It's Time for Something New

Two words - cabin fever.  Yup.  It has officially set in.  

My son keeps looking out onto the deck and asking to go play outside.  I can't blame him.  I keep finding myself gazing out the kitchen window at the blue skies and warm sun.  Then I look at the outdoor temperature, in my mind hoping that it will miraculously say it's in the 60s.  Yeah... that hasn't happened yet.  

When it's warm outside, it's all I can do to keep my boy in the house until 9:30 am (sometimes I let him out earlier...).  He's clearly an outdoors kid.  Now here we are in February, there's no snow on the ground (which is no different from the rest of the winter), appears to be beautiful outside, and it's still in the 30s (if that).  Oh, and might I add, Punxsutaney Phil saw his shadow.  I don't put any stock in Groundhog Day, but still... it's a downer.  

Yes, I'm complaining.  And for those of you fellow New Englanders who may argue that we've had a few seasonably warm days lately, you're right.  Unfortunately those few hours that the temperature dares to climb into the 40s (or higher) happen to be lunch and nap time here in toddlerland.  Yet another downer. 

What can be done about cabin fever?  

"Sing to the Lord a new song;

sing to the Lord all the earth."

Psalm 96:1

This is a psalm that I have heard referenced several times over the last month, and it's what came to mind this morning during another late-morning toddler tantrum.  I find myself blaming the weather for my son's outbursts.  If only I could send him outside... he'd be a different person, much easier for me to handle!  The weather is only partly to blame.  Sin nature is the other part - both mine and my son's.  

So guess what?  It's time to start singing a new song.  It's time to change things up again.  Where do I look for inspiration?  None other than Pinterest.  Oh yes, my friends.  If you haven't joined, just do it.  Here are some ideas I've come across that I'm hoping will help change the tune at our house.  

Source: tiffkeetch.blogspot.com via Carrie on Pinterest

"I love you this much!"  So fun!  

Source: mybabyfaves.blogspot.com via Carrie on Pinterest

Change things up with a "new" game.  Seriously... would this take any more than 10 minutes? 

Source: rustsunshine.blogspot.com via Carrie on Pinterest

Once again... cute and easy!  Could be artwork to send to grandparents, too!

Source: Uploaded by user via Carrie on Pinterest

Definitely more time consuming initially, but I'm pretty sure my husband would have as much fun with this as my son!

Just a few ideas that we may be trying soon!  Whether you have a toddler or not, how are you going to "sing to the Lord a new song"?  Open the door long enough to let the grouchies out (and still keep the heat in) and rejoice in the Lord with each new day.  


~ Carrie ~

Joy to the Word, the Lord Has Come!

You may be checking the date of this post after reading the title.  Yes, this post was written on Wednesday, January 18, 2012.

When does Christmas end for you?  I know some people who take their tree and all the Christmas decorations down on Christmas day (after opening gifts, of course).  Then I know others who still have their Christmas tree up or just recently took it down (which, honestly, is a little concerning to me at this point if you have a real tree...).  

In my home, the Christmas tree usually comes down the first week in the New Year.  (We had no choice this year as our tree was completely dead.)  As far as other decorations, I limit what a put away to things that are strictly Christmas (for example, anything that says "Merry Christmas", has a picture of the nativity scene on it, or any other purely Christmas references).  This means that yes, I still have my lit garland decorating my house.  I have snowmen still resting on shelves and a big one on my front door.  I still have my "primitive" tree up, adorned with wintery ornaments.  Winter continues, even though Christmas is over (and even though we've had hardly a bit of snow).  

But this blog post is not about home decor... It's about something more important that my son has taught me since coming home from celebrating the holidays with our family.  

The process of taking the Christmas tree and all the Christmas decorations down was a bit difficult for him to understand (in fact, it was a little upsetting to him).  He didn't want the tree to go away, even though there were no more presents under it.  He liked looking at all the ornaments.  He didn't want the various nativity scenes to be packed away... He enjoyed playing with them and telling the Christmas story, in his own cute, unique way.  

