redirects my wandering heart.

There is nothing greater than this! 

Oh How I Need You

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-ZpcJzGBpE&list=PLMbcE08MEvl0BD1xM9TVvUCktNQawoX1b&index=3

"For They Will Not Be Bent Out Of Shape"

While we were on vacation, we got a text that the dance academy where we take Karly for gymnastics was going to be closing their gymnastics program.  That was a shock because there seem to be quite a few girls and a couple boys involved in the program.  After that, we got a bunch of emails and texts from their coach and other moms trying to figure out ways to keep the girls together and not miss too much practice time as a new plan was established.  It looks like their coach is going to open her own gym in October, but....in the meantime, the girls on the SPARKS and li'l SPARKS teams are practicing at a gym in Battle Creek on the weekends because they are hoping to allow these girls to compete this year.  Today, they had a 3 hour conditioning practice session, so I volunteered to be a driver.

The gym was super nice!

It was great to see all our girls working hard together and going through this transition time with flexibility (good quality for a gymnast, right?!).  I have definitely been inspired by their coach!  She has another full-time job, but she has walked through this challenge with grace and determination...not wanting the girls to lose any of the conditioning and skills they have learned so far....and I have not seen any frustration from her though I am sure she has endured plenty.  WOW!

And, one other benefit to having three hours of ME time while I waited.....the 7 Alarm Fire Personal Pan Pizza.....NO WAY my family would eat this, but it was pretty good :P

Story With A Twist...Or A Crunch...

This is a rare, LAZY Saturday and I am loving it!  Here's a random story for you that I found when I was writing a different blog and talking about crazy twists in movies and trusting the writers....

Wow...I never saw that coming!  Now, I'll have the read the whole thing again to see if it makes sense in light of this new understanding :)  Things to do on a lazy Saturday...

Enjoy your day!

What A Day!

The girls were up early and ready for doughnuts :)

They had a great time at the zoo with Brad!

Gotta love giraffe tongues....

HA!

Brad wasn't feeling very well after the zoo trip, so I took the girls to the Western football game to cheer for the band :)

Savannah is the second color guard member from the front

Karly loves selfies....I think she is trying to have a giraffe tongue...

She also likes to practice her puppy dog eyes on me to see if I will buy her more snacks.  

Would this work on you?

It was the perfect night to win a football game!  GO PANTHERS!

Sheer..."Moving On"

I had to compose an apology today....well, I didn't have to, but felt like I should.  I was in a staff meeting and we were all looking over some brand new travel pieces...recruitment brochures for our admissions reps to use when they travel and talk with families.  We were celebrating the finished product and the effort to get the project completed.  I was looking through the financial aid brochure and saw a new chart they added this year that shows how to calculate scholarships by using your GPA and your ACT/SAT scores.....it looked similar to the size charts on the back of pantyhose boxes....know what I'm saying, ladies? :)  So, I casually and quietly mentioned that to my friend sitting next to me and she laughed WAY louder than I was expecting her to.  We got the eyes from my boss and that awkward hesitation from him that pretty much says...."I am waiting for you to share whatever is so funny with the whole group".....UHHHHHHGGGGG!  So, my friend sheepishly says, "BAA...." HA, what if?!....anyway, she said, "HEATHER thinks this chart looks like a pantyhose chart!" (I wish she had just said BAA!)....everyone laughed... EXCEPT MY BOSS....who said, "MOVING ON..."without a smile.  YIKES!

I sincerely apologized for my tactless and insensitive remark about the chart and assured him that I think it is a useful tool....WHICH I TOTALLY DO...it was just an amusing observation that I should have kept to myself....WOW!  HUMILITY is AWESOME!

Well, if her foot is in her mouth, she probably needs a little more practice!

Staring At The Flame

What truth can you draw from this text?

First and foremost, YOU ARE LOVED....that is the fuel for your soul's fire!

Let that love blaze in your heart so that you are on fire with the pure love of Christ.

Fight your trials with the fire which God continues to fuel with His love....if you burn brighter than the fire surrounding you, it will have nothing to consume in you.

I'm thankful....God never leaves endearment
UNSPOKEN.

Start A Fire
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrEzr-rWwe8

It's Pop Secret!

Vannah and Kenna did my bidding today and helped to decorate the basement "behind Kassi's back" for a little belated birthday fun.

