Blackout

I also just received this email. Worth forwarding along!


BLACK OUT


On October 29th Barack Obama has purchased prime time on CBS and NBC to talk to the American people. Please join with us in turning off your television sets during this prime time speech to express our belief that elections should not be "bought" with money from the Hollywood elites andForeign funds that have no place in American politics. Please pass this onTo all your friends and relatives - let's make our voices heard - let's see how many people we can reach with our message. Remember turn off your television sets on October 29th beginning at 8:00PM (EST) for 30 minutes!!! Thanks and keep it going.

Who Would Jesus Vote For?

I just received this in an email. I hope that whoever wrote it to begin with intended for it to be shared.

This is the best political advice I have received.
WHO WOULD JESUS VOTE FOR?

1. Jesus would not vote according to his "pocketbook." 1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.Philippians 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

2. Jesus is Pro Life. Jeremiah 1:5 Before you were formed in the body of your mother I had knowledge of you, and before your birth I made you holy... Matthew 19:14 But Jesus said, Suffer the little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

3. Jesus is not tolerant of the homosexual lifestyle. Romans 1:27-28 And in the same way the men gave up the natural use of the woman and were burning in their desire for one another, men doing shame with men, and getting in their bodies the right reward of their evil-doing. And because they had not the mind to keep God in their knowledge, God gave them up to an evil mind, to do those things which are not right...

4. Jesus would not vote for anyone who has interests in other religions besides Christianity. John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

5. Jesus is against welfare (the church should provide for people's needs). 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.

6. Jesus is pro Israel . Nehemiah 13:2 Because they did not give the children of Israel bread and water when they came to them, but got Balaam to put a curse on them: though the curse was turned into a blessing by our God. Genesis 12:2-3 I will make of you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great. You will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you. All of the families of the earth will be blessed in you.???

7. Jesus knows who really controls the economy. Matthew 6:31-34 So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

8. Jesus is not worried about social security or the stock market. Matthew 6:19-20 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

It all comes down to this. We need God in America again. Our economy, our children, our marriages, etc. need healing. While neither candidate looks to be a strong Christian candidate - as a nation which one will lead us closer to God and not farther away?

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

As Christians, who we vote for does matter to God!

Romans 14:11-12 As surely as I live,' says the Lord, every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.' So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

I'm a Christian and I approve of this message

God is sooooo good.....

The Lord is doing some amazing things in our lives right now. We are about to head out to my nieces birthday party. It's a 2 hour drive and they are an hour ahead, so a 10:00 party means we have to leave very early to get there. So, I don't have time to go into much detail right now, but I will try to post more later.

I hope everyone has an amazingly blessed day!

Happy Birthday Kaitlyn

I just finished making part of my nieces birthday gift. This is my first attempt at something like this and I think it turned out pretty well. I think I will definitely do it again. In case you can't see it well, it is a pink University of Alabama fabric.

Public Blog

I have set my blog back to public. I briefly set it to private so that I could talk about P's trip without advertising to the world that we were home without him. I have however changed most of my posts to include only initials of the names of my family. So here is what they are:
Husband = P or Hubby
1st born twin girl = KH
2nd born twin girl = KG
son = M

Are You a Titus 2 woman

Last night at M&M's Pastor Gretchen mentioned women mentoring other women and I recalled something that I had learned at our homeschool Mom's retreat last year. Our theme was Titus 2 and someone mentioned that at the time Titus was written the life expectancy was very low (20-40). So most of us would already be considered "older" women, by those standards.

So, the question that I began to ask myself, that maybe others should as as well is this: "Am I sitting around waiting for some more mature woman to come pour into me, because I feel so dry, or am I digging into the Word and abiding in the Lord to quench my thirst, so that I can pour into others? The gist of it is this, are most of my thoughts about me and what other people could be doing for me, or about others and what I could be doing for them?"

Created to Be His Help Meet~Chapter 1

I just started reading Created to Be His Helpmeet and thought I would share my notes from each chapter. They may seem rather random, but that's the kind of note taker that I am and I will be typing this exactly as I have it written.

~Regardless of what kind of person you have been in the past, with instructions from God's word, you can become a heavenly sent gift bride. You can still be your man's dream come true and in the process your dreams will come true also.

~A man who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor with God. Proverbs 18:22

~You were created to make him complete.

~If God created a special woman perfectly suited to be my husband's helper, would I be that woman?

~When you are a helper to your husband, you are a helper to Christ.
When you obey your husband, you obey God.
When you honor your husband, you honor God.
The degree to which you reverance your husband is the degree to which
you reverance your Creator.
As we serve our husbands, we serve God.
When you dishonor your husband, you dishonor God.