As I attempted to explain to him why I was putting all these pretty things away.  Christmas is all done for this year.  Next year, we'll put them back up.  

I could practically see the wheels of his mind turning as he attempted to fully understand what I was telling him.  He seemed somewhat satisfied with my response and continued on with all that a 2 year old does to keep himself busy.  The next morning, after being awake for a bit, Jadon asked me where the Christmas tree went.  I responded with a typical mom response.  

"Jadon, what did Mommy say was going to happen to the tree."

He stopped and thought for a moment and then said, "Mommy and Daddy put it away until next Christmas... when Jesus comes back."


My heart melted (and the pregnancy hormones almost let loose with sobbing, but somehow I managed to contain myself).  This may seem to be an cute, innocent comment, but to me it was not only confirmation that he at least is beginning to understand the concept of why the birth of Jesus is so important; but it was also a reminder to me that even though the Christmas decorations are put away, we still need to remember the birth.  We need to remember not only the baby who was born in such humble fashion, but that baby who became a man and was killed in such a humiliating moment of history.  Why remember? Because he did it for me.  He did it for you. 


After all the decorations are packed away, adorn your heart with the love of Jesus.  When all the special Christmas programs and services have ended, continue celebrating the birth, life, death, and eventual second coming of Christ each day in prayer and in attitude.  Once the Christmas carols have stopped being sung in church and we've changed our playlists and Pandora stations, continue singing in your heart, "Joy to the World, the Lord has come!"  And don't forget the second verse, either!  

Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!

Let men their songs employ;

While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

As Jadon was laying in his bed before falling asleep for his nap today, I heard him humming.  I listened, wondering what song was stuck in his head and recognized this very song, "Joy to the World".  Repeat the sounding joy.  Remember all that Jesus accomplished, from birth to death and beyond the grave.  And anticipate His return... next Christmas, according to Jadon.  

~ Carrie ~

Give Them Grace

Amazon Link

I recently began reading a book that I received as a Christmas gift from my husband.  It's called Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus, by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick & Jessica Thompson.  Like I said, I've just started the book (I'm on chapter 2), but from the very beginning I was captivated and felt compelled to share a portion of the forward to this book (which begins with a quote from Michael Horton's Christless Christianity).

"What would things look like if Satan really took control of a city?  Over half a century ago, Presbyterian minister Donald Grey Barnhouse offered his own scenario in his weekly sermon that was also broadcast nationwide on CBS radio.  Barnhouse speculated that if Satan took over Philadelphia (the city where Barnhouse pastored), all of the bars would be closed, pornography banished, and pristine streets would be filled with tidy pedestrians who smiled at each other.  There would be no swearing.  The children would say, "yes, sir" and "No ma'am," and the churches would be full every Sunday... where Christ is not preached."

"This is scary - mainly because what Barnhouse describes is what most of us want for our children.  Jesus or no Jesus, we just want them to obey, be polite, not curse or look at pornography, get good jobs, marry a nice person, and not get caught up in the really bad stuff.

It may come as a surprise to you, but God wants much more for your children, and you should too.  God wants them to get the gospel.  And this means that parents are responsible to teach them about the drastic, uncontrollable nature of amazing grace."

I'm really excited to keep reading this book, and I'm sure I'll be posting again - at least once I'm finished to give a few final thoughts on the perspective on parenting that this book gives (which so far, I'm completely in agreement with).  Happy reading!  

~ Carrie

An Expected Blessing

Thanksgiving may be long over, but Andy and I are still overflowing with thankfulness to God for all that he has done for us.  About a month before Thanksgiving we found out that we are expecting our second child, due to arrive in mid-June.  Many people were not a bit surprised by our announcement and “had been wondering” when we would decide to have another.

