Happy Birthday To You!

Today is the best- Mom- in- the- world’s birthday! As of today, she is every bit of 29 years old…every bit! I called her a little while ago and sang to her in my best yucky, sinus infection voice…but that’s the crazy thing about Moms…she still liked it! Mom’s a little under the weather herself and if she doesn’t get better she might not get to come see me for Thanksgiving. Dad said he was coming anyway. I told him I’ve got her dressing recipe and her coconut pie recipe…he can take her a leftover plate. She didn’t like that idea at all! Then we offered to ALLOW her to make all our favorite dishes and just send them with him…she didn’t like that either! Then she proceeded to remind us that it was HER birthday and we should be sweet to her! LOL

Seriously, I appreciate my Mom for so many reasons. The main reason is that she has set such a great pattern for me to follow. Children learn by watching the people in their lives and I certainly did. There are so many times that I’ve been faced with a decision that became a non-decision because I could reach back and say, “Well, this is the way we did it at home, so this is the way I will do it now.”

Faithful church attendance was a non-decision for me because we were always at the house of God when the doors were open. (That included the revival services that lasted until mid-night!)

Serving in the church was a non-decision because Mom has played the piano (or organ) at Eastview for 28 years. We never got to church on time…we had to be at every service at least two hours early for practice. By the way: she’s never had a piano lesson in her life…The church she attended as a teenager didn’t have a pianist so one night she prayed and asked God to give her the ability to play. She got up from praying, sat down at the piano, and started picking out chords. The rest is history. Now, she’s the most anointed pianists I’ve ever heard. I love to hear her play! She also is the one who taught me to sing alto. She could hear it naturally but I had to be taught. Some of the best advice I’ve ever had about music ministry came from my Mom when I was a teenager. I was complaining about how some people on the praise team wouldn’t be faithful to practices but wanted to be on the stage for special services. I wasn’t a very strong alto so I was always sidelined. She told me to just be faithful and to keep doing what was right and that God would take care of me. She was right. One year later, I was on the platform every night for special revival services for 14 days straight! And it wasn’t because she maneuvered things for me behind the scenes. She knew God was faithful and she trusted me to His care.

Another thing I appreciate about her is that she has always had great love and respect for the ministry. We didn’t “have the Pastor for lunch”. What the Pastor preached, we lived…all the time. I remember being about 12 when I realized for the first time that not everyone in the church lived the way we did. I was shocked! Didn’t they hear the Pastor preach about that??? But it didn’t matter to Mom what anyone else was doing; we were going to do right. And we did. Different questions of standards have never been a problem with me because I have never seen my Mom do it, nor did she ever allow us to do it!

I know what Mom sounds like when she prays. I know what it is to walk in and see her reading her Bible. For most of my high school years, I woke every morning to the sound of her playing her piano and singing to the Lord. That was part of her devotion time. When Mom took me to school, she would take my hand and pray over me every time. Most nights we had prayer together as a family and on Friday nights (before we were old enough for youth service) we had family night. That was a big devotion night and we had sword (Bible) drills and played Bible trivia games. Once we were old enough for youth service, Mom probably spent so much money on gas taxiing me to youth services, youth rallies, campground services and anything else I asked to go to. She and Dad always made sure I had nice clothes to wear, even though we didn’t have much money. She probably curled and fixed my hair so many times she was sick of it! Every Saturday night was spent curling my hair in pink sponge rollers. Oh, the torture of pulling those sponge rollers out! Precious memories…how they linger!

Well, I could go on, but suffice it to say that I have learned so much from my Mom…she is my pattern, my benchmark for how I should live for God. She has lived for Him passionately for so many years and has helped me to know what a follower of Christ looks like. I love you, Mom…and today I rise up and call you blessed. I hope I can pass the pattern on to the young people and children in my life.

It's Monday...

It’s Monday and it’s raining. We got up at five this morning to get ready for our day...I taught my classes and actually got off close to the time I’m supposed to get off! Yay!

Yesterday’s services were really great…Last night Bro. Smith preached an awesome message about Tolerating the Inappropriate. I think it’s definitely General Conference worthy…everyone who calls themselves a Pentecostal should hear it.

