I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

And I'm pretty sure that's what I'm getting. If anyone has been watching the news you've seen the "Blizzard of '09" that hit the mid-atlantic and up the East Coast. This is the same blizzard that hit yesterday, which just happens to be the day we left for - you guessed it - Connecticut. Which just happens to be on the East Coast.

We are going through Pennsylvania here. Not a lot of snow but I thought it was a pretty picture.

Same here.

Here we are in New Jersey just starting to hit the storm. It got much worse while we were driving but it became too dark to take pictures. We were down to about 20 mph and still sliding all over. We saw all kinds of snow plows and salt trucks. Apparently they are union and it was break time because they were all lined up on the side of the road watching everyone slide off the road and crash.

Here's what we woke up to this morning. You can't see it in the picture but it is still snowing. There is supposed to be 2 to 3 feet before it stops.


I bet you can guess what Robbie is doing. Can you see how happy he is to be doing it?

The Road Less Traveled

Wintertime always reminds me of my favorite poet Robert Frost. Maybe it is his name and the weather here that does it. I don't know. But, in honor of the fact that it is winter, and it's Monday afternoon I am going to put up my favorite poem from him.

I'm also posting these pictures of the girls taken in Plymouth Rock since this is where our forefathers landed when they took the road less traveled.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood,
and I-- I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference

What about you?

It's the first snowfall of the season and the kids are having fun with it.


Yep, they always enjoy bundling up nice and warm and going out when the first snow comes.

But what about those kids that have to go out in it, or want to go play in it, and don't have that nice warm jacket or the snow pants or the gloves or the hat or the boots or the....well, you get the idea. What do they do to stay warm? How do they keep their feet dry? Their ears covered so they don't get ear infections? Their body warm when the weather is so cold that when it touches an unexposed part of you it physically hurts?

The answer is whatever they can. And it is never enough. They put on an extra pair of clothes hoping to keep a little warmer, they huddle close to each other, they cover their ears with their hands because they would rather not feel their fingers than let the air get into their ears. This is the reality for so many kids right now. How do I know? Because I've seen them. I've seen the ones walking to and from school when I take Hannah to hers in a nice warm car. There are many kids who have no choice but to walk no matter what the weather is. I know - I've SEEN them. I've seen the ones standing at the bus stop with watery eyes and runny noses turning their backs to the wind to try and stay out of the worst of it. Yes, I've seen them and I have done what I could to help. We donate jackets, hats, gloves, and scarves when there are coat drives. We send in a couple of cans of food when there is a food drive. We put our spare change into the Salvation Army kettle when we go by it. And then I feel pretty good about myself because I've helped someone else.

This year I realized that although we were helping out we weren't doing it with the right spirit. Yes, we donated items but only stuff we didn't want anymore whether it was clothing or food. We put change in but only what we didn't really need. We never made a donation that would cause a sacrifice. Did it still help people who needed it? Yes, it did. But did it really come from our desire to make someone's life better? Or our desire to honor God for what He's given us by giving back? No, it did not. This season it is different. We have looked around and seen the suffering and the poverty happening in our own town. Everyone knows that Detroit has been hit especially hard and the children are the ones suffering for it. At church this weekend the pastor told us about a school in Detroit that has 650 students and, out of those 650 kids, 95% of them do not have coats. Do the math - that is 618 out of 650 children who have no way to stay warm this winter. That is an unbelievable, staggering amount.

So, this year we are making sacrifices. Not big ones, we still have our coats and shoes and food and Christmas presents. But we have all agreed that there are too many people out there who need basic necessities for us to keep buying things we don't really need. Want, yes. Need, no. Instead of getting lots of presents like they are used to the girls have agreed to one present each so that we can make sure there's another family out there who can provide a Christmas for their own children. We are spending less on groceries so that we can donate to the coat drive for those 618 kids that have no protection against the bitterly cold winters we have here. Are we doing this to feel good about ourselves again this year? Am I writing this to toot my own horn? No, this year it is about helping others feel good and letting them know that there is someone out there who cares about them. This is a difficult time of year for a lot of people and they deserve a little extra help and compassion. We may not be doing much but we are doing what we can. What about you?