(But, I think Kassi may have suspected something :)

Kassi had some family celebration time when it was her birthday in July, but she has been wanting to have a couple friends over and take a trip to the zoo.  We have had a bit of a crazy summer schedule, so we finally have that moment.  Anyway, we claimed that Vannah and Kenna were having some big sister time down there and watching the Ender's Game movie so that Kassi would not go down there.  I was playing along with that and would call down the stairs..."How's the movie, guys?"  Vannah got me back, though....she yelled back to me "It'd go great with some popcorn!"...hehe!  SNEAKY LI'L STINKER!  But, popcorn did sound good!

Our basement was decorated with balloons, streamers and lots of stuffed animals :)  

It is a zoo birthday...the girls had to find the 5 missing Pound Puppies.  

Savannah's brilliant birthday game ideas :)

The party animals :)

Turn That Frown Upside Down

No matter what, there's always an UP SIDE....there's even an up side to down if you turn the key.

Ha!....sometimes I find myself being lilblueboo ....(like, last night...even) moping around in my disappointments.  Instead, I should be lilbowpeep....(who eventually went seeking for the "lost sheep"....she put her own feelings aside and took intentional action)... going to seek the purpose God has given me in this day and, where I am able, turning things around with my actions and attitude.

Ding, Ding, Ding

I have survived and won round two of back to school shopping!  Savannah, Kenna and I went shopping last night for their supplies and clothes...there's probably only one round left now of things we may have missed...and we should be able to knock those out pretty easily...hehe...,
so that feels fabulous!

True.....hmmmmm.....I just taught Savannah what erroneous means :)

Let the learning begin!

Ding, ding, ding!

Pardon My Dust

...."It took Him just a week to make the moon and the stars, the sun and the Earth, and Jupiter and Mars...how loving and patient He must be...He's still working on me."

A Trust Fall

Habakkuk 3:17-19, in The Message version, says:

"Though the cherry trees don't blossom and the strawberries don't ripen, though the apples are worm-eaten and the wheat fields stunted, though the sheep pens are sheepless and the cattle barns empty, I'm singing joyful praise to God.  I'm turning cartwheels of joy to my Savior God, counting on God's rule to prevail, I take heart and gain strength, I run like a deer, I feel like I'm king of the mountain!"

Placing complete trust in God is so freeing!  From it, joy colors everything we see....how could we laugh at the days ahead without it?  We would either need to be completely insane or have faith that GOD is who He says He is and it is all in His hands....(which may be perceived as insanity....but, is perfectly wonderful!)  Side note:  I saw my doctor's file for me today and I thought it said INSANE on it from a distance....I scooted closer to see it and it actually said INSNAME (I am assuming that stands for Insurance Name....but, it made me do a double take...haha!)

Warning:  You should never practice a trust fall alone....that would be insane...BUT, since God is always with you, feel free to fall into His arms!

Need A Boost?

Hahaha!  Okay, so this girl just called in to where I work at Spring Arbor University asking if she could bring a crock pot with her to college...I MUST MEET HER!....that is great!  That is going to give me smile power all day!  GOD'S HUMOR...LOVE IT!

Shall I Compare Thee To My Crock Pot?

The cooler weather we have been experiencing has started my fall food cravings....I know, it's a little early to give up summer days, but....  On Sunday, I put a roast in the crock pot with carrots and red potatoes and I couldn't wait to open the door after church.  I love the response I get when everyone smells it....(they pretty much melt at the door...I think it is a better response than the oooos and ahhhhs at the fireworks :)....and that it is ready for eating without much preparation...yahoo!  I am always looking for easy and quick recipes that everyone in my family will eat....that can be so challenging....but, I am so thankful for the invention of the crock pot.

But, a pot roast will definitely happen for my family!  When Brad and I dated, he made fun of me for how much I loved crock pots (even then), so I made a book for him....It was a love story starring a crock pot...

(I attribute some of my success in finally winning him over to that piece of fine literature....

I think it made him a little jealous :)

Since there are seven people in our family, we all take a day of the week to bless the food for our family meal together.  Brad has Sundays.  So, yesterday, we all bowed our heads to pray and Kassi blurted out, 

"Dad, don't make this a long prayer!"

Apparently, 

Thou art more...

..long-winded than necessary on pot roast Sunday :)

But, First....

First

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbWQV3OiRqA

All your reward lies in this one thing.

I love that our God enjoys revealing mysteries to us....giving us wisdom and understanding as we walk with Him...surprising us with goodness....sometimes giving us a challenge or, even pain, so that we will learn something new about ourselves and see, in better clarity, our relationship and our desperate need for Him.  

