InvitationDesiring God 2008 Regional Conference
The book of Job asks the earnest question we all ask: “Why do bad things happen to good people?”
Afflicted with disease, stripped of his wealth, and asked to confess to evil, Job reaches through his cloud of suffering and strains to touch his God.
As we ponder Job's misery, do we also see the threads of God's mercy in it?
We will all face suffering at some point in our lives; it is inescapable. But what makes calamity endurable is not that God shares our shock, but that through every flame of pain and flood of fear, his sovereign goodness sustains us and turns it all for our good.For you who suffer, for you who will suffer, and for you who walk alongside those who suffer, we invite you to this conference to see and savor the One who suffered in our place, and who promises never to leave or forsake us.
Please join us for this two-day event on October 17-18 in Austin, Texas.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
One more push
Next week is the deadline for the early registration discount to the Desiring God Regional Conference in Austin. I'm so excited that Cassie has signed up to go with me! Please consider joining us. Here's the description with links posted below that for you. I promise you will be blessed by hearing Piper teach.
If you give our Cassie a camera...
One of the best things we've ever purchased for our girls is a digital camera. They all have one now which at the time seemed like excess. Now we are so grateful. Every trip is documented from a completely different point of view. We think about the age of 5 or 6 is a great time to get started...unless they are still using objects as weapons.
Cassie and Wayne both had cameras in the Ukraine. I was looking for a specific picture and came across this small sampling from Cassie's memory card. It's not that I've not taken pictures of the same things from time to time. But my shots tend to be of the action going on. Cassie's are like still life. We can count on it, no matter where she goes, Cassie will come back with pictures of these four things...
Food...
On the other hand, maybe instead of worrying
about what we'll eat in the Ukraine,
we need to worry about not eating everything put in front of us!
Animals...
I wouldn't have even noticed this one,
but you can count on hearing from my girls:
Nature/Buildings...
Friends...
Cassie and Wayne both had cameras in the Ukraine. I was looking for a specific picture and came across this small sampling from Cassie's memory card. It's not that I've not taken pictures of the same things from time to time. But my shots tend to be of the action going on. Cassie's are like still life. We can count on it, no matter where she goes, Cassie will come back with pictures of these four things...
Food...
Cassie says this is a piece of fish...sure it is...
On the other hand, maybe instead of worrying
about what we'll eat in the Ukraine,
we need to worry about not eating everything put in front of us!
Animals...
Not the friendliest greeting Cass has ever gotten!
I wouldn't have even noticed this one,
but you can count on hearing from my girls:
Ooooohhhh! Mom, it's a puppy!
Nature/Buildings...
Friends...
Sarah, Molly and Cassie...on their way!
I just love to watch when they're messing around...
Children draw Cassie like a magnet...
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
It's not about the game
The first scrimmage is behind us. School has started. Our meal money stretches a little farther as Wayne is now eating three meals a day at the field house...except of course on Sunday when he eats breakfast with us! Our nights end with us hoping that he gets home around 9pm so that he can put the girls to bed and talk to them each for a few minutes. This is even on the weekends. Our updates on him will come from Cassie who sees him across the hall before her Statistics class.
Email is now the best way for me to contact him and I'm getting back in the groove of putting together my top three list...what I absolutely need to tell him vs. what I might just want him to know. Lots of things that are normally his concern become mine...minor repairs, dealing with bills, lawn care, most discipline issues, school forms and meetings, homework help, budgeting...He'll do it when he can and would love to do it more, but he's just not here. So, I try to whittle the list down of what I truly need his help on when just a few weeks ago I would talk to him about everything.
This life isn't unusual for many women across the state. There are more than 15,000 coaches in Texas public schools. And college and pro coaches make our husbands' schedules look good. More than that, there are lots of doctors taking call this week, leaving wives and little ones wondering if they dreamed that they heard him come in last night. There are firefighters who are leaving home, literally, for days. I know so many women whose husbands are gone for over a year to Iraq and Afghanistan, whose lives are in danger every day.
But notice something about that last group of people...doctors, soldiers, firefighters...they're out there helping people. Defending and rebuilding a country. Saving lives. They're not away from home and families for a game. They're not spending HOURS watching film of other games. Those soldiers spend hours in meetings plotting strategy for defending people not the spread or the Wing T. This is why I gear up for weeks before the season...praying, thinking, preparing myself...not really for now, but for that week about mid-October when money doesn't match the bills, and Brennan's sick again, and I'm needing wisdom about something going on with Cassie...and Wayne's gone from us for a game.
