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Nativity Costumes

April 25, 2012

For the past few years, I  have wanted my children to have nativity costumes to dress up in at Christmas. I had lofty plans to make them myself but it  never happened. This year, I used some gift money to purchase them online. I googled ‘nativity costumes’ and a few options came up. I ended up purchasing most of them from Oriental Trading but purchased few from another site, depending  on the cost of each costume. In the end, it was less expensive to buy the ready made costumes verses making them myself. We ended up with Mary, Joseph, three wise men, an angle and a Shepard. It cost about $100. My thinking is that compared to how much many parents spend on their children at Christmas each year, it is worth it to spend this much on costumes that will be the focal point of our preparation each year, reminding them why we celebrate.  Thankfully, the individuals who broke into our house just before Christmas and unwrapped our gifts weren’t keen on nativity costumes! I’m so grateful for this gift and I’m looking forward to using these for years to come!

At December’s family movie night, N and J dressed up with their friends while Baba told the Christmas story.

I love this picture of  our little Mary, Joseph and Angel praying together!

I look forward to seeing all the ways in which these costumes are used over the years!

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Keep Your Eyes on Jesus

April 2, 2012

This summer, while on vacation, I overheard a preschool age boy with a beautiful Arkansas drawl asking his mom about Peter walking on water. It was such a blessing to hear another mother using an out of the blue question to impart truth to her son. His mother began to quiz him about the details of the story and eventually asked, “Why did Peter sink?” The boy answered in his thick drawl, “Because he took his eyes off Jee-z-us” making Jesus a drawn out 3 syllable word. My eyes filled with tears at this young child’s knowledge of our need to keep our eyes on the Savior.

I couldn’t help but wonder if Nathan, my 6 year old, would have known the answers to the same questions. Of course, I hoped that he also knew the story that well. Later that day, I had my chance. We were at the beach and as Nathan walked through a puddle, he said, “Look mom, I’m walking on water!” I took the opportunity to see how he would measure up to the kid I had overheard earlier and turned the conversation to Peter walking on water. He had trouble re-calling Peter’s name and I wondered how he was going to fair in my little test. Once he got going, he recounted the story and when I asked, “Why did Peter sink?” his response was exactly the same, “Because he took his eyes off Jesus.” I confess, I was secretly relieved that my child also knew this answer but I was in no way prepared for what he said next.

“Mom, I been trying to walk on water for a long time. I look up to heaven and sing a song but God just doesn’t let me.”  When I asked what song he sings, he began, “I lift my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth.” He continued, “Mom, I sing and I sing but it’s just not workin’. Do you think I need to sing a different song?”

For the second time that day, my eyes filled with tears. I realized how small my faith has become.  Here Nathan was, not even giving a second thought to the feasibility of walking on water, instead thinking he hadn’t chosen the right posture of worship to accomplish the task!

If we truly fixed our eyes on Jesus, if we gazed into his face just as Peter did, how would our lives be different?  What barriers have I created in my adulthood that keep me from believing that I too could walk on water?  How many things do we see as impossible that Jesus would love to accomplish through us if we would only keep our eyes fixed on him long enough to see it through?

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Pine Cove Miracle

October 31, 2011

Last winter, I started dreaming of a family summer vacation. Our last vacation had been in Turkey when I was pregnant with J and I was ready for another one. We had been on some trips here and there but I define a vacation as a series of days where we are together as a family,  I don’t have to plan or prepare meals, and we aren’t concerned about the cost of each one. That night, I talked to J about wanting to save for a summer vacation and the definition of one…just to make sure we were on the same page. We came up with a plan but also knew that we would need a little help from the Lord to pull it off. I thought to myself, “I’ll commit to faithfully pray all spring for the Lord to provide for this and surely by summer, we will have seen His fingerprint on our vacation plans.”

The next morning, as I got ready for the day, I began to think of ways the Lord could provide and pray about them. It went something like this, “Lord, could you allow my sister’s husband’s brother-in-law’s uncle to loan us his condo in Florida this summer?” Fat chance.  Then, my amazing encourager friend Staci’s face popped in my head. Just the day before she had signed an email with “isn’t it just like God to do abundantly more than we ask?”  I immediately prayed, “Ok Lord, I’m giving this vacation thing to you. Surprise me. I’ll stop trying to plan out how you can provide.  I’m asking for abundantly  more! I wait with excited expectation to see how you’ll provide.”