But for me, I really enjoyed yesterday morning’s worship service. As Chris and I were leading the praise team, I just became overwhelmed with thankfulness to be in God’s house again. I say this often, but there are so many other places we could be…and I don’t just mean physically. We could be in sickness, or in an unhappy marriage, or in a storm of some kind, but right at that moment we have the privilege of being in God’s house, with God’s people in God’s presence. Contrary to what the world says, it really doesn’t get any better than that! The presence of the Lord was so sweet as we sang yesterday and I felt such a refreshing and faith. I knew that if someone could believe for a miracle, and was willing to act on that faith, God was there, ready to meet needs. It brought to mind an experience I had several years ago.

I had been fighting the flu or strep or some type of sickness in my body for several days but made myself go to church on a Wednesday night. To say that I did not feel good is an understatement. At the close of the service, Pastor called everyone around the front for a time of prayer and worship. I remember standing there and saying something along the lines of, “Lord, you know this is really a sacrifice for me. You know how bad I feel right now. Please help me. I don’t feel good.” Nothing earth shattering, nothing dramatic…just talking to Him. Suddenly, the Lord brought back to mind some good, old fashioned teaching I had heard in the past: anything can happen in an atmosphere of worship …I could lift my hands and without anyone laying hands on me, I could be healed because Jesus was there in the midst of my praise. So I did it. I raised my hands and began to worship the Lord and thank Him for my healing. Immediately, I began to feel different…sort of warm. As I continued to worship, I just became lost in His presence for a few minutes. When I finally stopped, I knew that I was healed. I wasn’t sick at all after that.

That was the type of faith I felt yesterday morning. I was so overwhelmed, I just had to stop and worship. I think it’s important for worship leaders to do that sometimes. It’s easy to get so caught up in doing things “right” that you forget how to relax and truly worship. In the middle of trying to remember the words (especially if the PowerPoint malfunctions), trying to remember the way the song goes (and where you can’t go with the song), and how many times you do this or what sign goes with that part, you also have to allow yourself to “connect” to the song. If you don’t believe what you’re saying, no one else will either. It also helps if you have a great partner who can carry and land the song with or without your help! (Luv you, Babe!)

This coming Sunday morning, I will again believe for miracles along with my Pastor and my church family. On Thursday, we will join together for a day of prayer and fasting and I know that God will honor it. I have found that desperation coupled with sincerity and childlike faith gets His attention like nothing else. He has done it for me many times and I know that He desires to do it for others, too.

It’s Monday…but Sunday's on the way.

It Makes all the Difference...All the Difference in the World!

Yay! What a great, relaxing weekend this has been… My husband actually had today off and my mom-in-law came to visit us! She got into town at 11:30 last night and we stayed up late visiting. Then we got up this morning and had a yummy breakfast, did some shopping, ate lunch and then came back to the house for a quiet, restful, afternoon.

This evening we enjoyed pork chops, baked carrots and broccoli cheese rice for dinner. Now we are sitting in front of the fire having caramel apple cake and visiting. Yeah, I know...we Texans will use any excuse we can find to have a fire!

I really enjoy spending time with my mom-in-law. She has so many wonderful qualities. One thing I love about her is that she is so humble. She doesn’t put on airs or try to be something she’s not. She’s also one of the hardest working people I’ve ever known. I also love how kind and compassionate she is towards everyone…one time (this is for you, Sis. Alba!) we were riding in the car with a loopy elderly person (who shall remain unnamed)and she and Jackie were in the backseat. They were having the nicest little chat and Jackie was even asking her advice on something. The elderly person kept repeating the phrase, “It makes all the difference...all the difference in the world!” To this day, Chris and I still laugh when anyone says, “It makes all the difference...all the difference in the world!”
Anyway, Jackie’s a great lady and I’m glad she’s my mom-in-law.

Well, now they’ve started playing a game and they want me to come join in the fun, so I guess I’ll sign off for now!

Yummmmm...

Technically, fall is here...although you can't tell it in Texas! So even though it's not cold yet, I'm already in the mood for soup!