I also love that He uses stories, imagery, and analogies in scripture and prophecy to captivate us and cause us to want to search for the deeper meanings.  We are studying current events, prophecy, and history in a Sunday evening Bible study and it is so interesting to put it all together....I always want to come home and do more research into what the Bible says about certain things.  Then, I want to go to Israel on one of those archaeological digs...I have a place in mind :)  For instance, Jesus said when the temple was destroyed, not one stone would be left on another.  And a historian from that time period, Josephus, went to Jerusalem after the destruction of the temple and said if he had not known where the temple had been, there would be nothing left to show him it's location.  So, are we, in our current understanding of the area of the temple mount location, incorrect?  How could there still be walls left there if not one stone was left upon the other?  Just saying....and that is just one of the details of scripture we have studied.  Anyway, it is sooooo interesting and I do think that God has hidden many things from us that He will reveal at the right time and we will be so amazed.  I believe we are living in really exciting times for what we will see God reveal to us!  There will be extremely hard times....but, we always have more to look forward to than anything we will experience.

Today, our pastor talked about trusting God and embracing His plan even when times are tough and an outcome looks bleak....my mind wandered to M. Night Shyamalan because of his fame in making movies with crazy twists...he has a new one coming out soon that looks pretty terrifying from the trailer...anyway, I have enjoyed some of his movies for how unpredictable and intense they are, but I cannot really trust M. Night Shyamalan to give me an ending full of redemption....to make the nightmare go away...even if he does that in a couple movies. So I get goosebumps when I think of seeing one of his movies because it scares me where he may take me and, honestly, where I may end up....NOT SO WITH GOD....we may still walk an incredibly crazy journey with disturbing scenes and even stuff of nightmares, but WE CAN TRUST HIM to bring us all the way through it.  His promises are true....He is completely faithful and reliable!

The Third Second...

I think this would be a great topic of discussion or at least consideration...create your own ending to this phrase....."You will not be in heaven two seconds before ______________."

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthy nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.  You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.  But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.  Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.  Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful.  Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.  And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

~Colossians 3:1-17~

I wonder how many seconds of gratefulness we will experience before we can even speak?...I'm just thinking I may have to adjust the timing a bit...be blessed today!

Elephants In The Room

I got to work on Hopetown a little more this morning....I added some vinyl animals to the nursery.  A lady wandered in after I had affixed them to the walls and asked me if I had painted them....hahaha!

I WISH!  Hmmmm...WHAT SHOULD I SAY?

No, I did not paint them....but I did have to have a little skill to get them on the walls without wrinkles and bubbles....(well, beyond what wrinkles elephants are supposed to have, right?!).... those vinyl sheets can be boogers!  Getting the correct placement of the tail, foot, and trunk gave me some fits... I think I had to restart the smoothing out process four times.

No offense to the elephants.....I do feel sorry for elephants in the room....
makes me just want to blurt out,
"HELLO THERE!" :P

Other than that, I felt like I stepped into the Blue Period with Pablo Picasso because that was the only color I painted today through the hallway....lots of water and a couple blue buildings while I listened to the Piano Guys CD....actually, painting to the Piano Guys music is pretty fantastic!  Some buildings had been started, but they were all black.  I was considering just painting a bat signal in the sky and calling it a day :P, but thought I might want the city scene to be a little brighter and whimsical, so I started to add some color to the buildings.  Then I had to laugh because the Piano Guys CD actually started playing the Batman Theme song.  IT'S A SIGN!...hehe....I love when things like that happen! 

Batman Evolution

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skVo8AYWRYk 

Privileges

We had a great time at the Lugnut's game last night.  Brad always enjoys getting a little spoiled by being introduced before the game and having a chance to eat in the Clubhouse way above us all :)  Usually, I get to accompany him, but this year I told him he should start giving the girls a chance to go up there and be so privileged (besides, what Karly and I wanted to eat is not served in the Clubhouse....that kind-of deletes or negates my entirely selfless act, right?)...anyway, Savannah wanted to go up there....I was thinking, man, it will take him 5 years to give each of the girls that privilege....ha!  Anyway, my name was on the name tag, so that made it a little awkward for Savannah.....she had to wear "HI, MY NAME IS Heather" :)

But, she still enjoyed the privilege :P  Then, when they returned, she was still wearing that name tag and a bunch of people from our church were joking with her and said they want to be Heather too....yep, that is a privilege :)

Everyday is beautiful simply because God is in it...

but, this day seems pretty perfect to me :)

(Watch, now I'll get hit with a fly ball because the sun is in my eyes...haha!  