Then my flesh rages and rails against my life...I lose focus...I grow bitter in my loneliness and under the weight of all that I bear without Wayne. It's not worth it. It's not worth this. Why are we still doing this? For a game?? It's not worth it. Women who know me will begin to see the strain and fraying of my nerves. You okay? they'll ask. No, not really. The truth will rise out of me. I can't remember why we do this.
Many will simply reply that they agree! But a few women have been near me long enough to know what I long for them to say to me...Kim, it's not about the game. It's never been about the game. It's never been about the job. What job is worth this? I would go without so much before I'd ask Wayne to work 100 hour weeks for months on end. So, why are we still there?
Because Harry still doesn't know Christ. Because Tevin might see Jesus in Wayne. Because Lache (pronounced Lake) is being pulled by hundred different people who want to use him for their glory and gain. Because of the countless young men who get their first taste of what a real dad is like by being around my girls' daddy. Because no one sees them...not really. But Wayne does. He knows them. Encourages them. Is there for them. Loves them...because Jesus Christ first loved him.
A quick story to highlight it...I got a call during football season last year, right about the time I was losing it. Middle of the morning. Out of town number. I hesitated to pick it up because we were in the middle of schooling. But they were moving pretty good. Stranger's voice on the line, asking if this was Coach Ransleben's house. Yeah. I'm his wife, Kim. Can I help? This grown man tells me that I wouldn't remember him, but he'd been trying to find Wayne for a couple of years. Finally ran into a coach who knew where we were. He just had to call. He wanted Wayne to know that he wasn't the same as the kid he knew. He was playing arena ball. Had turned his life around. His older brother was a preacher now. They both came to Christ years back.
But he had to tell Wayne. Because, he said, Coach was the only one in his whole life to tell him that he could be somebody, that he was going to make it, that he believed in him. He told me about the conference at school with all his teachers when everyone of them were telling about how bad he'd been in class, how poor his work ethic, how they were sure that he was about to drop out and would end up like his parents...both in jail...dad for assault, mom for prostitution. Then Wayne spoke up and said that he didn't believe it. He said this kid could be whatever he wanted. Wayne even said that day that he could play professionally if he wanted to. He was going to be fine. He knew what he had to do. He'd make it.
The guy teared up on the phone some 16 years later because a man believed in him. He never forgot it. He knew Wayne was a Christian. He watched him all the time. He really believes that God used that moment to pull him from a pit. Everything changed after that one meeting that Wayne can barely remember. He wasn't trying to rescue a kid. He was just living his life, encouraging kids, modeling as best he knew the Savior who saved him.
When you look at it from a distance, it's just a bunch of guys on a field, chasing a ball around. Crowds are never worth it. Nameless faces. But if you'd wait until after the game, you could look into their eyes...and if you have the heart of Christ...you'll have compassion on them and you'll stay until it's very late in the day...past meal times...past the point when others would tell you that it's time to send everyone away.
Football isn't worth it. No game is. But it's not about the game. It's about God loving us and pouring that same love into us so that we might pour out that same love to those who are in need of a Savior. If football will bring us to these kids, give Wayne an automatic in with them, grant them the chance to see Christ lived out, grant the audience for the gospel...yeah, that's worth it.
So, when I falter this season...would you do me a favor? Tell me it's not about the game, it's about the Savior. Tell me to look away from the mirror and look into the eyes of the boys Wayne is with. Remind me that staying late and serving long is nothing compared to the gift that has already been poured out on us. Tell me that this light and momentary affliction is preparing me for an eternal weight of glory that is beyond compare.
A game? Of course it's not worth it for a game. But for our Savior?
Go, honey. Have a great day there. We'll be here. And we'll be fine. Go.
Email is now the best way for me to contact him and I'm getting back in the groove of putting together my top three list...what I absolutely need to tell him vs. what I might just want him to know. Lots of things that are normally his concern become mine...minor repairs, dealing with bills, lawn care, most discipline issues, school forms and meetings, homework help, budgeting...He'll do it when he can and would love to do it more, but he's just not here. So, I try to whittle the list down of what I truly need his help on when just a few weeks ago I would talk to him about everything.
This life isn't unusual for many women across the state. There are more than 15,000 coaches in Texas public schools. And college and pro coaches make our husbands' schedules look good. More than that, there are lots of doctors taking call this week, leaving wives and little ones wondering if they dreamed that they heard him come in last night. There are firefighters who are leaving home, literally, for days. I know so many women whose husbands are gone for over a year to Iraq and Afghanistan, whose lives are in danger every day.
But notice something about that last group of people...doctors, soldiers, firefighters...they're out there helping people. Defending and rebuilding a country. Saving lives. They're not away from home and families for a game. They're not spending HOURS watching film of other games. Those soldiers spend hours in meetings plotting strategy for defending people not the spread or the Wing T. This is why I gear up for weeks before the season...praying, thinking, preparing myself...not really for now, but for that week about mid-October when money doesn't match the bills, and Brennan's sick again, and I'm needing wisdom about something going on with Cassie...and Wayne's gone from us for a game.