I went to the kitchen to make breakfast for the sleepy heads that were beginning to emerge from bedrooms. As I was waiting for the kettle to boil, I noticed the mail, unopened on the counter, from the day before. I absent mindedly flipped threw it and made a trash pile and an open pile. There was a nondescript envelop with my  name typed on it. Trash pile. Probably junk.  Just before I threw the pile away, I thought twice about that envelop and pulled it back out to open.

It was from an unclaimed funds service. They were writing to say that they had found a significant sum of money from my previous employer in my name that I hadn’t claimed. The letter stated that if I allowed them to recover the money, they would take %10 and I could keep the rest. My first thought was that it had to be a scam. After many phone calls, research and prayer, we decided to send my information to this company and wait to see what happened.

In the mean time, we realized that this check would be the  amount we would need for a vacation. Would God really be so generous as to have the money waiting on the kitchen counter, even BEFORE I asked? We began to dream of what we could do the following summer, if the money came through. We found ourselves on the Pine Cove website and I cried when I saw the video trailer of a family sitting around a table for a meal and the counselors setting fully served plates in front of everyone.  At that moment, I knew this was the vacation for us. (And a side note to say that the counselors also cut up our kids food, cleaned them up after the meal and took them outside to play as soon as they were done. This in itself  made this the most relaxing week of the past 6 years!  Well, ok, that may be a bit of an exaggeration but then again, may be not!)

We applied for a Pine Cove scholarship that week and quickly found out that we were accepted, even though they had begun awarding scholarships months before. The only problem? We had to make the full Pine Cove payment before we found out if the ‘lost paycheck’ was really going to come or if someone had just scamed us over. If the check didn’t come and we had already paid for Pine Cove, we were going to have some problems. After much prayer, we took our next step of faith and sent the money to Pine Cove.

Then, we waited.

A few weeks later, the paycheck arrived! It was a jubilant day! I still can’t believe it, really. But, it wasn’t the first time that God has used my previous employer from 7 years ago to bless us long after my career was over. It just goes to show that He is the ultimate accountant. I wonder if anyone will ever look over Pfizer’s books and wonder why random X employee still received paychecks every few years. I’ll just tell them to talk to my amazing Accountant.

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Neighborhood VBS

October 12, 2011

This summer, we hosted a VBS for our neighbors, in front of our house. This was similar to what used to be called “Backyard Bible Club” except nowdays, no one would let their child in a stranger’s backyard! With much help from Tallowood staff and  members, we prayer walked our neighborhood several times before the week began. We passed out invites to each home and personally invited as many people as we could. Then it was time for the big event….Under the Big Top!

The first day started out slow. I was worried no one would show up but in Big Top fashion, the show must go on!

The crowd grew as the week progressed. Allison was an amazing leader and teacher!

There were crafts, games, snacks, songs and bible stories in abundance! One day, there was even an amazing and dazzling magician! My kids are still throwing cards everywhere, trying to be like Merit the Magician!

The best part was the clown skit, presenting the gospel on the last day. We had some superb clowns, that’s for sure.

We learned a lot through our neighborhood VBS experience. There are things I’ll do differently next year to gather more participants. Overall, though, we learned that the Lord blesses obedience. We are thankful for each life that was changed through God’s grace and  the labor of so many that week!

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Happy Birthday SK!

July 9, 2011

Well, SK’s birthday was actually June 29th. I had meant to post on her birthday but somehow it didn’t happen. I still wanted to write about her first year and spend a moment celebrating her precious life.

SK was a few days past her due date when I went in for my OB appointment. There had been a scheduling error and they had mistakenly canceled my appointment earlier in the week and moved it to one of the first days in July. When they realized the error, they called,  on June 29th, asking me to come in that day.  I really wanted to go into labor  naturally and was very much against inducing. But, the Lord had other plans.

My first two births were in Central Asia and I realize that somehow, on the other side of the ocean,  it was ‘easier’ to trust God with every step of the process. Here, I would find myself not trusting the doctor’s decisions as though she wasn’t also in the hand of God through our prayers. I wasn’t so sure when she told me I couldn’t leave the appointment that day but instead needed to go over to the hospital to be induced. My NST was showing signs of distress. I really wanted to go home and wait but thankfully, my requests weren’t heard.