I have a weird phobia of that happening ever since it almost did a couple years ago.)

"Buy Me Some Peanuts And Cracker Jacks"....

"I don't care if I"... know who's at bat...

(see how that lyric could also fit the tune? :)

Is it bad that I am already planning what I am going to eat at the ballpark during breakfast?

While you're at it, buy me one of those #1 fan foam fingers...ha!

and....have a happy Friday!

"With You...No Moment Is Wasted"

This Is Living

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFR-tV2whAU

The first part of Philippians 1:21 says, "To live is Christ"...simple statement, profound meaning!

Spare Time

Yesterday was a bit of an adventure....when I got out of work and was on the way to pick up the girls the little light on Iron Van's dash lit up to tell me my tire pressure was low.  When I got to their home, I checked the tires and one of the back tires was almost flat.  Man!...all these things happen when Brad is gone, right?!  Thankfully, Brad's dad had an air compressor and filled it back up for me so I could take it to get the tire changed.  Then, he followed me on my adventure to try to find a place that could change it or fix it for me.  Finally, the third place we stopped said they could get to it in an hour.  I was supposed to meet Brad at Youth Haven later to help lead worship, so Fred switched cars with me and told me he would wait for my van to get finished and we could switch back the next day.  That was a relief!  FRED TO MY RESCUE!  THANKS, GRANDPA FRED!

And it gave me enough spare time to finish a project I have been working on while Brad has been gone...

HAHA!  Totally kidding....Karly said, "Mom, you look like a chopper!"....and Danielle said, "except for the shoes!"  :)  Anyway, I got home and the "tree experts" had been at my house taking down four trees and trimming branches away from the power lines.  I was soooooo excited because this means I am one step closer to the wedding garden plan.  Since Brad was gone, I thought it would be funny to get this picture and tell him I had been working on a little something :P   

The permanence blog made me think of one time when McKenna was about three years old and got her hands on a black Sharpie marker.  She decorated her bedroom walls, bedspread, sheets, and herself :P  I wish I had taken a picture of it all because now that would be priceless, but we did get a video of the room before we cleaned it and some footage of her realizing she was probably in big trouble where she starts crying and puts a blanket over her head because she doesn't want us to see her...somehow they are completely safe and have disappeared under that blankie, right? :P

Silence is golden unless you have toddlers....then it is probably Sharpie marker stained :)

Don't worry...it's just a rite of passage for all involved.

I think it is funny that this tutorial picture does not include kids :)

Permanence

Lots of things in life feel like they slip through our hands...whether that is stuff we love that wears out or gets broken, relationships that change or people moving in and out of our sphere of influence by our choices or theirs, or just needing to adjust our priorities as we move through life. Other times people we love pass away and we grieve that loss for a long time.  It makes sense that these things happen even though it is painful.  We live in a temporary world right now and everything we can think of probably can be traced back to a tiny grain of dirt or sand as it began.  The pain of loss serves as a great reminder that we are not home yet.  I know that sounds cliche and I don't want it to just pass by you in the way that familiar words get dismissed.  Our real home will have everything we have ever dreamed of...not in stuff so much but in the fulfillment we lack in our day to day struggle to live, love, and find delightful purpose in it all.  I think we all truly do want to make a difference, so the reality of living in a temporary world can be frustrating on the days it seems like the things we've worked for get blown away.

Here's an awesome thing about GOD.....HE IS ETERNAL....and, even though we are not eternal in our flesh, He doesn't want us to slip through His hands and perish, so He actually engraved us on His hands.  Our GOD made us a permanent part of His eternal SELF. :)  I don't know about you, but I need something permanent to hold on to, so I am extremely grateful for this attribute of my God!

 
And, we are never just "spinning our wheels" as long as we are doing the Will of God.  Remaining in Him and living through Him will produce eternal goodness.  Don't let what you see discourage you in this...the eternal is not visible to our eyes, but it can be understood with our hearts.