This is, actually, a blog post I’ve been waiting to write for a long time since we tried for a year and a half to have another child.  Having conceived our first with very little waiting, I initially panicked and then told myself that it’s not unusual for it to take some time.  So we waited… then I got emotional.  Panic, confusion, and a feeling of failure began to set in.  Andy and I had countless conversations about our need to surrender our family and our desires (specifically in regards to the size of our family) to God.  I was really struggling with it though.  I was a little angry with God.  It seemed a tease to have given us one child so easily and then no children after that.  I felt this strong desire to have more children and I felt justified in that desire – that it was good and godly, even. 

Over the next few months God revealed to me (through Bible reading, prayer time, blogs I follow, Sunday morning services, and the words of others) that anything I desire more than Him is sin. 

“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.  Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”  James 1:13-15

Difficult words to read.  My desire was great, but it was for the wrong thing. 

In June it was recommended to me to set up a fertility consultation with one of the doctors in my OB practice.  And I did… in the fall.  I put it off all summer with the excuse being that our summer was too crazy to schedule a bunch of appointments (that was only partially true).  Although scheduling that doctor’s appointment sooner could have possibly sped up the process of conceiving, the Great Physician had some work to do in heart first.  God really used the summer to change my perspective, and by the fall I was ready to face whatever the doctor said and know that ultimately my desire was to honor God in this situation – and He definitely gave me (us) the opportunity to do so.

By the end of my initial consult, the doctor felt she had a good idea of what was probably going on but needed to run some tests (blood work and an ultrasound) to confirm.  She explained that if the tests confirmed what she thought, then there were several options that we could explore that could aid in me getting pregnant.  Andy and I weren’t sure about any of this, at this point.  We talked about the options, but mostly decided to just wait and find out the test results. 

The lab results from my blood work came back in line with what the doctor was thinking.  In fact, she said something like, “Given your blood work results, there’s really no way you can get pregnant right now, and this is probably been a problem the whole time you’ve been trying.”  The next step toward an actual diagnosis was an ultrasound.  The results were okay, hopeful, and discouraging all at the same time.  The doctor’s initial prediction was confirmed… okay.  She also said that it seemed to her that we could possibly conceive at any time… good.  But then she said that she found something questionable that, if confirmed (via yet another test) would result in having to go in for day surgery… discouraging.

Okay God… What is going on here?  How am I supposed to handle all this news?  I’m relieved… I’m scared… I’m excited… I’m everything.

It was then that I was reminded of all that God had been teaching me for that past year and half… As hard as I may try, I can’t always control the circumstances of my life, and the results of this ultrasound certainly proved that.  So I continue to trust in my unchanging God – the one who is in control and has proven himself faithful.

“For the word of the Lord is right and true, he is faithful in all he does.” (Psalm 33:4)

Even though it wasn’t easy, Andy and I kept trying to remain faithful to our God who loves us so much that (in addition to meeting our daily needs) he met our ultimate need of a Savior.  How could I doubt his faithfulness now? 

Two and a half weeks after getting the results of my ultrasound, I discovered that I was pregnant.  I wandered aimlessly around my house, audibly crying and praising God through my tears.  I was overwhelmed.  After sharing the news with Andy, we figured that the doctor had been right and I was probably 4.5 weeks pregnant.   Although we were overjoyed by the news, we decided to initially keep it to ourselves until after my first midwife appointment (which was a week later). 

The midwife agreed with our timeframe, but wanted to have an ultrasound done to confirm the due date, so the next morning we all (Andy, Jadon, and I) went in for my ultrasound.  (Jadon was clueless and munched on goldfish while “watching tv” – the ultrasound screen).  The tech said everything looked great.  The heartbeat was very strong.  Then she said she had the gestational age of the baby and my due date calculated (keep in mind this was about a week after I had discovered I was pregnant).  She calculated (because of the size of the baby) that I was 8 weeks and 3 days pregnant, due around June 16^th.  I gasped and quickly blurted, “What!?”  I explained the situation to the tech and she said that even still, these early ultrasounds do not lie; in fact, they are accurate plus/minus 5 days!  She said she didn’t know what to say other than that.  We were astounded!  At my next appointment, I asked the midwife about it and she said she has no medical explanation for it at all.  At the time of my ultrasound I was pregnant, but it was too early to really tell.  The “questionable” thing that they had seen that could require surgery was actually my baby.  The blood work results are baffling because medically speaking, I should not have been able to conceive. 