To circumvent a long birth story, SK had myconium in her lungs, thus causing the alarming heart rate as she struggled.  This was discovered before she was born so that neonatal team was already in the room when she was born. Most likely, she had been breathing it for a couple of days. When she was born, there was an eerie silence and a few weak gasps for air. A concerned look on my doctor’s face. She was passed into the hands of the specialist as they simultaneously tried to suction out her lungs.

She was rushed out of the room. First, they came back in and asked to see Dad outside. This didn’t make me feel too confident. The specialist came back in with J after a few minutes and told me that she was having trouble breathing and would be taken to the NICU. First, they would bring her back in for me to be able to see her. I didn’t want to see her, I said. I wanted her to get the help she needed as quickly as possible. All I could think about was getting her help. No, they said, you need to see her. After J’s year of being a hospital chaplain at Texas Children’s, this could only mean one thing to me: the possibility that this would be my only time to see her alive. In hindsight, I was totally panicked and this probably wasn’t what they meant to convey. Nonetheless, this was my thought process as I looked at her sweet face for the first time.

She was in a plastic box. Completely enclosed. There were two arm holes on either side that we could open and reach in to touch her tiny hands. J held one, I held the other and we embraced as we entrusted her life to God.  I don’t know why they needed so many nurses and other professionals in our room during this ordeal but I do know that this room full of people came to a standstill as we poured out hearts on her behalf. Emanuel. God with us. His presence filled the room.

Before every birth, we pray for the nurses and doctors who will be with us during the birth- such an intimate and vulnerable time in our lives. We pray that they will know the Lord’s goodness and love as a result of our interactions with them and with one another as they become a part of such a special time in the life of our family. Each time, I’ve had a doctor who isn’t a believer and each time, the Lord has given me such a love and compassion for her to know Him.

After a couple of long days in the NICU, SK was fine. Sure, there were challenges along the way. Of course it was difficult to wait to see her, then wait to hold her, and other challenges that come along with a baby that has been in the  NICU. How wonderful it was to hold her for the first time without any wires or monitors!

Over the past year, I have thanked God thousands of times for this sweet baby.

Her life has brought such joy.

Her life has brought such gratitude.

And just maybe on June 29, 2010, her life  stirred the heart of a doctor, nurse or technician who previously didn’t know Him.

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A New Brother

June 13, 2011

No, not another sibling.
N is now our brother in Christ!

It brings us such joy to see the prayer that we have sewed into his life, long before he was born ANSWERED!

The transformation in his life, the depth of the questions he asks and his genuine desire to know and love God is such an inspiration. Oh that we would all have the Faith of a child!

Yesterday, he said, “Mom, I was playing bristle blocks and I just stopped and prayed that J would become a Christian.”

There is nothing that could bless us more than knowing his life is bearing this fruit- love for the lost, sensitivity to the Holy Spirit’s prompting to pray, and a brother praying his sister into the kingdom of God!

We are blessed.

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Breakfast with the Pastor!

December 10, 2010

This fall my son, Nathan, promoted from the preschool department into big church.  Tallowood does an amazing job at making this transition a smooth one through a special “Breakfast with the Pastor.”  At the breakfast, each child received a pin and a bag that both had, “Big enough for big church” written on them.  Afterwards, they went on an exclusive tour of the sanctuary with Ms. Kasey and Dr. Brooks.

When the breakfast invitation arrived in the mail, Nathan was so excited.  We had many conversations in the days following about the breakfast itself and his time in big church that would follow.  He couldn’t wait!

The night before the big breakfast, Nathan couldn’t sleep.  You would have thought it was Christmas Eve with the multiple trips down the stairs for water, another prayer, one last question.  Discipline didn’t seem to faze him; the excitement was just too great.  On the last, very stern visit to his room, I said, “Nathan, what is keeping you awake tonight?” He answered with awe and anticipation, “Mom, I just want to know, why did the pastor choose me?”

Oh no!  He thought he was going to have breakfast all by himself with the pastor! Later, we laughed, wondering if he had envisioned just him and Dr. Brooks sitting at McDonald’s, enjoying egg McMuffins together; or, perhaps he pictured a big mahogany desk with Pastor Brooks on one side and Nathan on the other.  As I probed further, I found that he wasn’t quite sure who the Pastor was, but he knew that he was a man of great importance and being chosen for breakfast was an invitation worthy of much anticipation.   