Then my flesh rages and rails against my life...I lose focus...I grow bitter in my loneliness and under the weight of all that I bear without Wayne. It's not worth it. It's not worth this. Why are we still doing this? For a game?? It's not worth it. Women who know me will begin to see the strain and fraying of my nerves. You okay? they'll ask. No, not really. The truth will rise out of me. I can't remember why we do this.
Many will simply reply that they agree! But a few women have been near me long enough to know what I long for them to say to me...Kim, it's not about the game. It's never been about the game. It's never been about the job. What job is worth this? I would go without so much before I'd ask Wayne to work 100 hour weeks for months on end. So, why are we still there?
Because Harry still doesn't know Christ. Because Tevin might see Jesus in Wayne. Because Lache (pronounced Lake) is being pulled by hundred different people who want to use him for their glory and gain. Because of the countless young men who get their first taste of what a real dad is like by being around my girls' daddy. Because no one sees them...not really. But Wayne does. He knows them. Encourages them. Is there for them. Loves them...because Jesus Christ first loved him.
A quick story to highlight it...I got a call during football season last year, right about the time I was losing it. Middle of the morning. Out of town number. I hesitated to pick it up because we were in the middle of schooling. But they were moving pretty good. Stranger's voice on the line, asking if this was Coach Ransleben's house. Yeah. I'm his wife, Kim. Can I help? This grown man tells me that I wouldn't remember him, but he'd been trying to find Wayne for a couple of years. Finally ran into a coach who knew where we were. He just had to call. He wanted Wayne to know that he wasn't the same as the kid he knew. He was playing arena ball. Had turned his life around. His older brother was a preacher now. They both came to Christ years back.
But he had to tell Wayne. Because, he said, Coach was the only one in his whole life to tell him that he could be somebody, that he was going to make it, that he believed in him. He told me about the conference at school with all his teachers when everyone of them were telling about how bad he'd been in class, how poor his work ethic, how they were sure that he was about to drop out and would end up like his parents...both in jail...dad for assault, mom for prostitution. Then Wayne spoke up and said that he didn't believe it. He said this kid could be whatever he wanted. Wayne even said that day that he could play professionally if he wanted to. He was going to be fine. He knew what he had to do. He'd make it.
The guy teared up on the phone some 16 years later because a man believed in him. He never forgot it. He knew Wayne was a Christian. He watched him all the time. He really believes that God used that moment to pull him from a pit. Everything changed after that one meeting that Wayne can barely remember. He wasn't trying to rescue a kid. He was just living his life, encouraging kids, modeling as best he knew the Savior who saved him.
When you look at it from a distance, it's just a bunch of guys on a field, chasing a ball around. Crowds are never worth it. Nameless faces. But if you'd wait until after the game, you could look into their eyes...and if you have the heart of Christ...you'll have compassion on them and you'll stay until it's very late in the day...past meal times...past the point when others would tell you that it's time to send everyone away.
Football isn't worth it. No game is. But it's not about the game. It's about God loving us and pouring that same love into us so that we might pour out that same love to those who are in need of a Savior. If football will bring us to these kids, give Wayne an automatic in with them, grant them the chance to see Christ lived out, grant the audience for the gospel...yeah, that's worth it.
So, when I falter this season...would you do me a favor? Tell me it's not about the game, it's about the Savior. Tell me to look away from the mirror and look into the eyes of the boys Wayne is with. Remind me that staying late and serving long is nothing compared to the gift that has already been poured out on us. Tell me that this light and momentary affliction is preparing me for an eternal weight of glory that is beyond compare.
A game? Of course it's not worth it for a game. But for our Savior?
Go, honey. Have a great day there. We'll be here. And we'll be fine. Go.
First days...Last days
Today was a day we've been working toward for years here at Ransleben Academy. Aisley is off to school! She began her 7th grade year this morning joining a few hundred others at Bonham Middle School. For those who don't know, we've been homeschooling her throughout her life. She was excited, if a little pale, as she left the van. But athletics was first period and there's nothing more familiar to her than gymnasiums and coaches. Then she has the next two classes with Kelly who's been her friend since they were 20 months old and in the same nursery class at church. We also met a couple of teachers who already expressed their faith in Christ and welcomed her as a former homeschooler. All this to say, God has been abundant in providing a way for her to thrive there.
