5 Ways to be Miserable

Here is a video that I loved.

5 Ways to be Miserable

Things your Pastor's Wife wants to say but doesn't...

I have been thinking about this post for a while. I have meet many pastors wives and read many blogs. This list is not complete and is not all from me. It is somethings I am giving voice too. So here it is:

Things your Pastor's Wife wants to say but doesn't:

1. Please don't call around 6 pm (dinner time) unless it is a real emergency. See #2
   
2. A real emergency is not: a funny joke you heard about a preacher, a rabbi, and a priest..., we have probably heard it before; to ask where that scripture is, google it!;
3. Please do not discipline our children, unless you are in a close relationship with them, ie, Sunday School teacher. You may know them, but it does not mean they know you.
4. We are at church a lot, Tues-Prayer Group, Wed-Bible Study, Thurs-Choir or Children's group, Friday-Youth Group or Fill-in-the-blank, Sat-Church, Sun-Church, am & pm. So if you see our kids playing outside when they are "supposed" to be in church, it's OK! They have been here a lot this week.
5. The pastor is not perfect. This may be a no-brainer for some but some need to hear this. There have been many times women have approached saying how lucky I am to be married to him. My first reaction is "HA!" He is a great guy, mind you, but he is NOT perfect. He still forgets things and he is still human! But on the other hand...see #6
6. He is still my husband. There have also been people who have approached me complaining that he did something that offended them or did not do something correctly. I want to say "Do you understand, he is my husband!" Don't complain to me about him, I may hurt you!!
7. Do not be offended if I do not wave or smile or other such nicety to you when I am out and about. Chances are I did not see you, or I was distracted by taking care of my children, my primary priority!
8. Please do not jump on me when I first walk into church on Sunday morning. Remember while my husband was at church early this morning, I was getting all the children ready by myself along with trying to get ready as well. Some mornings do not go smoothly, give me a minute!
   
9. Sometimes we, as in our family, have crises also! We do not like to announce this to the whole church. So do not be offended because we did not "confide" in you.
10. Sometimes the best thing to do for your pastor and his family is to pray for them. I am incredibly grateful for the prayers of God's people!
    

Ministry of Adoption

I am not sure if anyone is still reading this because I have been so inconsistent these past few months. So this post may be read only by me, but it is something that needs to be said, for my sanity if nothing else.

Some background...Many years ago, I had three beautiful boys that were my life. I was very happy with being their mom. As they began to grow, I started to dig deeper in my relationship with God. As I grew in that relationship, I started feeling a desire to expand my family. This was something that I fought, much the same way that Jonah did. I was happy with the status quo of my life. But God did not give up on His persistent wooing of His will for my life. The desire was overwhelming, much the same way the whale swallowed Jonah, it engulfed me. I even went to counseling, because I knew something must be wrong. After a long time, I relented. We dove into the world of adoption.

Moving ahead...We now have adopted Summer and are currently fostering Joleigh. Summer is 2 1/2. She is not only going through that two-year-old stage, but she is also recovering from the trauma that began her life. At three weeks old, she had a broken collar bone, 8 broken ribs, front & back, and a broken tibia. The doctor said it was as if she had been run over by a car. She was in ICU for 10 days because of the severity of her injuries. They thought she had shaken baby syndrome and did not expect much from her. She began to improve and came to us when she was 6 months old. She could not sit up or roll over, and she did not smile. Her birth parents also had their share of disability's that we have to work against in our child. We have worked with her a lot these two years. She has come a long way, but she still has issues that we must deal with.

And here is the main point I want to get at. This is hard! It takes a lot of energy to parent this child. I do my best at parenting her, but it drains me at times. But what is frustrating to me is that I am also drained by the other adults in our life as well, when it comes to her. Some say very mean things about her, others laugh at her bad behavior, while others look down their noses at her as if she were a monster. THIS IS MY CHILD! For better or for worse, we have committed to being her parents. And I will defend her at all cost from those who do not understand! I want to tell all of those people, "Don't you get it!" This is a mission that God has laid out before us. We are trying to rescue these children from the depths of Hell, to show them a better way of life. People may not understand, but please do not make it harder for us.

Assumptions

My uncle used to have a saying. He would say, " Do you know what assuming does? It makes an ASS out of U and ME!" I never forgot that!

When someone assumes anything, aren't they in effect judging. Or better yet putting themselves in a position of ultimate knowledge about all things, which is arrogance. And what does the bible say about those things? I think we all know.

So the next time you think you know exactly what is going on, take a moment before you ASSume anything!!

Thanks!

Everything is Amazing, nobody is happy

My doctor told me about this video and I loved it!

Everything is Amazing, nobody is Happy...

I know, I know...

I have not written in a while. I have been very sick. Not to worry I am on the mend. Will get back to blogging soon.

Heard this song on the Radio and had to share. I LOVE IT!

Francesca Battistelli- Free to Be Me

At twenty years of age I'm still looking for a dream
A war's already waged for my destiny
But you've already won the battle
And you've got great plans for me
Though I can't always see

'cause I got a couple dents in my fender
got a couple rips in my jeans
Try to fit the pieces together
But perfection is my enemy
On my own I'm so clumsy
But on your shoulders I can see
I'm free to be me

When I was just a girl I thought I had it figured out
My life would turn out right, and I'd make it here somehow
But things don't always come that easy
And sometimes I would doubt

And you're free to be you

Sometimes I believe that I can do anything
Yet other times I think I've got nothing to bring
But you look at my heart and you tell me
That I've got all you seek
And it's easy to believe
Even thought