Here is my favorite Corn Chowder recipe...it's my favorite because it's yummy and it's easy! It's also my favorite because Joel likes it better than Carrie's potato soup!!! LOL

Corn Chowder
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. butter
2 oz. cream cheese
1 can (14 3/4 oz.) cream style corn
6 oz. can cubed cooked ham (sometimes I use leftover fresh ham)
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) new potatoes (drained)
1 can (15 1/4 oz.) sweet corn
1 cup shredded smoked cheddar, swiss or gouda cheese
green onion slivers for garnish
salt, pepper, and other seasonings to taste

Stir all ingredients together in large pan over medium heat.
Bring to boil.
Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring regularly.
Simmer until you can't stand it anymore and just HAVE to eat it! (that's what I do!)

This recipe takes about 30 minutes to make and serves about 4 regular sized servings.

Enjoy!

Do any of you relate?

Mea Culpa!

Hey, everyone...I know it's been forever since I've written anything! I've been so distracted with getting back into the groove of things... I promise to do better! Keep checking back...you never know what I'll write next! I have several things "simmering" on the stove!

No Likey Ikey!

Yeah, I’m a wimp.
As I write this, I am in the comfort of my brother-in-law’s beautiful, air conditioned home in Mansfield, Tx (near Ft Worth).

Most of my friends are still in the Houston area suffering from the aftermath of Hurricane Ike. My husband and I were actually some of the more blessed ones: although our power was off, we still had running water, a gas stove and no structural damage or flooding.

Ike actually came through Conroe at around four a.m. My precious husband, fearing for our safety, actually made me a pallet of couch cushions in our interior bathroom and he slept on a pallet on the hallway floor. We were concerned that the huge oak tree in our backyard would end up in our bedroom or that the windows would blow out. Thankfully, neither of those things happened.

Most of the day Saturday we spent watching the storm – electricity went off sometime around six a.m. so there was nothing else to do! That evening, after things had calmed down, we ventured out to see the damage. We didn’t see any flooding but we saw lots of trees down, roofs damaged and power lines down.

We came home to a dark, hot house and had a wonderful meal of leftovers. We actually ate really well during this time mainly because we didn’t have anything else to do but cook, eat and wash dishes! I just bought groceries last week so we were in good shape where food was concerned.

To pass the time we played games, read books, took pictures, played with Caesar and listened to a battery operated radio. I actually got so bored at one point that I even made a parody video of a KTRH reporter covering Hurricane Ike…there’s only so much “Live and in depth team coverage!” a girl can take! And what’s up with reporters actually putting themselves in harm’s way to cover a story? Do they really think we’re so stupid that they have to demonstrate what NOT to do in case of a hurricane??? Anyway, we’ll see if I have the guts to post it here and give all of you proof of what a dork I am! LOL

Finally, after about 24 hours of no electricity (and hearing the mayor say we wouldn’t have any for 2-3 weeks) I told Chris that I thought this was an excellent opportunity to go see his family in the DFW area. Kevin and Melissa are expecting their first child in November and I really wanted to see them before she was due. Before Ike, we couldn’t find time to go see them, but now all we have is time – and besides I was hot and bored!

I know, I know – wah!!! Here I am complaining about being hot and bored while millions of people are standing in line for ice or gas or food.
I do feel really guilty about having such a good situation now, but the truth is I’m having a blast! Last night we went to TGIFridays to celebrate my mother-in-law, Jackie’s, birthday. We had such a good time with Kevin and Mel, Bro. and Sis. Miller (Melissa’s grandparents), Chris’ grandmother, Jordan and his girlfriend Christina, and Uncle Jim and Aunt Sarah. Today has been a wonderful, relaxing day. We’ve had a good breakfast, did a little running around and finally back home to play games. Tonight or tomorrow we will start cooking all the meat we brought with us to try to save as much of it as we can.

Please keep praying for everyone in the affected area. If you’ve never been in a similar situation you can’t believe how scary it is. For me, the lack of supplies wasn’t the hardest part because we were really well off compared to everyone else. What was hard for me was the knowledge that our basic needs had no way of being met. If we did run out of something or had some kind of need who would we call? Where would we go? The police were already overwhelmed, the hospital was no better off than we were (their generator failed), and all the stores were closed or had little product. Thankfully, we had plenty of fuel and traffic wasn’t bad on the way to Mansfield.

Also, please keep my parents in your prayers. They live in Lufkin and are suffering from Ike’s aftermath as well. They have purchased a generator but as many of you know generators can’t run a house full of electrical appliances.