As if that weren't enough, today marked the beginning of the end of Cassie's high school years. And to further mark the moment, it was the first time that I didn't take her to school since this summer she received this blessing. Twenty years of talking to seniors has shown us that this will be one of the quickest years of her life...and ours. Every thing that happens is marked by the words: This is the last... Last time for school pictures. Last homecoming. Last first day of high school. There isn't one day since she became a senior that we don't think in terms of her leaving. Plans for next summer, what stuff to keep in her room, what clothes we buy, what kind of car we purchase, how to change a tire and check the oil, why it's important to separate colors from whites...all of it happens with a view to sending her off, Lord willing.
Two big moments in our lives...but now that it's here, it is both more and less than I had imagined. It feels very momentous to have them both gone...and very strange to have just Brennan sitting at the table finishing up her World History lesson. The quiet is quieter than I thought it would be. I'm more grateful than ever to be able to give Brennan all of my attention. There is so much less to distract her as she moves from subject to subject. I've never been able to teach in that kind of environment. It's really, really nice.
But though I miss them today, it's less emotional than I thought it would be. No tears yet. I think it's because it feels today like it's time. Time to send off. Time to test out what God has been building in them. Time to have them go off and come back to tell about what they've seen and done. Time to grant them the opportunity to see Jesus for themselves as the Christ, the Son of the Living God and to praise God for giving them what flesh and blood could never reveal.
You often hear older moms exhort the younger to take advantage of all the time you have with your kids because the years fly by. I can echo that, but am still close enough to those younger years to remember how long the days are. Long days...fast years. That's what I remember. But through it all, Wayne and I have struggled to discipline ourselves to the challenge of not just parenting in the moment, but preparing to launch the girls for life. It changed the focus of what we might have said so many times.
It's one thing just to solve a dispute between sisters in a way that gets them quiet for a few minutes. Another to settle it in a way that gives them the communication skills to talk to their future husbands and children in a way that honors the Lord. It's one thing to do their laundry. Another to take the time to teach why it's done in a certain way. It matters less how I spend our money than to show them by spending our money where our treasure lies.
We started them off homeschooling not to keep them away from "out there"...but to give us a chance to spend as much time as possible getting them ready to go out there. God tells us in Psalm 127:3-5:
We feel strongly that Cassie and Aisley are sharp enough to be shot out...not too far yet though. We still want to be able to gather them up again. Find out where they need honing. See where we can strengthen. Make sure they are aimed right. And give us the practice we need to launch them further and further away...maybe even halfway around the world.
But that's another day. Today a few miles away is plenty far enough for me.
As if that weren't enough, today marked the beginning of the end of Cassie's high school years. And to further mark the moment, it was the first time that I didn't take her to school since this summer she received this blessing. Twenty years of talking to seniors has shown us that this will be one of the quickest years of her life...and ours. Every thing that happens is marked by the words: This is the last... Last time for school pictures. Last homecoming. Last first day of high school. There isn't one day since she became a senior that we don't think in terms of her leaving. Plans for next summer, what stuff to keep in her room, what clothes we buy, what kind of car we purchase, how to change a tire and check the oil, why it's important to separate colors from whites...all of it happens with a view to sending her off, Lord willing.
Two big moments in our lives...but now that it's here, it is both more and less than I had imagined. It feels very momentous to have them both gone...and very strange to have just Brennan sitting at the table finishing up her World History lesson. The quiet is quieter than I thought it would be. I'm more grateful than ever to be able to give Brennan all of my attention. There is so much less to distract her as she moves from subject to subject. I've never been able to teach in that kind of environment. It's really, really nice.
But though I miss them today, it's less emotional than I thought it would be. No tears yet. I think it's because it feels today like it's time. Time to send off. Time to test out what God has been building in them. Time to have them go off and come back to tell about what they've seen and done. Time to grant them the opportunity to see Jesus for themselves as the Christ, the Son of the Living God and to praise God for giving them what flesh and blood could never reveal.
You often hear older moms exhort the younger to take advantage of all the time you have with your kids because the years fly by. I can echo that, but am still close enough to those younger years to remember how long the days are. Long days...fast years. That's what I remember. But through it all, Wayne and I have struggled to discipline ourselves to the challenge of not just parenting in the moment, but preparing to launch the girls for life. It changed the focus of what we might have said so many times.
It's one thing just to solve a dispute between sisters in a way that gets them quiet for a few minutes. Another to settle it in a way that gives them the communication skills to talk to their future husbands and children in a way that honors the Lord. It's one thing to do their laundry. Another to take the time to teach why it's done in a certain way. It matters less how I spend our money than to show them by spending our money where our treasure lies.
We started them off homeschooling not to keep them away from "out there"...but to give us a chance to spend as much time as possible getting them ready to go out there. God tells us in Psalm 127:3-5:
Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
But that's another day. Today a few miles away is plenty far enough for me.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Home again, home again
We're back at it and grateful to be so...
