Welcome to Elgin

We have been hugely welcomed to Elgin.  We have been blessed to have so much help in getting unpacked and settled.  We are so grateful for this wonderful church family who have gone above and beyond to make us feel at home here. 

The boys arrived here yesterday and were excited to see their new rooms and love the big backyard.  However, this morning Connor said he didn't want to go potty at this house, but wanted to go home.  I had been wondering if he understood what was going on.  We explained it again and he decided he could go potty here.  Kids are so funny.  Cole seems to love it here already and well, Caleb, is Caleb and has fun playing anywhere and everywhere.  They all slept pretty good last night in their new rooms and I'm sure tonight will be even better.

We are mostly unpacked but haven't hung anything on the walls and such yet.  I know many have been asking me to post pictures of our new home and I will definitely get those shortly. 

Going is easy. Leaving is hard.

We are so excited as we head to Elgin and cannot wait to get there tomorrow.  But leaving Borger is difficult. This is only our second move in ministry, but I realized something this time.  The going is the easy part.  Since I was a young girl, I've prayed "I'll go wherever You call me," and going with God somewhere is the most incredible journey in life. We are beyond delighted and blessed to start in this new place.

But leaving people we cherish is hard.  I remember a ministry friend telling Jason and I back when we were first starting out, "Ministry is awesome, but be prepared, leaving is the hardest part."  This is true. 

I would like to say to all of you at FBC Borger,

Thank you first and foremost for loving us.  You have affected me for the good.  You have challenged me to grow and go deeper. You have continuously pointed me to Christ.  I would not be on this  exciting journey without you.

Thank you for supporting and encouraging Jason.  Thank you for helping us care for our boys. You   truly have become family. 

I love you and am excited to see what God has in store for both us and you.  

Until we meet again,

Hope

Ebay sales were a great success! Subscription goes to...

The winner of the magazine subscription is post number 7, reyanna.

Looks amazing! And I would LOVE a subscription to Scrapbooks Etc. :D

Posted by:
reyanna |
March 12, 2010 at 03:22

I'll e-mail you to get your address to start the subscription.  Thanks so everyone who helped the word about the ebay sales.  I'm so glad my stuff is going to get some good use. :)The move is on full force and my house is upside-down.  We are getting there...

Scrapbookers: Check This Out! Ebay Sales & Giveaway!

With my love of digital scrapbooking and our impending move, I've decided to sale most all of my paper scrapbooking supplies.  To do this, I made several HUGE kits of my stuff.  This picture is an example of one of the kits.  Seriously, the boxes are stuffed full and I keep finding little things to add to them. 

Some my stuff will sale at our garage sale this weekend, but most of the kits are listed on ebay (seller name: tulsachick77).  To see these kits, click below,

Huge Scrapbooking Kits

In addition to these kits for sale and to help get the word out about these kits, I'm also giving  away a subscription to Scrapbooks Etc. magazine to one blog reader.  This is my favorite scrapbooking magazine and I think appeals to both paper and digi scrappers.  To be entered in the giveaway, leave a comment telling me whether you are a digi or paper scrapper or both.  You can earn extra entries by bidding on my kits or by getting the word out about this sale and giveaway.  If you bid on a kit, post here with your ebay username.  You can get one additional entry for each kit you bid on.  If you have a blog or can post about this on a message board, leave a comment here telling me how you are helping me get the word out and earn an additional entry as well.  I will draw a winner, one week from tonight when my last ebay sale ends.  Thanks for checking this out!

Moving and Overwhelmed with Emotions

My heart and mind overflow as I prepare for our move. Jason is the new pastor of FBC Elgin, and we couldn't be more excited about this new adventure God has called us to.  The people of FBC Elgin have already welcomed and blessed us so tremendously that we look eagerly ahead at getting to know each and every one of them. I am filled with peace and joy in starting at this wonderful new place.

Yet, I am also hit with the emotions of leaving this place.  Borger has been our home for 5 years now.  It is here that our literal and spiritual family has grown. We have been blessed beyond measure here.  I have made friendships that have deeply impacted who I am and am better person for these people in my life.  Some probably don't even know who they are, but I hope to tell them before we leave.  We wouldn't be where we are today without this place.  The people of First Baptist Borger have taught us so much and it is through them that God has affirmed and encouraged Jason that preaching is his calling and greatest passion.  We will forever be grateful for our time here.

I listened to some dear friends share this morning at their troubles in finding a good church home since they moved.  I think I sometimes forget how truly blessed I have been.  I don't know why God has allowed me to be a part of all these incredible church families.  I grew up in a church, Carbondale, that first planted in me a love for Christ and a passion for His people.  I was able to go back there last fall for an incredible time of reunion and loved every minute of it. 