~ Who said anything about what your husband deserves?

~ It is better that the job be done poorly by your husband, than to be done well by you.

~ His place of authority does not make him better, it simply means that we are here to help him do his job better.

~If he can trust you he will make you his closest advisor, his confidante, etc.

~ A perfect help meets readiness to please motivates her to look around and see things she knows her husband would like to see done and do them.

~Meet-suited, suitable, proper, due, useful
A helper suitable
A helper suited to him
A proper helper
A useful helper
The helper that is due him

~ Virtue-a virtuous woman is far above rubies Proverbs 31:10
Graciousness - a gracious woman retains honor Proverbs 11:16
Wisdom - she opens her mouth with wisdom Proverbs 31:26
Prudence-a prudent wife is from the Lord Proverbs 19:14
(Prudent=discreet )
Goodness=Virtue

~A good help meet has a passion to be of service, first to her husband and children, then to others.

Mexico - Tuesday

I talked to P last night and things are about the same. He didn't sound very good, but he said he was just tired, wet and cold. They had just been caught in a torential downpour and it was about 10:30p.m. and the climate is fairly cool there. My brother said that two people in the villages came to know the Lord yesterday. They expect to have a more laid back day today and get a little more much needed rest. It's so hard not being able to talk to him, but right now when he calls we are spending about $1.49 a minute on our cell phone. I dread seeing the bill at the end of the month. I miss him so much, but we were busy yesterday and that helped. We will be pretty busy the next few days, so maybe it will get a little easier. Please continue to pray.

Mexico - Monday

So, it's 11:20 p.m. and I just talked to P for the first time since 5:30 yesterday. We talked for a total of probably no more than 5 minutes. My sister-in-law is still waiting to hear from my brother. Apparently the guys got up this morning at 4:30 and did not get back in until around 11:00 tonight. P said that they hiked down into a valley and visited some villages today. They will be getting up at 4:30 again tomorrow, but he is unsure of what their schedule will be. I asked him how they are eating and he said sparsely. Some meals they are eating well and others not so well. He said that he is totally exhausted. They will be fasting breakfast and lunch tomorrow. Sometimes he has trouble with his blood sugar when he doesn't eat well, so please be praying about that. He did say that some things got changed in their schedule so they may not be as busy on Wednesday as they thought and we may have a little more time to talk to him.

On the homefront the kids seem to be doing well. I am having a pretty tough time. I miss my husband soooooo much. It seems like he has been gone a really long time already. Please continue to pray for the mission team and their families.
Thanks!

Mexico - Sunday

Well, it looks like we will be talking to our spouses very, very little. I did not hear from P Saturday night. A couple of wives spoke to their husbands but for only one or two minutes. Yesterday he called me around 4:30 and I missed the call. I was sick over it, but he called me back an hour later. He talked to me and the children and we were on the phone less than 10 minutes. My brother called my sister-in-law last night and they were only able to talk for 5 minutes. So far the only way that they are calling is by cell phone and only one of their cell phones work down there, so everyone is borrowing another guys phone to talk. It's hard to glean much info about what is going on when you can barely talk to anyone. What I know so far is that they had probably the most laid back day that they are going to have yesterday. They went to one church. P said that their were about 75 people there and that Britt said there were more Indians there than usual. Which is good, because that is who they are desiring to minister to the most. They were also able to go to the market a couple of times yesterday. I think some of them did a little souvenir shopping. They were able to get in bed at a somewhat decent time, but had to be up by 4:30 this morning. As I understand it they will have to be up by 4:30 every morning. They will go to 3 churches everyday and will be walking most everywhere they go. They were told to wear waterproof shoes and bring rain gear, so they will be out in the elements. They were told that their would be a phone that they could use and they could also email. I suspect that being men, none of them have asked about that yet. Hopefully someone will today. That way all of them will not be relying on one phone to contact home, although as busy as they are going to be they still probably will not be able to talk to us for very long. They will be fasting Tuesday and Thursday, some of us have discussed fasting on thosed days as well. Please pray for strength, energy and endurance for them. Pray for peace in each of their homes and especially that they would reach many and God's will would be done.

The Past Few Days

.....have been very emotional ones. Starting with the emotion that came with our church family praying over the mission team and their families. Then it's just been a whirlwind of emotion, thinking about missing each other, thinking about the unknown, worrying(only slightly) and wondering, and being excited, and getting prepared. Needless to say we are all a bit raw right now, but in such a good way. I could see before he even left, God at work in my husband. I have seen lessons that my children are learning as a result of their Daddy's obedience. I am so proud of him. You would have to know him as well as I do to understand how difficult this must be for him. He doesn't do change, he's a creature of habit and leaving the country for the mission field is not one of his habits. My children gave him letters that they had written and we had a sweet time of prayer before he left. We held hands and each of us prayed for his safety and the people that they will be reaching out to. It was another very emotional time for all of us.