Coaching school was our annual marking for the end of summer even though we are fully aware that August is still considered summer everywhere else. Football coaches in Texas uses a different calendar than the rest of the world. Our spring/summer schedule gives us a bookend of football in May and August...which makes June and July our "time off". I bracket that on purpose as Wayne still has to be at school all of June, but the hours are nothing like they are during the school year, so it counts!
But July, as you can tell from recent posts, is a different life. Wayne is truly off and we are gone, gone, gone...a year's worth of vacation in four weeks! And as an extra grace from God Wayne has had some extra days off on weekends! That's truly unusual and such a blessing. We've put the time to good use by sitting, hanging out, playing and relaxing! All things that were much more difficult for us before we understood what was coming in August and the start of two-a-days...more commonly known around here as the "all-days."
This has reminded me of a truth that God impressed on me years ago about times of rest. I touched on a specific application of it in this recent post. The history is that I used to be of the mind that times of rest were for recovery from work...what that meant for my spiritual life was that weekends, summer time, holidays, etc. became times when I put away the discipline of prayer and scripture and meditation on God...you know, I "rested". I couldn't have a worse definition if I tried.
It all depends on what you think of as rest and how you define work. The last one shouldn't be hard...work is just what we think it is. Merriam-Webster says:
This has all hit home for me again as I am in the middle of helping Aisley train for upcoming volleyball try-outs. (Well, helping Aisley would imply that she wants to train. How about...I'm in the middle of making Aisley train? Yeah. That's more accurate.) She is not having the greatest time in her life. She is tired of getting up early. Hates that her body is sore. Usually feels like she can't run more than 1 minute at a time. Isn't a huge fan of drills. But Aisley isn't so much a vocal complainer. She's more the sighing, grunting, sullen one.
She has much more fun babysitting the Tibbetts' boys!
But it hits me every day we're out there that compared to what she's done this summer, this is nothing. I heard no complaints from her about getting up earlier than ever to go to Six Flags. No whining about how many steps we climbed getting to the top of that boat house. She was so sore after days of swimming and inner tubing, but not a word. We walked and walked, literally miles, some days this summer. We even ran with nothing but smiles. No moaning. Why not? What difference does it make where you are or what you're doing? Running is running. Right?
Well, you know the answer to that. Aisley isn't different than me. It's just that I don't count as work what brings me pleasure. She might say to me, Well, of course I didn't mind climbing those stairs. That was different. That was to get somewhere so we could have fun. The destination and purpose changes perspective. What is work in one place becomes joy in another...almost restful, in fact.
You get where I'm going already. What happens through my days with God is that I lose sight of joy. Spending time in the Word and in prayer becomes what I have to do, instead of what I get to do. I forget that I'm not just out for a walk. I'm here to get to God! He is the highest source of pleasure. My greatest joy. My deepest rest. My soul's satisfaction. The funnest place on earth isn't Disney World. It is found with God.
The fight of my life is to believe that with everything I am. A friend commented on another posting this quote from John Piper. It sums up everything I'm praying for Aisley and I today...
Rather than granting rest, my time away pulled me from the only true rest my life has.
Coaching school was our annual marking for the end of summer even though we are fully aware that August is still considered summer everywhere else. Football coaches in Texas uses a different calendar than the rest of the world. Our spring/summer schedule gives us a bookend of football in May and August...which makes June and July our "time off". I bracket that on purpose as Wayne still has to be at school all of June, but the hours are nothing like they are during the school year, so it counts!
But July, as you can tell from recent posts, is a different life. Wayne is truly off and we are gone, gone, gone...a year's worth of vacation in four weeks! And as an extra grace from God Wayne has had some extra days off on weekends! That's truly unusual and such a blessing. We've put the time to good use by sitting, hanging out, playing and relaxing! All things that were much more difficult for us before we understood what was coming in August and the start of two-a-days...more commonly known around here as the "all-days."
This has reminded me of a truth that God impressed on me years ago about times of rest. I touched on a specific application of it in this recent post. The history is that I used to be of the mind that times of rest were for recovery from work...what that meant for my spiritual life was that weekends, summer time, holidays, etc. became times when I put away the discipline of prayer and scripture and meditation on God...you know, I "rested". I couldn't have a worse definition if I tried.
It all depends on what you think of as rest and how you define work. The last one shouldn't be hard...work is just what we think it is. Merriam-Webster says:
1: activity in which one exerts strength or faculties to do or perform something: a: sustained physical or mental effort to overcome obstacles and achieve an objective or result b: the labor, task, or duty that is one's accustomed means of livelihood c: a specific task, duty, function, or assignment often being a part or phase of some larger activityWhen defined this way, rest is also easy to define. It's when you have freedom from work. But how did meeting with God become work in my mind so that I actually wanted freedom from it? Look at the words used above...task, duty, assignment, mental effort, labor. Ever feel like that when faced with your quiet time...with thinking about doing your Bible study...when feeling guilty about your prayer life? Yeah. Me, too.