We initially pointed back to the words of the doctor when giving me the results of my ultrasound – that I could possibly get pregnant soon.  What we should have been doing is looking to God, who gave us a huge reminder of his timing, love, and control over all things.  I have no earthly reason to have been blessed to carry this child.  It is simply through the providence of God that this was possible.

Andy and I are so overwhelmed by God’s working in our life.  He has used this situation, as discouraging as it felt at times, to teach us some valuable lessons on who He is and we are so grateful for that.  We don’t always see how God works in our everyday lives, and so we feel incredibly privileged for Him to have revealed Himself in this way. 

“How Can I Keep from Singing?”

My life flows on in endless song;

Above earth's lamentation,

I hear the sweet, tho' far-off hymn

That hails a new creation;

Thro' all the tumult and the strife

I hear the music ringing;

It finds an echo in my soul--

How can I keep from singing?

What tho' my joys and comforts die?

The Lord my Saviour liveth;

What tho' the darkness gather round?

Songs in the night he giveth.

No storm can shake my inmost calm

While to that refuge clinging;

Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,

How can I keep from singing?

I lift my eyes; the cloud grows thin;

I see the blue above it;

And day by day this pathway smooths,

Since first I learned to love it;

The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,

A fountain ever springing;

All things are mine since I am his--

How can I keep from singing?

                                                                                                                        Anonymous

~ Carrie

He's Been Faithful

I have returned from sort of an unexpected break from the blogging world.  I really enjoy blogging but made it very clear (to myself and my husband) that it would be very low on the totem pole of priorities.  When life gets busy, it’s pretty much the first thing to go.  So, after almost four weeks, I’m back!  Yes, the house could use some attention, but I have this desire to share a little of what God has been teaching me over the last few weeks. 

I’ve recently read through the book of Nehemiah – a book that, admittedly, I don’t know if I’ve ever just read straight through.  Even still, I wasn’t all that excited to read about Nehemiah.  Yeah, he was the guy who helped rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, but seriously, how exciting or applicable is this book of the Bible really going to be to me – a woman, a wife, and a mom? 

As I read about Nehemiah, I was completely struck (once again) with God’s perfect timing.  At a busy season of my life full of new adventures, full calendars, never-ending to-do lists, and particularly heavy burdens, God gave me a lesson on his faithfulness through the life of Nehemiah. 

The Israelites were in a bad place both historically speaking (as they were in Babylonian captivity) and physically speaking (as they were displaced and dispersed from Judah and particularly their sacred city, Jerusalem).  Eventually the Israelites returned to Judah, but little was done to restore what had been lost during their captivity.  They had turned their backs on God by inter-marrying with women of other nations (who did not serve the one living God).  They failed to worship God through the keeping of the Law and the practice of feasts, festivals, and Sabbaths.  All of this greatly saddened God.  When times got tough, the Israelites forgot the rich heritage of their forefathers and abandoned their faith. 

Thankfully God inspired Nehemiah to take on the seemingly impossible task of uniting a fractured nation under the God who called them His own and had always protected and forgiven them time and time again.  I like Nehemiah.  He’s organized, a hard worker, and very bold.  He saw the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem as a surefire way to, not only unite the Israelites as a people, but to unite them as believers in God. 