A Song To Start Your Day

You can sing along if you want to :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWzU_RsBe5k

The Worthwhiles Of Today

I have been driving the younger three girls around a lot lately to be at their grandparents while I work and then out to where Brad and the other girls are for their mission project in the evening, so we have had some interesting conversations in the van...we talked about curse words and why we don't use them verses words we just choose as a family not to use, but aren't technically cussing...just more descriptive or harsher than necessary for a conversation meant to build into others instead of tear them down.  Kassi, Danielle, and Karly are pretty concrete thinkers, so if something is wrong....it is absolutely wrong for everyone.  It can be a challenge to teach kids that there is absolute truth....but, also areas where people should make their own choices and that not all our choices will match everyone else.

Then, today the girls were voting on whether they wish they could be little again or be moms :)  Then they voted on who just wants to skip the school years and be moms....it was unanimous....they either want to be really little or be moms, but no one wants to be in the HERE AND NOW learning what it will take to go to the next stage of life.....why do we tend to think yesterday or tomorrow is always better than today? I think it is just something about human nature to feel like this...

Instead, we should be SO CONFIDENT of the worth....our worth as an extension of our Creator's worth... that we can rest in it and enjoy each day for what it is.  I'm really talking to myself with this....I have plans....hopes....expectations....and I let all those things make me anxious because somehow I start to equate my worth to the successful accomplishment of all these things.  When I allow that anxiety to overtake me, I do not see all the worthwhiles of today.

For a while now, I have been challenging myself not to miss out on THIS DAY.

John 10:10

Happy Tuesday!...in case you need a little more life in your day :)

There is a weight to God's glory....I hope you have felt it more than once.....when there is conviction of sin or healing....when we are given a holy burden for others....when we find ourselves in His presence as we pray or He illuminates something in His Word for us...I feel it often when I am lost in worship....I don't like saying lost for that....more like in the moments I am not distracted with  anything else and am focused in on praising Him......it is almost impossible to describe because nothing can compare, but it is a magnificent weight!  Tonight, the lesson for our youth was on the glory of God and how we often trade the true glory of God for shadows or images of the real thing.

Your Presence Is Heaven

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOYVLX0GtaI

I was thinking about a few things I have heard or read in devotions lately and I was thinking what if Jesus actually came and sat down with me on the couch in my living room and what if He just looked at me and said, "I love you"....what is that worth to me....what is the weight of that?  That has so much weight....I don't think I would ever be satisfied with anything less.  Like, I have a heavy blanket on my bed....I like it for the softness, but also the weight...some friends from Israel gave it to us as a wedding present and I have never found an equal.  Even in the summer I have to have that weight because I don't sleep well without it.  For me, once I experienced the weight of God's glory, I want to continue in it.  Those moments of sitting with Jesus and knowing we are loved are incredible.  I got the privilege of attending a conference with Savannah one time where the beautiful weight of God's glory totally affected her and impressed upon her how much God loves her...I have had that happen a lot for myself, but I was amazed to watch that happen for her.  Experiencing His love for us and for others is part of how we get caught up in His glory.  Getting a taste of his glory, then craving it..... giving Him glory while being wrapped up in His glory....it is a mystery that is the core of who we are in Christ.

More amazing still is that the glory of His presence is always available to us....how often do we underestimate the weight of that?

Unlikely....Yet, Unforgettable

When Friends Are Family

Everybody needs a matching BFF :)  I totally had one, Stephanie Mullins, I have a picture somewhere of us all ready to go to a concert with matching outfits, and black hats on top of late 80's hair....we rocked!

This kid cracked me up today....he covered himself with seaweed and acted like a sea zombie creature :)  

After our Sunday morning service, a bunch of people from our church met out at Pleasant Lake for our annual baptism service.  We had a great time picnicing together and celebrating baptism with several of our members and their families.

The view in the opposite direction....we had a great turnout of people to celebrate this occasion.  There are a lot of great churches out there, but I LOVE being a part of this family of God!

A little too grown up to do the matching thing....and they say hugging is awkward, but they are so cute!  Aren't we thankful for our BFFs at every age!!  I am so happy that my girls have great friends!

After the awesome time at the lake, we headed to Youth Haven to practice our worship sets for a youth camp that will be meeting there this week.  Brad and I are privileged to be leading the worship time....then, since we did not have Bible Study tonight due to an extra long service/ baptism celebration, I took the youngest three out to do some back to school shopping.

It feels great to have Kassi, Danielle, and Karly all set for supplies....Danielle's list alone required us  to get 14 folders....and that was just one item on her list.... now I just have to buy for Vannah and Kenna....and then tackle clothes and shoes....YIKES!