This has all hit home for me again as I am in the middle of helping Aisley train for upcoming volleyball try-outs. (Well, helping Aisley would imply that she wants to train. How about...I'm in the middle of making Aisley train? Yeah. That's more accurate.) She is not having the greatest time in her life. She is tired of getting up early. Hates that her body is sore. Usually feels like she can't run more than 1 minute at a time. Isn't a huge fan of drills. But Aisley isn't so much a vocal complainer. She's more the sighing, grunting, sullen one.
She has much more fun babysitting the Tibbetts' boys!
But it hits me every day we're out there that compared to what she's done this summer, this is nothing. I heard no complaints from her about getting up earlier than ever to go to Six Flags. No whining about how many steps we climbed getting to the top of that boat house. She was so sore after days of swimming and inner tubing, but not a word. We walked and walked, literally miles, some days this summer. We even ran with nothing but smiles. No moaning. Why not? What difference does it make where you are or what you're doing? Running is running. Right?
Well, you know the answer to that. Aisley isn't different than me. It's just that I don't count as work what brings me pleasure. She might say to me, Well, of course I didn't mind climbing those stairs. That was different. That was to get somewhere so we could have fun. The destination and purpose changes perspective. What is work in one place becomes joy in another...almost restful, in fact.
You get where I'm going already. What happens through my days with God is that I lose sight of joy. Spending time in the Word and in prayer becomes what I have to do, instead of what I get to do. I forget that I'm not just out for a walk. I'm here to get to God! He is the highest source of pleasure. My greatest joy. My deepest rest. My soul's satisfaction. The funnest place on earth isn't Disney World. It is found with God.
The fight of my life is to believe that with everything I am. A friend commented on another posting this quote from John Piper. It sums up everything I'm praying for Aisley and I today...
Jesus said in John 6:35, 'I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall never hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst.' In other words what it means to believe in Jesus is to experience him as the satisfaction of my soul's thrist and my heart's hunger. Faith is the experience of contentment in Jesus. The fight of faith is the fight to keep your heart contented in Christ--to really believe, and keep on believing, that he will meet every need and satisfy every longing."To really believe and keep on believing"...that's it, isn't it? God is the fullness of rest. Christ is the one who labored. Now He has sat down at the right hand of the Father...telling me that the work is done. Now I must fight only to believe it.
Rather than granting rest, my time away pulled me from the only true rest my life has.
I just love these kids
I didn't realize that our guys posted this video to youtube. I'm so glad to be able to show you some of what we were up to at Impact this past June. You'll see video of our camp week and also get to see some of our kids in action during the clubs. As you watch keep in mind that we had a "treasure hunters" theme...pirates on a sea adventure to discover long, lost riches...
I just can not express to you what it means to watch these kids teach from Scripture and share the gospel. They did such an amazing job and God was so gracious to bless their work. To read one perspective on some of what He did, read Cassie's postings (Part 1 and Part 2). By the way, you'll see her earlier in the video in a royal blue shirt and then at the clubs in a red shirt, holding a child (as always!).
I can't wait to start up again with them...you'll see why...
I just can not express to you what it means to watch these kids teach from Scripture and share the gospel. They did such an amazing job and God was so gracious to bless their work. To read one perspective on some of what He did, read Cassie's postings (Part 1 and Part 2). By the way, you'll see her earlier in the video in a royal blue shirt and then at the clubs in a red shirt, holding a child (as always!).
I can't wait to start up again with them...you'll see why...
Monday, August 18, 2008
It's time!
Once again a summer has flown by and it's time to kick off the sign up for fall Bible studies. I'll be joining the Women's Ministry team again by teaching a class Thursday mornings starting September 11th. We'll take a look at women of the Bible each week, looking to see in their lives what it means to live out our faith (or to fail to!). The book will be provided to you the first day of class, but you can see it here.
Yes...for those who know me well...I will be adding a little something extra to the study! Not a great deal of extra work (no, really!), but I want to make sure that we look each week at how Christ is found in these passages and what difference the cross of Christ makes as we move forward each week. And I'm sure I'll find some long-dead guys for you to read during your "free" time!
Sign up does start tonight...come around 6pm to TBC if you can to listen to some of our women talk about what God has been doing in their lives. If you are pressed for time, come around 7:30pm to the chapel and get your hands on the material and see where the Lord leads you. For those who don't get this in time or can't make it tonight, you can sign up at the Women's Ministry table any time after tonight. There should be a place for you to select which group you'd like to be in...and invite your friends from school, work and neighborhood to come along. They'll make sure you're all together.
