Praying Woman Tis

2005-09-11T23:03:00.000-07:00

As the day closes on September 11, I just was thinking about how life has changed in the last four years. Can you believe it has been that long? Today, PM and I were driving home from his parents and we saw several fire engines at a local store in Chandler. Out of the business doors came three suited up and masked fire fighters and I thought, "Wow, it is so awesome to know that Americans still have heros." I am so proud of them and how they protect and serve others. So I just thought I would offer a prayer today considering its significance on our lives. Lord, please protect our country. Please protect the policemen and fire fighters and all other branches that serve us. Keep them safe. Please give our leaders wisdom and clear guidance. Please bring safety to our nation and world and help all mankind to live in peace and love. Soften hearts to receive You. And above all let all glory be Yours. Amen.

2005-09-11T22:57:00.000-07:00

So tomorrow I start teaching a class on knitting and crotching. Well lets just say that I am pretty nervous, considering I have never taught anyone how to do these things. Well not anyone besides family and just for fun. I guess that is how I have to look at this class as well. They are just family--my sisters in Christ. And it is just for fun. A time of fellowship and laughter. So please pray that God will be there, mixed in with us and smiling down on our efforts.

2005-09-09T08:40:00.000-07:00

Family. That is what I am thinking about today. The husbands side is having a family reunion this weekend and last night he and I were at his brother's house getting ready. We are putting together a slide show of old/new family photos set to music. It was so amazing to see just how beautiful all the people were. We had a good time talking about the memories we have made together and also it was fun to hear PM and his brother remembering old times. PM's dad was there too and he was awesome at giving some family history as well. I could not believe how drawn in I was to these people and times and even experiences. Most of them I didn't even experience myself, but I was enthralled by them, because they are a part of who makes up my children. I can even see them in my children. My husband's mother was absolutely beautiful and I feel especially drawn to her. Maybe because I think I would have been really good friends with her. I believe this because I am really close to my mother-in-law. She has often been more of a "mom" to me than my own. She is a true and geniune person and she loves me despite myself. I can't wait to watch all the other family members as they watch the show and hear their stories and memories. The oohs and aahs as pictures of babies being born, weddings taking place, family gatherings, and pictures of those who have already gone "home" roll by make my soul happy and my face smile. May God continue to bless this family, in ways they cannot even imagine. Make their homes happy, their marriages strong and their eyes focused on You Lord. Thank you for how they have embraced me and loved me. May my children make them smile this weekend as they see themselves in them and especially You in them.

2005-09-08T00:01:00.000-07:00

O.K. I could not let too many days go by before I wrote again, so..... It is just a little after midnight and here I am. Pondering thoughts to write about. How about this instead. I just sent group application out for a mission trip this summer, and completed paper mache' a pinata for an upcoming family reunion. I am too tired to produce anything deep. But as I start to head to dreamland I pray all my friend are at peace tonight. Loving God. loving each other.

2005-09-01T22:37:00.000-07:00

O.K. if you would like to comment on the last two posts, please do it on this one because I was receiving comments that were advertisments. I guess if you don't blog for awhile that is what happens. haha

2005-09-01T16:27:00.000-07:00

These past few months have been a whirlwind for me. Starting in June, nine of us went to Missouri to serve the Lord at Camp Barnabas. Camp Barnabas is a special needs camp for adults and children. Check it out at this address-

Camp Barabas

God really showed me a lot at this camp. I was a counselor for a woman who had multiple delays. She was 34 years old, but only had the mental capacity of a four year old. I really loved her- she was so beautiful and had such a passion for the Lord. However---- she did not share the same feelings for me. Sad I know, but true...very true. In fact to say that she strongly disliked me is an understatement. Oh well, as with all trials in life, if you look beyond the immediate situation and look instead to how God is stretching you and teaching you, you will find Him. I realized that I really did love this woman. And even more, each day the more she was firm in her dislike toward me, I truly was more resolved in wanting to show her the love I had for her. I woke up one morning and the TRUTH was so clear to me. This relationship mirrored so much our relationship with God. Every morning we wake up God is there declaring his love and a lot of the time we are too focused on ourselves and we turn our backs on the very one who loves us most. So today my prayer is this- turn to the Christ and love him truly today. With your whole heart, soul, mind and spirit!

Continue to look for more blogs:)

2005-09-01T16:25:00.000-07:00

I didn't want a year to go by without a post so here I am a few days early. I guess I am just making the deadline.

2004-09-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

I am making a blanket for the husband. And I am totally loving doing it. It makes me so happy to serve him in this way. And it is awesome to know that I am making something that I know that he wants and will totally love. So I wonder how am I serving my Lord? Am I doing something that I know He wants and that He will totally love? Am I as happy serving Him as I am making this blanket? As I am contemplating this, I look over at my children, content and at the moment peaceful. Are they the service God has called me to? Do I love serving God by serving my family? Is He happy with the outcome so far? I have made mistakes along the way, but the blanket has some mistakes as well. Someone once told me that a project that has a few mistakes is a project that has character. In fact, she told me that the Amish have gotten so good at making quilts that they purposely make a mistake because they believe that only God is perfect and that as humans we will always have some flaw in what we do. I have a hard time with this idea because, well honestly speaking, I am a perfectionist. I have I hard time with not doing everything just right. I have a hard time seeing and making the mistakes. I do realize that they are there however, no matter how hard I try. And as I take a look at this blanket (mistakes included) it totally rocks! It is beautiful and I am proud of the gift it will be to my husband. It does have character and so do the attempts I make at serving my King. I am proud of the continuing project my family is and hope that God is happy at my service.