I've done well so far. Being without him is very hard for me. This is the first time that he has been away when I didn't know when he was going to call me or even when I couldn't just pick up the phone and call him. Usually when he is gone he calls me at bedtime and we talk until we're sleepy. It may seem silly, but after 13 years I'm so thankful that we still feel this way about each other. I can think of a million cliches that would describe the way we feel, but the best explanation is that we are one. He completes me and when he is gone, I feel exposed, incomplete, unsettled. I miss him terribly already, but I am so thankful that God chose him for this, that He has been preparing him and He is going to use him. I'm so thankful that Patrick was willing to be obedient even when it was hard for him to be, and I'm thankful that he wants to be used while he's there, but also wants to glean everything that he possibly can.

Please pray for their safety and that they will reach many for the kingdom.
Thank you.

Teaching the Books of the Bible

I found a great resource for teaching your children the books of the Bible. Mine already know a song for the New Testament, but we needed an Old Testament song. The girls are really big enough to learn them without a song, so this is most helpful for Mason. Anyway, just thought I would share it.

Books of the Bible Memory Helps

Prayer for Mexico

Tonight we had such a sweet time of prayer over the men that are leaving for Mexico on Saturday. The people of our church laid hands on the men and prayed over them and our families. Pastor Greg went to each man personally and prayed over them. It's always so obvious that he hears from the Lord. What he had to say to P was so relevant and so much of it matched what we have been praying for the trip and our lives. Pastor Greg also asked the church to remember the families and check up on us while our husbands are away. It was so powerful. Please continue to pray. The men will leave this Saturday and return the following Saturday, we will be able to post very little, but I will update you all as I can.

I do think I will make my blog temporarily private.

Great Quote

"Jesus did not promise to change the circumstances around us. He promised great peace and pure joy to those who would learn to believe that God actually controls all things."
~Corrie Ten Boom

****************************************************
I posted the above quote earlier today, then tonight Pastor Greg said something that I think goes along well with this one, so I thought I would share it.

"God wants to teach us self-control when we are in the midst of situations where we have no control."
~Pastor Greg Devries

This Weeks Happenings

We are having an interesting week around here. Financial Peace classes were canceled for Monday night, there is nothing scheduled for Tuesday night and we are on fall break from co-op this week, so our schedule for the week has been much lighter than usual. We are spending our time (mostly in our pajamas) doing schoolwork, catching up on housework and enjoying spending time with P while we prepare him for his trip. I have mixed emotions about the coming week. I know I will miss him terribly and I'm definitely praying for his safety and ours while he is away, but I'm also so excited about what the Lord is going to do in Mexico. I can't wait for him to return and tell me all about what he experienced and how God moved while they were there. Seems silly to be anticipating his return before he has even left. The kids and I are planning on getting lots of stuff done around the house while he is away, so he can come home and really relax. I also think we will be spending a lot of time with my sister-in-law next week. My brother is heading to Mexico as well and she will probably be staying with us a lot of the week. I also think that we will be going out Friday night with some really special friends of ours to see "Fireproof", I'm looking forward to that. We haven't been to the movies together in ages. Oh, and on the school front I have been convicted about how little Bible I was integrating into our days, so we are now doing devotions (this month on attitude), reading a story from our Eggermeier's(sp?) book and the scripture that goes along with it, memorizing books of the Bible, some verses, 1st catechisms and having prayer and sometimes worship time. We are also reading from "The Book of Virtues" right now from the chapter on self-discipline. I had forgotten how much we enjoyed that time when we were doing it before and we are all glad to be back on the right track. We will probably be adding some nighttime reading of the new testament (right now we are in the OT in the mornings) and starting a character training curriculum as a family in the evenings. It's called "The Narrow Way" and it's published by Pearables. I hope you all have a blessed week. Please be praying for the team as they prepare to head to Mexico.

Scripture Memory For Children

As a child I always struggled with memorization. I don't want my kids to have the same struggles and I really want the Word to be hidden in their hearts. So, we use the scripture memory method suggested at Simply Charlotte Mason. At first it may seem a bit complicated, but once you make your box you will understand and it has been extremely effective. I love that it continues to review past verses for a very long time. I have been looking for a list of suggested verses to learn. I found one today that I think is a great resource. It has them listed in age groups, but I will tell you that Mason learns most of what my girls are learning and he is 4 grades behind them. Just thought I would share this Parent Handbook for Scripture Memory with everyone. Hope you find it useful.