Sound familiar?  We too have an invitation; no, not to a breakfast with the pastor, but to a feast with the King!!  

Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’”  And he added, “These are the true words of God.”  Revelation 19:9

What is on our minds when we fall asleep at night?  Do we lay awake in excitement contemplating in amazement that we have been chosen as children of the King?  Do we lay there in awe of the invitation we have received to a meeting with Him?  Are we giddy with excitement to realize He doesn’t just want a meeting; He wants to walk with us through our entire day?  Do our hearts overflow with thankfulness for our heroic rescue from the throes of death?  Do we marvel and wonder why He has chosen us?  

That night, I realized we could all use a little four year old enthusiasm.  If we were truly this excited about an invitation, how would our lives be different?

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Advent for Kids

December 3, 2010

N has recently been showing interest in the story of Satan’s rebellion against God and removal from heaven. We have begun to talk about the Christmas story as well. Yesterday, he asked, “Is the only time God sinned when He kicked St. Nicholas out into a snake?”  A little mixed up. This was a reminder of how important repetition is for children. We have told him these stories over and over but obviously, not enough! Advent is a great way to teach the Christmas story through repetition. We light the candle every night at dinner and review the story as it builds.

First Sunday of advent: Hope

1. Light one purple candle to symbolize Hope

2. Ready Luke 1:26-38 about the angel Gabriel coming ot tell Mary she would be the mother of the Son of God. (Mary had hope that God would do as the angle told her.)

3. Pray: Lord, help us to be like Mary.

Second Sunday: Peace

1. Light two purple candles- Hope and Peace

2. Read Matthew 1:18-25 about Joseph finding out about Mary’s pregnancy and being told by the angel in a dream that this is from God. (Joseph had Peace that God was going to use he and Mary to care for His Son.)

3. Pray: Lord, help us to have Peace that you are taking care of us.

Third Sunday: Joy

1. Light two purple candles (Hope and Peace) and one rose to symbolize Joy

2. Read Luke 1:39-45 about Mary visiting Elizabeth and John leaping for joy in her womb

3. Pray: Lord, help us to have Joy in remembering that you care for us and came to earth so we could know how much you love us.

Fourth Sunday: Love

1. Light all four candles- Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love

2. Read Luke 1:57-80 (or some parts of this) about the birth of John the Baptist and his father Zacharias’s prophecy that John would prepare the people to hear of God’s Love by helping them to repent and ask for forgiveness from their sins.

3. Pray: Lord help us to be sorry for ous sins and remember you love us.

Christmas Eve

1. After sunset…Light all four candles and add the fifth white candle (the light of Christ)

2. Read Luke 2:1-20 about the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.

3. Pray: Lord, thank you for coming to the earth as a light to us. Thank you for loving us and dying for our sins.

Advent plan written by Virginia Kearney.

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Thankful. Thankful? Thankful!

November 19, 2010

As Thanksgiving approaches, we usually set aside a special time to thank God for the good things in our lives – our families, our health, our blessings, God’s provision over the past year.

What about the things we aren’t thankful for?  What about the difficulties over the past year?  The hurts?  The struggles?

I am coming to learn that it blesses God even more to hear us thank Him for these things. Barbara Houston was a wonderful woman at our church  who served in the library, taught Sunday school, and was a continual source of light and joy to all in many other roles beyond these.  A couple weeks before she was ushered into the throne room of grace, she came to our Wednesday night women’s group as a guest speaker.

Our semester theme is prayer and out of all the topics she could have chosen, she encouraged us to give thanks for the very things we lament. The things we wish never happened. None of us could have imagined that a few weeks later, we would need Barbara’s encouragement to be thankful in the midst of grieving her absence.

Barbara shared insights from her own prayer life and the importance of asking for four key things seen in Colossians 1:9-12: wisdom, understanding, strength, and joy.

