Funny Picture Friday: Snowman Edition!!

I know it's been away for a while, but seeing these pics over at Holy Taco made me laugh and I wanted to share them with you all....enjoy and get some ideas for when the white stuff falls where you live!!









And my favorite...



Poor Frosty....have a great weekend!

The Power Of Prayer...

We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

(I Thessalonians 1:2-3, NIV)

The power of prayer.

I know we've all heard stories about the miraculous power of prayer...from the stories in the Bible to testimonies heard with our own ears, God's done amazing things when His people pray. I've had a chance to experience that first-hand these past 4 months, so let me share how that's impacted me.

When I first found out my kidneys were failing, I prayed like you wouldn't believe. I prayed that they would be healed and function as normal again. I got anointed with my friends in my Sunday School class, and felt confident that God would hear and answer me. About a week later I got word that not only wasn't I healed, but that the damage done was irreversible, and I would need dialysis for the rest of my life unless I was able to find a kidney for donation. I have to admit...for a few days that broke me. I couldn't understand why He didn't answer my prayer...

Then, before I went in to have my permanent catheter put in for dialysis, it hit me. God did answer my prayer...just not the way I hoped. In not healing me, He wanted to show me His glory and power. I made my peace with that, and climbed up in His arms to have Him carry me, instead of me trying to lead Him. It was then that God really showed up...or maybe I just started noticing...

People came out of nowhere to encourage me. I've got churches I've never been to that have me on their weekly prayer list. I've even heard of people who live thousands of miles away that pray for me daily. It's the most amazing, yet humbling thing I've ever experienced. When time came to start the donation process, I hoped one or two would call in to see if they could match and donate. The donation coordinator finally told me to take the number down because she had more calls than she could process. That's amazing, humbling, and just God showing me how much He and others care for me. Also, at dialysis, it became easier to not focus on the fact I was sick and needed treatment, but to notice that God had blessed me with pretty good health in spite of this disease. There are so many there in much worse shape than I am.

Another important thing that has happened with God not healing me is the fact that I've been able to use the peace and good attitude He has given me (and believe me, it's all Him!) about this as a tool to share His love, acceptance, and forgiveness with others. It's opened doors and started conversations that I never would have imagined would've happened without it.

Do I still wish God would have healed me? Selfishly, yes...but I see His plan, and am fine with walking along that path with Him....and I know this only comes from the power of prayer from the many lifting me up daily in His presence.

Don't ever, EVER, underestimate the power of your prayers. Just a few moments of praying for someone can be life-changing for them. Here's hoping we each pray for someone today.

"The Picture On The Fridge Became Human"...

I've always loved "Ragamuffin Soul", the blog of Carlos Whittaker. He's an amazingly creative person, a great musician, and a soulful writer. (Yes, I am officially jealous.) He and his family sponsor a young girl from El Salvador through Compassion International, and his wife was able to make a trip there to meet their "little girl", and to share it with the family back home via Skype. Carlos edited the footage into a little video, and watching it made me cry. (Not a big stretch, I know....) I love how the whole family is invested in the life of this little girl halfway around the world, and I'm excited that our family has begun a similar journey ourselves.

Click here to read "The Picture on the Fridge Became Human", and be sure to watch the video...it'll touch your heart.

"The Journey"...

I was turned on to a great blog yesterday by my friend Todd Owens. It's called "The Journey" and it's written by a young lady named Katie Davis. She is a twenty-one year old who has chosen to give her life to serve others abroad. She is part of a group called Amazima that serves the underpriviledged and orphaned in Uganda. Katie not only provide medical care to many families and children, but she is a "house mother" to 14 young girls without a home.

Katie's blog is a good read not only for understanding how blessed we are here in America, but how much of a need there is all around us. She is providing for the physical needs of the people of Uganda, but deeper still she is being His hands and feet, showing His love through her actions to a people half a world away.

She doesn't blog that often, but when she does, it's worth your time. Click here to read "The Journey" and you can find a link permanently in the links section on the right side of my blog.

Using Our Falls To Lift Others Up...

“I admit that I didn’t always hold to this position. For a time I thought it was my duty to oppose this Jesus of Nazareth with all my might. Backed with the full authority of the high priests, I threw these believers—I had no idea they were God’s people!—into the Jerusalem jail right and left, and whenever it came to a vote, I voted for their execution. I stormed through their meeting places, bullying them into cursing Jesus, a one-man terror obsessed with obliterating these people. And then I started on the towns outside Jerusalem. “One day on my way to Damascus, armed as always with papers from the high priests authorizing my action, right in the middle of the day a blaze of light, light outshining the sun, poured out of the sky on me and my companions. Oh, King, it was so bright! We fell flat on our faces. Then I heard a voice in Hebrew: ‘Saul, Saul, why are you out to get me? Why do you insist on going against the grain?’

“I said, ‘Who are you, Master?’

“The voice answered, ‘I am Jesus, the One you’re hunting down like an animal. But now, up on your feet—I have a job for you. I’ve handpicked you to be a servant and witness to what’s happened today, and to what I am going to show you. “‘I’m sending you off to open the eyes of the outsiders so they can see the difference between dark and light, and choose light, see the difference between Satan and God, and choose God. I’m sending you off to present my offer of sins forgiven, and a place in the family, inviting them into the company of those who begin real living by believing in me.’