If you are reading this and you are from the affected area please know that you are constantly in our thoughts and prayers. I wish I could bring all of you here with me and we could all sit around and play games together. Unfortunately, all I can do is pray for you and hope for the best.

To my church family: I love you all very much and miss you more than you know. I can’t wait until things are back to “normal” and we can all be together again in His house. Just thinking of you brings tears to my eyes – I can’t wait to see you!

Coming soon…a slideshow of our recent adventures!

True Confessions!

Ok, I have a confession to make. Full disclosure. Here it is. Ready?


I LIKE IKE! (Sort of)


See, it’s like this. My husband works retail; I teach school. We just don’t get a lot of time off at the same time. But since Ike is coming to town we’ve closed CCS, the store is closed and we’re staying HOME!

I am concerned for the safety of everyone in the area and we ourselves have taken precautions to prepare (we’re not in the mandatory evacuation area)…but YEA!!! I’m home with my sweetheart!!!

Last night, we actually had an “Ike and Harry” party! Harry is a good friend of ours who has been out of town working for the past couple of weeks so we invited him over for dinner. Harry was also kind enough to help Chris with some hurricane preparation work. We had lasagna and salad, iced tea, garlic toast, chocolate cake and Costa Rican coffee (thanks Paul and Stephanie!). We had such a good time… Good food, good company, good coffee…a good time had by all - what more could we ask for?

Today we made our final Ike preparations and now we’re just waiting for Ike to come in.

We did sleep late, had a big, delicious breakfast and have been playing toys with Caesar…and we definitely plan to take a fat nap later today!

I sincerely hope and pray that everyone is safe during this storm…but in the meantime we’re taking full advantage!

Here’s a slideshow of our Ike and Harry party…Enjoy!

The Ike and Harry Party!

Consistently and Correctly Stupid

All right, I’m fired up. You already know that I’m a high school teacher… but I’m not just any high school teacher. I love my kids and I believe in them and I get angry when I feel that they’re being attacked. Right now, I’m angry. We have good kids that attend our school and our church. They have the most amazing potential for greatness! They are smart, talented and very generous both with their time and their love for others. I know…”Every mama’s crow is the blackest”, or in my case “every teacher’s”, but mine really are! LOL Seriously, they are great kids, but they, and young people all over the world just like them, are under attack.

The other day I saw a headline referring to the Video Music Awards and purity rings. Well, VMA’s and purity rings in the same sentence??? You bet they had my attention! Apparently, a host of the VMA’s (I do not even stoop to give him Google hits on my page) spent a great deal of time slamming different celebrities who had publicly announced their commitment to remain morally pure until marriage. We don’t do purity rings, but if I understand correctly, they are a symbol of that commitment. As a young person growing up, I didn’t believe in wearing rings so I chose to symbolize my commitment to purity in a different, but no less tangible way. Below is the video of The Today Show spot that Meredith Vieira did on the subject.



Did she just say, “consistently and correctly”?!?!?Most teenagers I know can’t even remember to brush their teeth consistently and correctly…How in the name of common sense can we tell them that if they choose to become sexually active, just use a condom – consistently and correctly! At this age kids are awash in hormones. You’re going to look me in the eye and say (with a straight face, no less!) that in that situation they are going to remember to even wear a condom much less put it on correctly??? Please!

Besides fighting their hormones, they also have to fight their own culture - as you saw in the video. They can’t even go a single day without something sexual being thrown at them. They see it and they hear it everywhere. It’s no wonder that they are curious about it and want to know why God and their parents and their church leaders are the only ones who are telling them no where this is concerned. Our churches are working overtime in Youth Departments all over the nation trying to push back against the flood of immorality that is coming out of Hollywood faster than we can blink. In many cases, Youth Pastors are leading the charge and shouldering much of the responsibility and teaching that happens on this topic. They are the ones who are doing the REAL sex education: the kind that doesn’t say idiotic things like “consistently and correctly”, but things like “Don’t even get into a situation where this could happen! Date in groups! Keep the lights on and your hands to yourself!” In my very humble opinion, sex education is just a way to assuage the conscience of advertisers, producers and other media moguls who are responsible for sexualizing everything our children see and hear. From dolls and children’s underwear (yes, I said CHILDREN’S) to music and movies our kids are inundated every day with either a scantily clad model or an overt message of “Everyone’s doing it but YOU!” This is a lie and I’m glad that someone with the platform had the guts to stand up and say it. Yeah for Jordin Sparks!!!