“We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, 10so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of His people in the kingdom of light.” (Emphasis added)

Barbara has received her inheritance in the kingdom of light!  But we, who still remain to glorify God here on Earth, are urged to “give joyful thanks” in all things.  Barbara shared about the release in her own life that came from thanking God for the things she wished hadn’t happened. That night, my husband and I followed her words of wisdom thanking God for the difficulties that have come our way over the past few years. The time ended in tears of joy and a new freedom. There’s something powerful in voicing thanks for things we normally wouldn’t be thankful for.

So, during this Thanksgiving season, set aside time to specifically thank God for the difficult things over the past year. As Barbara so wisely said, “Give thanks in Everything. Everything? Everything!” In this we will find true wisdom, understanding, strength, and joy.

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Inspired by L

November 12, 2010

Today, I wanted to tell you about a friend, L who lives in a rural area of Central Asia. She chose to give birth to her first child there instead of temporarily re-locating to a larger city like I chose to do with both N and J. People always ask me the difference between my Central Asian and American birth experiences. There were really pros and cons to both and I must say, one wasn’t better than the other. For some reason, I can’t pull together and articulate my thoughts on the matter. But, hands down, I am totally inspired by L and her confidence in the Lord’s watchcare over her life. I asked her permission to post her comments on giving birth in a rural area of Central Asia on my blog. She is now the mother of a beautiful healthy baby girl and her husband was able to attend the end of the delivery and see his first daughter being born. But, she didn’t know if this would be the case. Read between the lines and see the faith and confidence this woman of God has in Her creator. She went into her birth experience knowing that an epidural wasn’t an option. On top of this, if there was another woman in labor at the same time she was, her husband wouldn’t be allowed in the room. Are you uncertian or anxious about something today? Is it killing you that you don’t know how that scenario you have been anticipating will play out? May we each be filled with this kind of trust in the One who is in complete control of our lives!

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Sep 3, 2010 2:02 AM Why I’m glad I’m giving birth in Turkey

As I reflected this morning on my upcoming labor & delivery here in Turkey, I realized I was so thankful that God has placed me here for this time. I’ve been meditating on a verse or set of verses most mornings for the past couple weeks, to prepare myself emotionally & spiritually for the upcoming challenges and changes in life. We’ve also been doing birthing preparation reading with exercises & gaining knowledge about labor & delivery – preparing mentally & physically.

But what really struck me this morning, was how I’m not sure if I would be as desperate & realize how much I need to trust God in my labor & delivery if I was in the States. In the States (at least as far as I can tell from reading books & talking with friends), you have a birth plan with every detail of how YOU want it (not how the doctor thinks it should go), your doctor spends time answering ALL of your questions (even if they’re silly & petty), you can communicate clearly in your own language with anyone, you know your husband (and any other loved ones) can be with you, and you feel like you’re the princess (although in much pain) as you get pampered before, during, and after labor & delivery.

But all for all of these comforts and things that make us feel so secure, they’re not worthy of our trust… they can fail. We can know all the “right” positions, have done all of the “right” preparation, we can know & understand every contingency for complications during labor & delivery, we can have a birth plan that we expect to be followed, but in the end those things don’t matter.

Because…

  • it’s God who opens the cervix
  • it’s God who knows the timing of contractions & when a baby will be born
  • it’s God who is in control of the position of the baby
  • it’s God who is in control who else is giving birth at the same time as you (recently my sister-in-law had to wait for a room at a hospital in the States b/c there were so many women giving birth that night!)
  • it’s God who is in control of keeping the baby safe
  • it’s God who is the ultimate birth partner & coach
  • it’s God who is in control of which nurse, mid-wife, or doctor might be on duty when you go into labor

Ultimately, no matter where we are, God is the one in control. If I was giving birth in the States, I know I would know this theoretically, but I’m not sure I would really “know” it like I do know, here, living in this place.

Don’t get me wrong, we’re confident in our doctor, our hospital, and the skills we’ve learned for our upcoming labor & delivery, but ultimately I have a clear understanding that all of those things can and could fail… and that everything that I WANT in a labor & delivery might not happen.

The only thing that won’t fail is God watching over us & giving us peace that no matter what happens He’s in control, and in that end that’s all that really does matter.

Please pray with us and for us Isaiah 26:3-4…

“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.”

Pray that we would continue to be at peace before, after, and during our labor & delivery because we TRUST in Him, the one who is worthy of our trust!

Another way that we’re prepared… our little girl’s nursery is ready for her arrival!

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