Nehemiah worked hard, despite the opposition of neighboring nations, to ignite a fire under God’s people, and they successfully rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem.  But that’s not the end of the story.  During the rebuilding of the walls, the Israelites were reminded of God’s never-ending love for them through his provision and protection.  They returned to their faith, and a week after the walls were completed, the people gathered to their sacred city and listened to Nehemiah recite the Book of the Law.  The people remembered and began following God immediately. 

The Israelites had a renewed sense of who God was:

“You are the Lord, you alone.  You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.” (Nehemiah 9:6)

So as I came to the end of the book of Nehemiah, I found myself so encouraged that these people – God’s people – who had turned their backs on God, had doubted His love for them and His commitment to them, returned to God.  How uplifting!  But what’s more is what they discovered once they returned to God. 

“Now, therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all your people… Yet you have been righteous in all that has come upon us, for you have dealt faithfully and we have acted wickedly.” (Nehemiah 9:32-33)

The Israelites returned to God and realized that He was still the same. He had remained faithful, despite their circumstances (which were quite bad).  He had kept His promises to them, despite their desire to secure their own future.  He had remained perfect, despite their sinful actions and desires.  The application for me (and for all of us) is simple because I fit in perfectly with the Israelites.

God remains faithful, despite my circumstances.

God keeps His promises, despite my desire to secure my own future. 

God remains perfect, despite my sinful actions and desires.               

My blog has been quiet for almost a month, but thankfully God has not been!  God’s faithfulness has been so evident in my life, and I can’t help but overflow in thanksgiving – not just for what he’s provided for me (although for that I am grateful), but for the fact that despite all that goes on around me and all the wrong things I do, God is unchanging in his love for me.  

~ Carrie

"Day follows night..."

“Why yield to gloomy anticipations? Who told you that the night would never end in day?.... Who told you that the winter of your discontent would proceed from frost to frost, from snow and ice and hail to deeper snow and yet more heavy tempest of despair? Don’t you know that day follows night, that flood comes after ebb, that spring and summer succeed winter? Be full of hope! Hope forever! For God does not fail you. Do you know that God loves you in the midst of all this?.... You will yet, midst the splendors of eternity, forget the trials of time, or only remember them to bless the God who led you through them and works your lasting good by them. Come, sing in the midst of tribulation. Rejoice even while passing through the furnace. Cause the desert to ring with your exulting joys, for these light afflictions will soon be over, and then forever with the Lord, your bliss shall never wane.”

~Charles Spurgeon, Morning & Evening revised and edited by Alistair Begg, July 21, evening.

Bless the Lord

Scripture memory is something that we really want Jadon to start doing from an early age.  Since it's also something that Andy and I should be working on, we're trying to do it as a family.  We're not doing anything too structured, just listening to a few choice albums of Scripture set to music (very family friendly stuff, for the most part).  We picked out a song that Jadon seemed to enjoy and started practicing the words every night at supper before we prayed for God's blessing on our food.

After several weeks, we were pretty convinced we all had our first family verse down.  

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless his holy name!"

Psalm 103:1

This is a great, well-known verse that isn't too difficult to comprehend.  This is a verse of praise to our great God (that also challenges us to worship God with all that we say, do, and think - not an easy thing to do.  

This week, I was reading a blog that quoted the very next verse in this passage:

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits..."

Psalm 103:2

After reading this verse, I suddenly realized that during the weeks that we had been practicing this verse I had never taken the time to read the rest of this psalm to get the bigger picture.  Psalm 103 is a wonderful chapter of God's Word (that was especially encouraging to this mom).  It's so important to praise God in all that we do, because we often "forget" (as verse 2 tells us).  Purposefully remembering all that God has done for us, especially in the midst of difficult times is honoring to God and of great encouragement to us.  We are never without God's "benefits" or mercies in some way, shape, or form.  

My life is especially busy right now, and the impending holidays are only going to make life fuller.  These verses have really challenged me to "count my blessings" - day and night, happy and sad, busy and still.  I hope you are challenged to contemplate these verses, read the rest of Psalm 103, and "forget not [God's] benefits".  