2004-08-24T21:11:00.000-07:00

Time with the Lord. Lately, thankfully, I have been able to spend time with Him. Whenever I do I wonder what would ever tear me away from this experience and then somehow I find myself not spending time with Him. Lots of reasoning happens then until I find myself at a hard and desperate place once again. This time has been different. I began in a happy place just wanting to have relationship with my Lord. I have a new bible, a couple of devotional books (thanks to a wonderful husband) and a heart that desires to know my Lord. So I pray that nothing would take my passion away. Please join me in this prayer and if your not in fellowship, for whatever reason, I pray that you too would find the hunger to meet your God in a quiet place and get to know Him more.

2004-08-21T21:04:00.000-07:00

I am pondering something new tonight. On the way home from a trip to Flagstaff, my first grade boy asked his dad if he ever had bullies in school. WHAT? What did this question mean? So many thoughts were running through my mind all at once. Why would he ask that? now? at such a young age. And so there it was. He told us all about two fellow classmates that well...just like to hit him and in the cafeteria try to make him drop his food. Instantly my mom fangs wanted to come out and call up the moms of these two boys. But you know as disturbing as it is to hear that after one week of first grade, my young son has this to deal with, the hubby and I were impressed by his reaction to the boys. He said that he just ignored them until they would stop and then one other time he told them it felt like they were tickling him so as to make a joke of it. Good news is he seems to not be scared or bummed, he just felt like talking about it. I guess that is a blessing- he did come and want to share with his dad and I. So anyway I suppose we have another request on our list of prayers for Noah.

2004-08-21T20:42:00.000-07:00

Click here to read princesswendy's new blog. It is an amazing testimony of how God has changed her life.

2004-08-17T12:41:00.000-07:00

What Love Is......

a Lord who somehow is patient enough to let us keep coming back time and time again.

a husband who gently prays for you when your head hurts so bad you really can't see straight.

a daughter who belts out (offkey) Jesus Loves Me with her daddy.

a mom who sends an uplifting email after her son glorifies God in his sermon on Sunday.

a friend who fights for and agonizes over her schedule so that she can serve your daughter in school once a week.

anticipating spending the evening with a new friend you never thought you'd make.

seeing an open Bible on the bathroom floor when you go to clean it.

a dad who will buy Playstation 2 and then go back to the store for more controllers so that the whole family can play.

logging on to the computer and having four people ask to online chat with you before you can even type in your password.

a fiancee waiting for you at the airport after you've been gone for three weeks.

a husband who sets up your computer to blog with pictures included!

a mom who makes a phone call that embarrasses the crap out of you, but does it because she cares.

a husband who buys a movie to watch based on your word alone.

hearing that some friends of yours are starting a family of their own.

friends who still check to see if I'm blogging after months because well....
they love.

2004-08-17T08:36:00.000-07:00

My new chick friends from Ireland.

2004-08-15T15:22:00.000-07:00

Hey there all. I am back on this blogger thingy. Please do not remove me from your list:) What is sad is that two days ago I typed a pretty long blog and it was pretty insightful I must say and then when I went to go post it- I lost it. I could not believe it. It just goes to show how completely computer illiterate I am and how I really need to learn modern technology. So here I am once again- motivated and excited to be online. I still have one problem however-- TIME. Well hopefully I will stay comitted this time. Especially since I have been online the past few days emailing and text messaging my new buddies from Northern Ireland. So what have I been learning lately. I have learned that I still struggle with having to be in control of my life. Still having to have everything be just right. I think though that spending just a little time every day talking on MSN messaging and pouring myself out on my blog, I will hopefully be able to find the importance of other areas of my life, like relaxing a little and not feeling worried that not everything is done. However this is a constant battle for me so..... I am asking for prayer in this area. Is anyone willing and able??:) Thanks in advance if you can. Well for now peace out and keep er lit. Post back so I know your there.
Mandy

2004-05-06T18:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, here I am again. So far I am already doing better at this than I thought. It has been a rough day. Kids fighting, crazy horse-back riding lessons, trying to get everything done that I need to get done. And yet, here I am sitting here at church writing in my blog and getting ready to pray for National Prayer Day. I realize that I need to get my heart in the right place. God does not care how clean my house is, or if I was a few minutes late somewhere. All He cares about is my heart. So here I am, laying my thoughts and struggles for all of cyber-space (or at least some of my closest friends) to see. And as I pray to God tonight for the youth at least I will hopefully have had a change of heart and be humbly before my King.

2004-05-02T22:35:00.000-07:00

Wow. so I guess I will try this blogger thing. I thought of the reasons this should happen and came up with the following:
1) To become more computer litterate.
2) To be able to enter into conversation at the dinner table when there are discussions about the blogs of the day.
3) To get to know my friends better.
4) To get a little break away from the kiddos. (maybe) They will probably be sitting at my feet.
5) To link up to Ben and read all of his wonderful poetry about me, me, me!
AND
6) To get questions and prayers and thoughts about God written out, so I can look back and see the amazing things He is doing in our lives.

Can't wait to get feedback and read about all of you fellow blog addictors. Peace out (Ben's language already!)

2004-05-02T22:20:00.000-07:00

A blog for a female praying mantis.