And by the way, contrary to one of the quotes by the VMA host, “a little sex” has hurt many people. STD’s, unwanted pregnancies and broken hearts are all products of “a little sex.”

As a young person who grew up in the church and had many friends in the church, I can say that I KNOW that good kids mess up; good kids make mistakes; it happens all the time. Some get caught and some don’t. My point is that we shouldn’t expect them to fail, but rather give them the tools they need to succeed. We need to let them know that, with God’s help and our love and support, they can live a morally pure life.

Now, this isn’t to say that I believe that a piece of metal on a kid’s finger is going to keep him pure any more than I believe it would keep a married person faithful to his vows. However, I do think it is important that we as adults show our support for young people who choose to make this kind of commitment in real ways.

If you are a parent with a teenager, I challenge you to actively partner with your Pastor, your child’s Youth Pastor and Sunday School teacher (and anyone else who will love your kids) to push back against the culture. How do you do this? Support, support, support! Don’t let your kids hear you run down their leaders. Teach them to respect them and to follow their lead. Teach, teach, teach! Don’t let the bulk of responsibility rest on the church in this area. If your kids are hearing about this from everyone but you, they’re not hearing about it enough. Tell them why it’s important for them to wait until marriage to have sex. Tell them God’s plan for marriage and love. Focus on the Family has some amazing resources on this topic.

If you are not a parent, but have a relationship with some of these kids, I challenge you to love them and support them and their parents with prayer and encouragement as they walk through this minefield called teenager-hood. Our church is really awesome about this. Many of our young people are already involved in many areas of ministry. They are a true blessing to departments like outreach, Sunday school, Hospitality, music and media. Our Pastor and his wife are consistent in prayer and support for all families, but they have a special love for children and young people. Thank God!

For those of you wondering, yes, my husband and I waited until marriage to consummate our love and I can say with all conviction that I’m so glad we did. Were we perfect? Did we always behave the way that we should have? In all honesty, no. But that’s how I know that good kids don’t always make the best choices – because we were good kids. This is why it’s so important that we teach our kids real, applicable ways of handling these situations, that we actively create ways to lead them to make this type of commitment - and forget about this “consistently and correctly” hogwash.

My "Grand" Grandparents!

This weekend our church will be doing several different things in honor of Grandparents Day. We’re putting together some special music and a few other things that will focus on the contribution of Grandparents in each of our lives. Of course, that’s got me to thinking about my own wonderful grandparents, James and Ruth Gillis.


Outside of my mom, these people have probably had the greatest influence upon my life thus far. But not because they lived next door and it was easy; they actually lived eight hours away but made it a priority to have a relationship with my brother and me. They made that drive from Arkansas to Texas so many times, they probably had it memorized!
I wish everyone could know Granny and Papaw. I want to be like them in so many ways! For one thing, they have been married for 58 years and they STILL flirt with each other! For example, one time (not too long ago, actually) Granny was trying to tell Papaw about someone they knew that had injured his knee. She lifted up her skirt a little to show him what had happened on her own knee, and when she did Papaw let out a whistle and said, “Wooo, Mama! You got pretty legs!” She cut her eyes at him, pursed her lips and said, “Shut up and listen to me!” Papaw just threw his head back and laughed…he knew she liked it!

That’s another thing about Granny and Papaw: they have the best sense of humor! They don’t take themselves seriously at all. Instead, they have learned to laugh. When people say things to hurt their feelings, they just chuckle, shrug their shoulders and say, “Well, allright then.” I can’t tell you the hours we have spent in their den drinking coffee and laughing together about something that happened or that was said. These people simply cannot be offended because they choose not to be. Period. Maybe that’s how they survived the ministry for all these years!

Papaw is the type of man that doesn’t say much unless he’s got something to say. He’s perfectly content to let someone else do the talking, and that someone is usually Granny. Granny’s a real straight shooter…don’t ask Granny what she thinks if you don't want to know! She’ll get that finger to wagging and those pretty eyes to snapping and you’ll KNOW you’ve been GOT! She always starts off with, “Now you listen to Granny…” (Can you tell I’ve been GOT a time or two??) But it’s a good thing to get GOT by Granny! She’s one of the wisest people I’ve ever known and I still call and discuss every major decision with her before I talk to anyone else (except for Chris, of course!). I know that someday the Lord will call her home and I won’t have her here to help me, but until then I intend to take full advantage of her wisdom and experience.

