Why are things that taste so good not good for you? If it taste like cardboard, then it's good for you. But honey...well honey not only taste good, but it's also good for you. Thus, honey is used in the Bible as the supreme symbol of the Word of God. Psalm 119:103" How sweet are your words to my taste,   sweeter than honey to my mouth!"
Just as God's word is honey for our soul, so are the people that God places in our life. Gwen you are my honey that God gave me. Thank you for being the example of Jesus for all to see. I LOVE YOU!

Coach O

OK, so I can't carry a tune and I am completely tone deaf when it comes to harmonizing on a song, but I do love to sing in church ... And there are some Sundays when I am probably singing to loud because I am desperately crying out to the LORD ... I am singing as children cling to my leg all vying for their perfect spot to the point of almost knocking me over and yet I just sing and pour it out ... I am needing that purging of my heart to God ... You see I have come to realize that the power in me to give myself away is all dependent on how much I allow his power to come through ... This PROCESS started about 7 years ago and yesterday in church I was blown away with how God can use HIS PEOPLE to bring him glory and spread his message of HOPE ...

The day we started our first adoption process it SEEMED like such a HUGE STEP ... It was a leap of faith like no other we had taken and we watched God move mountains and change our hearts ... It was my first real experience of GIVING MY LIFE AWAY ... It cracked a door open that I would never be able to shut again (even on the days I really want to) ... Then as most of you know another adoption journey came and changed the face of our daily life in a way we could never have known (and probably good we didn't) ... This journey brought lots of lessons about the Lord - both good and hard ... I thought well LORD you have really stretched me here and our family is on a unique journey with you ... And yet we found more strength from the LORD to journey again the road of adoption ... Now the cold hard facts were at this point we were completely ALL OUT THERE with the Father ... AS A FAMILY WE HAD GIVEN OUR LIVES AWAY ... Surely Lord, you could see our plates were full at home with 6 kids (not to mention hours spent volunteering at Amazima and starting 147 Million Orphans and the counseling of families thinking about adoption or the hundreds of emails) ... WWWHHHEEEEWWWW ... I had to be done because the fountain had run dry and I had given it all away ... I was giving it away daily, yet I watch God give me more so that I could give MORE AWAY ... It is the craziest realization that HE IS THE GIVER OF ALL and that giving it back is just what we are suppose to do ... I see that the more I am open to HIM and how he truly intended us to live here on this earth that my potential to impact the KINGDOM is endless ... I am only using what HE gives me and the more I AM OBEDIENT with his treasures then the more I am useful to HIS PURPOSE ... Yes, little ole me - small town girl from Smyrna, TN ... Wife to her high school sweetheart ... And mother to some really amazing kids !!!

This all washed over me as I cried out the to the LORD in church yesterday, "I GIVE MYSELF AWAY, I  GIVE MYSELF AWAY." ... What a journey it is to GIVE AWAY ... Hard on so many days that I wanna run and hide ... Days when I wanna stick my head in the sand hoping some of it would just go away ... And then there are moments when the thought of missing it - missing the abundant blessing freightens me ... Those moments when you hear your husband (who is working on his sermon for church) ask his 7 year old daughter what is one of the biggest blessings in her life and she says, "BEING ADOPTED." It can simply paralyze you how important it is to give your life away ... How you can change the lives of others and yourself in a FOREVER ETERNITY kind of way ...

So if you are waiting on the sidelines afraid there isn't enough of you to give away or that you have nothing to give away then THINK AGAIN ... You have the MOST HIGH with in you and HIS power to impact others is endless so START GIVING IT AWAY !!!!  Give it away to your family, your co-workers, widows at church, homeless down the street, starving children around the world, to people dying of curable diseases, to orphans, to the lost and lonely !!!!  JUST START GIVING IT AWAY BECAUSE HE GAVE IT TO YOU FOR JUST THAT PURPOSE ...

Have a blessed week !!!

This may be his favorite thing to do in the world   ...

What if you had to choose to eat boogers or poop ???

What if you had to die would you rather it be by fire or drowning ???

What if you could be any super hero - who would you be ???

Would you rather be chased by a LION or SHARK ???

Would you rather jump in a vat of blood or stinging bees ???

This list goes on and on, but TODAY'S "WHAT IF" was so sweet and gave my heart a warm fuzzy ...

Elijah, "Mom, What if you could wish for anything in the world and EVERYONE LOVED JESUS and THERE WERE NO ORPHANS in the world."  The fact that he knew my heart and what my first two answers would be just gave me a sweet whisper from the LORD that my Elijah is listening to me share about Jesus and Orphans even when I don't think so ... YEAH !!!  So I wished that NO ONE WOULD EVER BE HUNGRY and he gave me a little rolled eye look and said "Mom, that is not the game." ... hee hee ... He then followed it up with - "MOM, what would be your kid wish." ... So I finally gave in and told him that I would wish for a house THAT HAD A BASKETBALL COURT IN IT AND A  A SUPER COOL PLAYGROUND ... He thought that was really cool and then we both giggled ... It was a rare moment in the car alone ... LOVE THOSE GIFTS !!!

Happy Wednesday !!!

 Amy, Suzanne, and I were at the airport tonight welcoming home little Emery from China to her forever family when Amy asked, " WHAT IS UP W/ NOT BLOGGING ??? HASN'T THE FOG LIFTED??!!" ... hee hee ... That gave me a giggle !!!  So I thought I would blog and tell you about my last couple of weeks ...

I have slept incredibly well each of the last 14 nights, because by the time I hit the pillow I am completely physically and mentally exhausted ... I would say there is LOTS going on, but when isn't there ... lol ...  There is a new level of THINGS with our new sweet teenager ... He has been very patient as we learn to navigate this w/ him, but it is still LOTS to do - papers to file, school to figure out, HOMEWORK, boundaries to set, love to give, shopping to do, PROM, and so much more ... I love how everyone is pitching in and we are all listening to God's voice and direction on this new journey ...

I have decided to give myself (once again) permission to enter a season of saying NO to somethings ... I have added CUDDLE nights w/ the girls, ice cream w/ the big boys (skinny cow ice cream sandwiches, because I am also on a calorie counting log ... that is a whole other blog post), and some fun games w/ Joseph during the day ... My prayers are always that I can meet the needs of my children and see their uniqueness (never box them in or assume they all need the same thing) ... Scott and I have had some great discussions over the past month about our children - their needs, their future, and what we really want them to KNOW about life, love, and KINGDOM ... I adore my sweet hubby and how we just fit ... Sometimes conversations flow and sometimes we drag them out of each other, but we NEVER stop talking, laughing, and just being friends ... We are in this parenting thing together and at the end of the day when all our sweet children are gone, we still need to like each other and have a strong relationship ... I am so thankful for our relationship ...

I am amazed at how JAM PACKED every day has been and yet I have miraculously had the energy needed to accomplish most everything ... ISN'T GOD COOL THAT WAY ... He increases my territory and gives me the tools needed for the journey ...

I am ready for the 4 day weekend ... FUN EASTER CHURCH (the church Scott is pastoring is growing and we are loving being there as a family and serving), hanging outside to play, sleeping in till at least 7:15 each morning,  maybe couple of good runs, and just BE w/ my family and friends ...

I PRAY YOU ALL HAVE A BLESSED EASTER !!!