I'd love for you to join me or any of the other great ladies who will be leading us through the Word this year. I'm praying for us all that God might grant our hearts to long for Him, to be thirsty for His Word and that we would not be satisfied by anything apart from Him. Join me.
Yes...for those who know me well...I will be adding a little something extra to the study! Not a great deal of extra work (no, really!), but I want to make sure that we look each week at how Christ is found in these passages and what difference the cross of Christ makes as we move forward each week. And I'm sure I'll find some long-dead guys for you to read during your "free" time!
Sign up does start tonight...come around 6pm to TBC if you can to listen to some of our women talk about what God has been doing in their lives. If you are pressed for time, come around 7:30pm to the chapel and get your hands on the material and see where the Lord leads you. For those who don't get this in time or can't make it tonight, you can sign up at the Women's Ministry table any time after tonight. There should be a place for you to select which group you'd like to be in...and invite your friends from school, work and neighborhood to come along. They'll make sure you're all together.
I'd love for you to join me or any of the other great ladies who will be leading us through the Word this year. I'm praying for us all that God might grant our hearts to long for Him, to be thirsty for His Word and that we would not be satisfied by anything apart from Him. Join me.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
A little Acts 2 in our lives
It is with great joy that the saving for and searching for Cassie's car is finally finished! We have thought, prayed and talked about this for probably more than 4 years. She's been saving her money from babysitting jobs since she was in 8th grade. Wayne and I contributed an equal share.But the truth is, it couldn't have happened without more than a little help from our friends. I was reminded today that the gifts of God when used by the body of Christ are the actual means God uses to administer His grace to His people. This is truly the case for us in the purchase of this car. How small a thing our daily lives can be...just sleeping and eating, cleaning and talking, purchasing and consuming. But if we break forth from the day that consumes us and step back just a little...then we get it...God is everywhere, in everything...and demands glory through it all.
Today I want to step back to give Him praise for revealing His manifold grace to our family...and especially to Cassie. She's a great babysitter...in high demand. But no one is worth what she made from some of the families who paid her. She would come home with these checks that startled us. Her eyes would be wide as she told us so many nights that she tried to get them to take it back, but they were adamant.
Aren't you saving for a car, Cassie? they'd ask. Well, yeah, but still... she'd reply. We love you. You've blessed our family so often. Let us help you. God has blessed us. Let us do the same for you.
Can you believe it? she'd ask us with tears in her eyes. Those checks she devoted to the Lord and to the car alone. She knew that it was a gift with purpose. And because He is so gracious to open her eyes to see it, she also knew that she was a living recipient of the kind of church that began 2000 years ago. For example, Acts 2:44-45:
And all who believed were together and had all things in common.
And they were selling their possessions and belongings
and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.
Then because He's just that kind of God, Wayne had a surprising day off and they went to see what they could find.
TA-DA!
We were so grateful when we learned of this one. Just the kind of good gas mileage car that by God's continuing grace will get her through college. And Wildcat blue! (Wayne said that she turned the corner, saw the car and said in a quiet, excited and almost little girl's voice: Daddy, it's blue! Oh, I like it! Can I have it? It was like she was three again and walking into her first Toys-R-Us. Cute.) One problem though...isn't there always a hitch?...it was about $3000 more than we had. Add tax, title and license...not to mention the extra $900 just to pay the insurance for six months...and we're out of our range. What to do?
Wayne and I talked, prayed, thought, pondered, looked again at the budget...and with the advice of a couple of people we trusted, went ahead and did it. Took out a loan for the remainder to be paid off, we had figured, by Christmas. Not too bad, we thought. Cassie beamed when she ran in to tell me to come see! We were all so excited.
Then God shook us up again. In the past two weeks, He has added blessing to blessing. Generosity to generosity. And has arranged for us to pay it off, not in December like we first thought...nor in November like we thought a few days later after one gracious gift...nor in October after another unexpected receiving. No...how about next month? Yep. Six weeks from now.
And we especially appreciate how he did it. Not from one place or one family or even from just those who love us. God reminded us He can move anyone at anytime He chooses after we received a notice from the IRS that they were so happy to tell us that their numbers didn't add up and we could expect a check in a couple of weeks. He sent money from such unexpected places for one reason: so that we would not get confused and think either Wow! Look how smart we are! Or Wow! Look how great they are! Or especially not a mild That's good.