Well, I could go on and on about Granny and Papaw but I guess I’ll stop here for now…but if you’re ever in Alma, Arkansas, be sure to look them up. They’ll put on a pot of coffee, invite you to stay for supper and tell you stories that will have you rolling in the floor…but I’ll warn you: once you get to know them, you’ll miss them and long for their comfortable companionship. I know I sure do.

Happy Labor Day!

This will certainly be a "Labor Day" for me since I will be working hard to get some grading and lesson plans done. This year I'm technically only at the school from 8-12 everyday but I usually stay much later than that to get things done. I'm hoping that once I get into the groove of the school year that my time spent at the school will even out some. So far, I haven't gotten into the swing of things very well and I've spent a lot of time getting things done on my time that I used to get done on school time...Ah, well, housework and groceries will be there when I get to it, right? Maybe my husband won't notice!

You Go Girl!

Did I forget to mention that I'm also a news junkie? Particularly a political news junkie at this point in time, and yesterday I wanted to stand on my head! Ok, so I NEVER anticipated a female VP pick for John McCain...I mean, he just seems like such a traditional guy! But when I sat down at my computer and saw the headline I was completely "shocked to Shinola" as Sis. Newton would say.

Now, for the first time in this election, I'm excited and I feel like the Republicans actually have a chance...It's like they're saying, "Ok, I see your history making candidate, your call for change and I raise you a woman and not only that, a woman known for ethics and family values! Now THAT'S change you can believe in!" Wow! So I've been reading about this lady and it appears that she's really just a good lady...She has five children, one of which is a child diagnosed with Down's Syndrome, her husband is a commercial fisherman, she worked her way up through the political system and has a record 80% approval rating in Alaska!!! She's a moose hunter! Have we ever had a moose hunter in the White House??? She's a member of the NRA and headed a committee on ethics that I hear was pretty tough on the bad guys. Some people are saying that Joe Biden isn't going to know what hit him when he gets into a debate with this lady! In the past, I've always been interested in wives of past presidents. I have a great book called White House Wives by Margaret Truman (Harry Truman's daughter). It's a unique perspective on the way that past first ladies have chosen to fill their role during their husband's term of service. Now, however, there is a distinct possibility that a woman could be our president should they be elected and something happens to McCain. In this particular case that is exciting to me! I often said over the past few months that I wasn't opposed to a woman president, just to Hillary Clinton becoming president. But don't get me wrong...I'm not a Feminazi...I believe I am completely submitted to my husband's leadership in my life. I'm not a man hater, or even a man basher...but you have to admit that these are exciting times in our nation. I read a comment left on one of the news sites yesterday regarding John McCain's VP pick that said, "Never pick a fight with an old guy...they don't fight. They just kill you!" I laughed out loud on that one...but it appears to be true, especially in this case!

Hello, Hello!

Hello to the blogging world! I have finally obeyed my Pastor’s wife and started blogging! Seriously, Sis. Smith knows how much I love to write and to teach and I’m sure that she realized what a great place this is to do just that. I appreciate all the times she has encouraged me and believed in me…sometimes more than I did myself. I believe it’s so important and needful for a woman who is further down the road to encourage and teach the ones coming behind them. When Paul writes of the “aged” or older woman teaching the younger, I honestly don’t believe that he is specifying a certain age. It occurred to me a few years ago that, in some respects, I am one of the “older” women! There are younger women coming after me that need me to show the way in some areas. Paul no doubt knew that, for evil or for good, the older women would teach the younger women and he admonished them to teach “good” things: like how to care for a husband and a family, what type of demeanor they should have, how to keep a home and to be submissive to the authority in their lives. Don’t be surprised if this blog seems to have many references to women and teaching that concerns women. I am forever indebted to some incredible, strong, talented and holy women who have taught me some things that I feel that I must pass to others. Don’t worry though…there will also be some other good, fun things! I hope that you will stop by often and hopefully you’ll find some things here to help and encourage you on your journey….