Dexter

For months Josiah has been praying for a kitty. We have seen two litters and visited the Humane Soceity numerous times but it never seemed to work out. Either the kittens had sketchy backgrounds and I was hesitant to introduce a sick kitty to the family. One time we picked a kitty at the Humane Society only to have him adopted by someone else. Oops. Throughout it all Josiah had a very specific picture in mind for what he wanted.

A friend of ours posted some newborn kitten pics on Facebook and I inquired about it and kinda forgot about it. Eight weeks later she asked if we would like a kitty. There were two boys left and we had no idea what the kittens looked like. I gave Josiah the speech about accepting the kitty even if it doesn't look like what he wanted, which was a gray and black striped cat. They brought out the two boys and Josiah took one look and said, "That one." He turned around to me and there was the cutest gray and black striped kitty I have ever seen. Our God is so gracious to have painted that sweet kitten exactly like Josiah had been praying for. Josiah named him Dexter and he has been a wonderful addition to our family.

He is very smart. Already using the litter box, eating dry food well and knows that when he hears a crinkly sound, food is around. :) He likes to climb into our laps and sleep and plays around the house. He is so small that we had to put a collar with a bell on it so we don't lose him. I love hearing the jingling and seeing a quick grayish black blur go by. It has been a great experience to see the way that God has answered Josiah's prayers. What an amazing God we have that He even provides a kitty for a little boy.

Peak into our children's minds

Here are some questions Josiah has asked recently that we thought were quite charming.

1. A stingray has a stinger to protect himself from sharks and other predators but can a stingray sting another stingray?

2. Is God good all the time? Can he ever be bad?

3. Is Satan bad all the time? Can he ever do good?

Naomi recently commented that the way the sex is determined for babies is upon the name that the parents give them. For instance, we named Josiah a boy name so we got a boy. We named Naomi a girl name so we got a girl. Simple. So next time can you name the baby Penny so I can have a sister?

Tender moments

Sunday morning Josiah and I were snuggling in the front pew, I mean chairs, at church and he says to me, "Mommy, my love for you goes all the way up to the ceiling."

Revoltion of the heart

As I mentioned earlier, I have been reading a book entitled, Created to Be HIs Help Meet. At first I was very skeptical of the book and the ideas presented and wary of some of the views the author had but I forged ahead because she encouraged the reader to delve into the Word for herself. It has been during this extensive study of what God's word has to say about joy, blasphemy, fear of the Lord, submission, being chaste and sober, keeping the home, and training the children and loving your husband, that God has transformed the way I perceive my role as a wife and my actions. It is like getting lasik surgery of the heart.

Nowhere have I seen this more evident than the peace and contentment within our home and interaction as a family. With a concise focus on my role as a wife and mother, I can avoid cultural traps that I was stuck in. I know how to usurp my husband, I know how to manipulate him, demean him and be the boss but what I haven't know is how to be a chaste woman, sober, truly loving and discerning. So many things that I was not taught from the godless women in my family. As you can imagine, this whole process has been so freeing!!

The saddest part of this journey is that I see women in the church do the same thing! Older women aren't teaching the younger because they were never taught themselves. But thank God that he gives us the Holy Spirit to teach us in these matters. Not that I have attained all these things but I am pressing forward to be the wife God ordained me to be.

So I am wondering how many young women feel like I did. Desiring to be godly wives but having no clue as to how to do it. Or thinking you have a clue but always finding yourself failing or going back to what I call the default position. This world tells us that we can have it all. We are the determiners of our own destiny. We answer to no one. We are smarter than our husbands, more capable, able to live without a husband if we wanted to. Submission equals being a doormat. So many lies that creep in. So many half truths to destroy. The truth is that coming under the authority and leadership of your husband is the best thing you could ever do. I feel like I am one who has been set free. I am so thankful for God's Holy Word and His Spirit that guides us and directs us in the way we should go.

Flourish

As we seek to be spirit-conscious, we should focus on the Spirit as our source of guidance. This means we foster an environment where the Holy Spirit can flourish, fill and clearly speak to us." - Priscilla Shearer

The question is: Do I foster an environment where the Spirit flourishes?

Our lives are overwhelmed with noise that it is no wonder we question whether God speaks. For our family, as we have removed the TV, iPods, radios, we have noticed an increase in peace and reflection. We are able to meditate on God's Word more and discuss what we are learning and what we are struggling with. It has been a wonderful change. It is even evident in the children as they are asking more questions and thinking deeper thoughts.

I also think having an uncluttered house helps too. Even if it means getting rid of some furniture and adding a bookshelf so everything can have it's place. I desire for my home to be one that welcomes the Spirit of God and allows Him to flourish so that we can grow and glorify Him. I welcome any other suggestions.

book blog

I have been reading an interesting book titled, Created to Be His Help Meet by Debi Pearl. I began reading this book 6 years ago but around the 3th or 4th page I ran into a section that I disagreed with. Unable to find anyone suitable to help me understand what she was saying, I put the book down because I did not want to be naive and listen to false doctrine. But I kept the book because a dear friend had sent it to me. Fast forward to about 2 months ago and I once again picked up the book and ran into the same passage that caused me to put it down earlier. This time I decided to tackle it and find out any information I could as well as seek godly council. The text in question was how she translated the word helper into help meet and the uses of meet in the New Testament. I finally decided that I should just disagree with her and not throw out the baby with the bath water. I had no idea what a journey this would send me on.

I wish now that I would have been blogging after each chapter. There are still things that I do not necessarily agree with but there is so much more that has struck a chord in me that it is near impossible to explain it all here. What I have discovered is that despite my theological differences with Mrs. Pearl, she is a voice in the wilderness for today's Christian woman. We as a church have lost our way in how we train up the next generation. A majority of older women do not step up and teach the younger women how to be wives. So now we have a host of young women who do not know how to properly love their husbands, keep a house, train their children, to be discreet and sober... and I would count my self as one of those young women. (Although I am not that young anymore!) The sad part is that the young women I am referring to are the 30-40 year olds who should be grasping the mantle of teaching alongside the older women for the young marrieds. We are too busy not wanting to intrude or get too personal. And that has left a generation of women reaching for what the world would call femininity.

And so I am learning a new way of doing things. I am learning to revere my husband. I am learning to defer to him and respect him.... and there has come over my heart a peace like no other as I have learned to submit in a godly manner. I don't even notice if my husband has noticed but it has made a huge impact in my heart. I am hoping to blog about the rest of the chapters I have left but there is no telling what will happen since I am limiting my online sessions. You can check out further information about this book and others at www.nogreaterjoy.com

Unplug

Several weeks ago our pastor was commenting that maybe we don't hear God because we have so much noise around us. Car radios, TV's, iPods, etc... constant background noise. It just so happen that the week prior to that sermon we had our cable shut off. the price had gone up and there is nothing but junk on it anyway plus we found ourselves yelling at news reports so we needed to just cut it out of our lives. Who couldn't use $77 extra a month anyways, right? At least we still had our computer so we are not completely shut off from the world.

Two days later, our year old computer crashed. PANIC!! No Facebook? No email? No iTunes? Since we had just shelled out most of our savings for the car, we knew we could not afford to fix the computer. We took it into the shop and decided to save up the money to fix it. It was difficult at first but you know what? My pastor was right. No TV, no computer and there was a lot more time to talk with God and listen. It became rather enjoyable not to have those things.

One night we decided to watch a movie and as we were I commented that all we need now is for the DVD player to break. Within 10 seconds of saying that, the thing died. Literally just died. Dustin quipped, "I think God is trying to tell us something."

We both had a hearty laugh and played some cards instead.