~ Carrie ~

Thorns of Blessing

Credit

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to host a ladies' breakfast at my house.  The food was delicious and the company was exceptional.  We all had a wonderful time and look forward to doing it again.  Whenever the ladies from our church have a breakfast together someone usually shares a devotional and some time is spent in prayer together.  Being the hostess, I took it upon myself to lead in a short devotional.  As a young pastor's wife, I often feel overwhelmed at opportunities like this, but God has definitely been my confidence and I'm learning more and more how to make it less about what I say and more about what God is saying through me.  

The following is an excerpt from a devotional book called Trust: A Godly Woman's Adornment, by Lydia Brownback (she has a series of devotional books that are worth checking out) and is part of what I shared this past weekend.  

Thorns of Blessing

Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.  But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."  Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:8-10

A debilitating ailment hinders us from enjoying an active life... a shrink income robs us of financial breathing room to pay the bills... an elderly in-law moves in, sucking the peace out of our home.  Difficulties like these - frustrating, worrisome, stressful - happen to each one of us.  Such difficulties may occur overnight; at other times they creep up on over time. 

Do you know what I'm talking about? Maybe you can relate from personal experience.  Perhaps there is a difficult situation you are trying to cope with right now, something making you anxious and irritable much of the time.  Surely you have prayed about it.  Paul prayed several times about his personal problem, asking God to deliver him from his "thorn... in the flesh" (v.7).  But God did not deliver him in the way he asked.  God gave him the strength of Christ instead.  

Paul's thorn weakened him in some way, just as our difficulties weaken us.  As we fight off the continual jabbing of the thorn, we seek to pray our way back to strength.  But more often than not, the thorn we want gone is the very thing God is using to accomplish something good in us.  Paul's weakened condition made room for the strength of Christ, a strength that would give him a larger capacity to enjoy the blessings that God had in store for him.  Weakness in God's people is always a blessing in disguise, but it's hard to see it as such when we are feeling it keenly.  We look for any escape, any way we can find back to the strength of self-sufficiency and daily tranquility

While we are anxiously looking for a way out, what we don't see is that our thorn isn't our real problem.  what is actually making us anxious is our heart's demand to be free of it.  If we'd just stop resisting, we'd find grace to live peacefully with our difficult spouse, our multiple sclerosis, or our unemployment.  If we are willing, we will find that we really don't need the thorn removed - divine grace is sufficient.  God will prove that to us if we let him.

Click here for a link to this devotional book and others by Lydia Brownback

~ Carrie ~

"Fighting Fear with Faithfulness"

"...Like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear."

1 Peter 3:6

A terrible phone call.  A disappointing doctor's visit.  A pop quiz.  A check engine light.  A wrong turn.  As hard as we try, we cannot avoid fear and anxiety.  They creep up on us, often at very vulnerable times.  What we do with our fear?  How do we cast off our anxiety?  I love these words that are shared, particularly for women, by John Piper.

"First Peter 3:6b shows us what hope looks like in the stresses and threats of real life... The presence of hope drives out fear. The daughters of Sarah do not fear anything but displeasing God. Or to be more accurate, the daughters of Sarah fight the anxiety that rises in their hearts. They wage war on fear, and they defeat it with the promises of God.... They fight fear with the faithfulness of God—'Sarah considered him faithful who had promised' (Hebrews 11:11). And then they do what Peter says in 4:19, 'Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will do right and entrust their souls to a faithful Creator.' They affirm the sovereign rule of God over their suffering and that they do not suffer apart from his will, and they rest their souls in the firm and omnipotent hands of a faithful Creator. They cast out fear and they hope in God. And so they prove to be the daughters of Sarah and heirs according to the promise."

--John Piper, Mothers Day Message (May 1986). 

And so my mind goes to that timeless hymn...

Great is Thy Faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

~ Carrie ~