Existing

The best moments in life are when we are happy just because we exist

Sunday Afternoons

What better way to top off a Sunday morning at church than by

spending

Sunday afternoon

doing our

favorite things

And now, I'm off to do mine. Look out stores - here I come.

working for the tree

When these kids were told that we were going to the tree farm for a x-mas tree they were all excited. Until they found out it was a cut it yourself tree farm. After that they only had two things to say.

You mean we have to cut it ourselves?

We have to carry it ourselves too?

You're welcome kids. I hope you enjoyed every minute of it. I know I sure had fun watching you work for it!

forgiveness

Today I want to talk about forgiveness and grace. These issues have been heavy on my heart recently and I feel that God is pressing me to write about them. Disclaimer: I am not in any way qualified to give advice or be any type of therapist. I am simply responding to what God has put on my heart.
First off, let me say that whether you are a believer or not God's grace covers everyone. But it is up to you to accept that grace and then live your life accordingly. Secondly, we have all sinned and fallen short. There is not one of us who doesn't need forgiveness - from others, from ourselves and most importantly, from God. However, God is the only one who freely gives that forgiveness. And yet most of us live our lives believing the lie that our "sin" is so great God couldn't possibly forgive us. We think "if God only knew what we really did He would never forgive me". But he does know and He is waiting to offer you forgiveness - you just have to ask for it and then accept it. That is grace. Don't believe me? Here are some verses that show us God's promises.
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9
"I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins. Put Me in remembrance; let us contend together; state your case, that you may be acquitted."Isaiah 43:25-26
"Come now and let us reason together," says the Lord,"Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow."Isaiah 1:18
"Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." Hebrews 10:17
Did you read that? "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." God has told us in His own words that if we confess He will forgive us and wipe from His memory our sins and transgressions. We are the ones who cannot forgive, either ourselves or others. And we are hardest on ourselves.
Yes, we may say we forgive but unless we also forget we haven't truly forgiven. Everyone has heard the old saying "I can forgive but I won't forget". I believe that not forgetting can be beneficial in the sense that we learn from history in order to not make the same mistake again. However, you must be willing to forget enough that you can truly forgive, enough that the old hurts and recriminations don't keep popping into your head. I am not talking about forgiving others, although that is also necessary for total healing, I am talking about forgiving yourself. When we cannot forget, when we go back and relive over and over, all the things we have done in this life then we are opening ourselves up to an attack by the enemy.
We are allowing him a foothold in our lives that will prevent the spirit of God from coming in. There is not room for both and God will not force His way in, He will knock and wait for you to open the door. Satan wants nothing more than to prevent that and so he takes up residence first and does everything in his power to stay there. We must recognize that the recriminations, the guilt, the if only's, are Satan's way of ensuring his place in your life and God's place out of it.
We must then come to a place where we can confess our sins to God, ask for forgiveness, receive God's grace and decide that from this day forward we are made new and this is the first day of the rest of our lives. We must then live that way. That doesn't mean that we get on our knees every night and ask God to forgive us for living contrary to His word that day. It means that we get on our knees every morning, and all day long if need be, and ask God to give us the strength to live a life pleasing to Him, with thoughts and actions that are in sync with His word. Yes, we will fail sometimes. But when we humble ourselves before Him and admit that we can't do it on our own then God will be with us. God's word promises that He will never leave us nor forsake us. However, nowhere does it say that He will take the first step for us. We have to step out in faith to show God that we trust Him.
So, for those of you who are struggling with forgiveness and self-loathing please know that God does not desire for us to look back and wallow in our old sins or self pity. He desires us to forgive, to ask for forgiveness, to admit our weaknesses, and to then stand up, accept the grace He has given us, press forward and start living a life that is pleasing to Him. I would like to leave you with words of encouragement. I pray that these words would touch your heart and allow you to move into the place of worship that God desires to meet you at.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6
"Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world" 1 John 4:4
"For I know the plans I have for you" declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Under the big top

TIGERS....

and ELEPHANTS.....

and PEOPLE, oh my....

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore...

Oh wait, it's just the circus