(Acts 26:9-18, MSG)

This is a portion of Paul's speech defending himself to Festus and King Agrippa in the highest court in the land. The king asked Paul to tell his story, sharing his background with them so they could really get a feel for who he was. Paul had a choice to make: to tell the honest truth, no matter what light it painted him in, or to cover up his past and just let everyone think he's perfect. The easy choice is to cover it up, to not share things that may paint us in a less than flattering light...but Paul didn't do that. He was brutally honest about his past and his mistakes to show that God can use anyone, even someone that put Christians to death. Paul's testimony showed that God can forgive and redeem anyone and use them for His glory.

I think the same holds true for us today. It's so easy to varnish over those times in our lives when we've made bad choices and have fallen from the path we started on. In doing so, we can seal those bad memories away for good, and never have to deal with them again. Problem is, those times we are so embarrassed of can be what reaches and touches someone's heart, letting them know that the person they see as being "perfect" is no better than they are. When we are vulnerable to let people into our "story", there is a chance we will get hurt...but there is a great chance for something amazing to happen.

Here's hoping we can be honest about our failures today.

A New Addition To Our Family...

I teased this post a week or two ago, and I got a bunch of comments about it, so before I go any further, I need to clear two things up:

1. We aren't expecting a child. (Just the thought of one makes me shudder....)
2. We didn't get a new pet. (I didn't want the one we have already...)

Kris and I had been talking about sponsoring a child for a while, and a few weeks ago we went to the Casting Crowns concert. Right before intermission, Mark Hall shared about sponsorships through World Vision. This was one of the groups I had done research on, noting that over 90% of the funds brought in go directly to help children in need. For those of you unfamiliar with this concept, here's a short synopsis:

A HopeChild is a child living in a community affected by AIDS. As a HopeChild sponsor, you are connected with one special child who will know your name, write to you, and feel your tender love and prayers. Your monthly sponsorship gift can help turn the tide of the HIV and AIDS pandemic! You can provide things such as:

Clean water
Nutritious food
Health care, including AIDS prevention
Educational opportunities
Spiritual nurturing
Care for sick or dying parent
HIV and AIDS counseling

When Mark was finished, he and the band passed out cards with children on them. Kris got one, and here's our new addition:

His name is Bernardo. He's six years old, just about six months younger than our daughter. He is from Mozambique, and he enjoys playing soccer and going to school. He likes to help out at home by sweeping the floors. (I didn't include his picture, as World Vision wants to respect the privacy of the children and asks that we not post it here.) We just entered into the process so we don't know too much more about him yet, but should be receiving a full informational packet very soon. Once we receive this, we will be able to write to Bernardo and he can write back. I was excited about this opportunity to help...but what really blew me away was the response from our kids.

When we told the kids what we were doing, they were very excited. They can't wait to be able to write him and send pictures of them. As we talked with the kids about Bernardo, we were able to share some about how things are different for him there in Africa, and how blessed we are to be healthy, have food, and be able to go to school. The kids really got into it, and have committed a weekly portion of the money they earn doing chores around the house to be sent to Bernardo. What really touches my heart is to hear them pray for this young boy they've never met every night in their prayers. They pray that he is healthy. They pray that he is safe. They pray that he isn't hungry any more. As a dad, seeing the compassion my kids had for Bernardo and that they wanted to be a part of it just made my heart swell, and I also look forward to being a small part of Bernardo's life.

If this is something you may be interested in, I've found two organizations I fully support and believe in: World Vision and Compassion. Prayerfully consider taking a tiny bit of what you're blessed with and use it to change a child's life forever.

Welcome to the family, Bernardo!

"Torn To Pieces.."

"Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces
but he will heal us;
he has injured us
but he will bind up our wounds.

Let us acknowledge the Lord;
let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,
like the spring rains that water the earth.”

(Hosea 6:1,3 NIV)

This passage seemed pretty harsh the first time I read through it. "He has torn us to pieces....He has has injured us"? Sounds like a vengeful God, ready to smite us at a moment's notice, right? Well, if you think about it from Hosea's perspective, everything changes. Remember that God told him to marry a prostitute as an example to the people of Israel...and remember how badly that went for Hosea. Not only was she unfaithful, but she went back to her old way of business, forcing him to essentially "buy" her from her handlers.

Let's not mince words here....that had to hurt. Hosea had to have felt that he was "torn to pieces" and "injured" by just obeying God. He could have walked away from his wife and threw in the towel and no one would have blamed him. Instead, Hosea chose to persevere and keep fighting the good fight and finally won her, and many converts to the cause of Christ, in the end.

Sometimes, when life beats us up and leaves us bleeding, we feel like Hosea and want to just give up and walk away from it all....but as the second verse reminds us, pressing on and working through that pain, anger, or guilt will be worth it in the end. Grace, patience, and strength will be there at the end, just as He promised.

Here's hoping when you're "torn to pieces" that you'll allow Him to put you back together.