Later, I met Jason at Heritage Park Baptist, where many of our friends and family still worship.  It was there that we were first called into full-time ministry and they took a risk on a young guy with absolutely no experience or education.  I cannot imagine where we would be without that time in our lives and I think in many ways, Heritage Park will always be "home".

I remember when we left Heritage Park to come here to Borger and felt many of the same emotions we are feeling today.  I am glad God is in control and holds our future in His hands, because following Him has been the greatest adventure and I am excited about the next journey.

I can't believe he is 4 years old

Connor turned 4 on Sunday.  I cannot believe he is that old. I found out I was pregnant with him shortly after we moved here.  It was such a sweet surprise as we were fully expecting it to take awhile after our years of infertility before Cole.  I cannot imagine our family without Connor. All three boys have their unique personalities, but with Caleb and Cole having similarities, Connor tends to be the most different from his brothers.  I used to say he was my quiet one, but he has proved me wrong on that one in the last several months.  While his brothers prefer to be outside and constantly moving, Connor would be perfectly content staying inside all day.  His perfect day would probably be playing on the computer or watching TV all day, but that is not allowed and is often the source of whining from this little guy.

Connor's favorite thing to do these days is try to read.  Cole is reading and Connor wants to so bad.  I am working with him on it, but he gets so frustrated when he doesn't get it so we are taking it slow. 

We had a big birthday lunch for him Sunday.  I asked him what he wanted and after he made sure there was going to be cake of some sort, he said "Sow-wood (salad) with some 'matoes and carwots."  He cracks me up!  Moms, don't be too jealous, he doesn't always eat his veggies.

I took this picture of him Sunday in a brief moment that I got him to look up from his Leapster.  He got 2 new games for his birthday from us and his friend and was beyond excited to play them.  Of course, on a normal day, he is either not allowed to play or it's severely limited, so it was a major bonus to him that he pretty much had unlimited play time for his birthday.

I love you, Connor James! You will always be the best Valentine present I ever received! I can hardly wait to see what this year holds.

Who will be Jesus to them today?

As I was driving home this evening from a quick trip to Walmart that ended a very long day, I heard a caller on K-LOVE say "Who will be Jesus to them today?" To be honest, I didn't hear what they were previously talking about or why she called in.  She shared a simple story of how she made a passing comment to a stranger which turned into a conversation.  It turns out this stranger was new in her town, had moved there 3 months ago, and had met no one.  The new acquaintance was so grateful for a possible new friend.  The caller went on to say how we never know how what we say or do will affect someone and ended the call by saying "Who will be Jesus to them today?"

I've not been able to get this phrase out of my mind. I realized after hearing this that I didn't even make eye contact with anyone during my shopping trip.  I am certain I didn't show Jesus to my children most of the day.  I was short with my husband. I am guilty, as many of us are, of writing this day off as "just one of those days."  But what if there was someone who needed to see Jesus today and I simply wasn't in the mood.  How selfish of me!

So, how do I be Jesus to those around me?  What does that even mean?  I started searching some scriptures and came to many that share who Jesus is, but this passage in Philippians 2 really sticks out to me in answering my questions.  I love how The Message paraphrases verses 14-16,

Do everything readily and cheerfully�no bickering, no second-guessing
allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in
this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of
good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into
the night so I'll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that
Christ returns. You'll be living proof that I didn't go to all this
work for nothing.

For those of us who are familiar with this verse know it as the "do everything without complaining" passage.  Yes, I was guilty of complaining today, but I think there is more to these words.  If we truly did everything cheerfully, without complaint, uncorrupted, we wouldn't allow our witness to be ruined by "bad days."  We would be "breath of fresh air" and "provide people with a glimpse of the living God."

It's hard for me to imagine that Jesus walked in this world for 33 years without ever allowing His circumstances compromise who He was.  Yet, I truly believe He didn't.  We know Jesus got mad, we know He needed time alone, and we KNOW He had bad things happen.  But we also know He never stopped loving people. I have to stop letting my circumstances of the moment control who I am.  Because who I am in Christ doesn't change.  I simply allow my witness to be hidden and even hurt at times. 

So, who am I?  I am a follower of Christ.  I am child of God. I am a friend of Jesus. I am a daughter and a princess.  I am free. I am loved.  I am called to be an imitator of Christ.  How many people do I come into contact on a regular basis have no idea they can be these things too?

I CAN show a glimpse of Jesus by simply remembering who I am and remembering who He is.