No. God sent it like this so we would be astounded at Him. We see the good works of all those around us clearly...their generosity...their honesty...their openness to share...believers and unbelievers. But though grateful, we are not confused. Our praise is for our Father who is in heaven and knows how to give His children good gifts. Now comes the living it out in our lives...generosity...honesty...openness with our possessions...willing to be an instrument of grace in another's life. A return to Him not for the car, but the cross which enables us to receive grace from our Father instead of the wrath we so diligently earned.
And they were selling their possessions and belongings
and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.
Then because He's just that kind of God, Wayne had a surprising day off and they went to see what they could find.
TA-DA!
We were so grateful when we learned of this one. Just the kind of good gas mileage car that by God's continuing grace will get her through college. And Wildcat blue! (Wayne said that she turned the corner, saw the car and said in a quiet, excited and almost little girl's voice: Daddy, it's blue! Oh, I like it! Can I have it? It was like she was three again and walking into her first Toys-R-Us. Cute.) One problem though...isn't there always a hitch?...it was about $3000 more than we had. Add tax, title and license...not to mention the extra $900 just to pay the insurance for six months...and we're out of our range. What to do?
Wayne and I talked, prayed, thought, pondered, looked again at the budget...and with the advice of a couple of people we trusted, went ahead and did it. Took out a loan for the remainder to be paid off, we had figured, by Christmas. Not too bad, we thought. Cassie beamed when she ran in to tell me to come see! We were all so excited.
Then God shook us up again. In the past two weeks, He has added blessing to blessing. Generosity to generosity. And has arranged for us to pay it off, not in December like we first thought...nor in November like we thought a few days later after one gracious gift...nor in October after another unexpected receiving. No...how about next month? Yep. Six weeks from now.
And we especially appreciate how he did it. Not from one place or one family or even from just those who love us. God reminded us He can move anyone at anytime He chooses after we received a notice from the IRS that they were so happy to tell us that their numbers didn't add up and we could expect a check in a couple of weeks. He sent money from such unexpected places for one reason: so that we would not get confused and think either Wow! Look how smart we are! Or Wow! Look how great they are! Or especially not a mild That's good.
No. God sent it like this so we would be astounded at Him. We see the good works of all those around us clearly...their generosity...their honesty...their openness to share...believers and unbelievers. But though grateful, we are not confused. Our praise is for our Father who is in heaven and knows how to give His children good gifts. Now comes the living it out in our lives...generosity...honesty...openness with our possessions...willing to be an instrument of grace in another's life. A return to Him not for the car, but the cross which enables us to receive grace from our Father instead of the wrath we so diligently earned.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Live in such a way
Wayne with Cassie acting normal...
My husband, Wayne, celebrated his 41st birthday this week. Other than just loving that we have one more day to honor him and his blessing to our family, yesterday marked another really great moment in our relationship...Wayne and I have now lived longer with each other than without.
For us this has really signified something special in our relationship. It's hard though to put into words. It means that God has allowed me to dwell with him longer than any other woman, even his mom. It means that he knows more about me in that day-to-day way than any other person. We have a perspective on each other that no one else can know. We have knowledge of weaknesses, of strengths, of joys, of hurts, of memories, of each other...and though others have been through them with us, the only constant in them all is Wayne and I.
Which means that I know him...what he sounds like when he sings...what his eyes look like when he's tired or hurt...what he does that he hates...what he does that brings him more joy than anything else...what he's like when no one's watching and there is no one to impress...how you can tell when he's about to take a kid by the jersey and get in his face (in Jesus' name, of course)...
I say all this to sort of give you my credentials for what you're about to read. I really mean what I say when I tell you that I honor the Lord for what He has done to establish His Word by deed in my life through Wayne (and yes, I know better than anyone how blessed I am)...
Matthew 14:10-15 I know better the compassion of Jesus when He was tired or just needed a minute alone by watching Wayne come home to us every day of football season. Even after back to back to back 18 hour days, he walks in the door...sees us and has compassion...and stays up serving us until it is very late in the day. He isn't just a deacon in our church...he's a deacon.
Exodus 34:6-8 I know I can better rely on the steadfastness of God because He has placed this same Spirit in Wayne. It is no mistake that the steadfast love of the Lord is linked to His forgiveness in this passage. And I need it...the better you know me the more opportunity there is to see my sin and to have it affect your life. So, imagine the impact it's had on Wayne...except you'd never know it. One day we were asked for a class to discuss past hurts that had happened in our marriage. We talked about it the night before and brought together our lists...well, one of us had a list. Wayne went first and said he couldn't remember anything I'd ever done that had hurt him. (Yes...I tore up my list and asked for forgiveness for breaking 1 Corinthians 13.)
Luke 15:1-2 Even though we still don't love tax collectors, there are a couple of categories of people now that probably better describe the revulsion that people felt toward the tax collectors of Jesus' day. AIDS patients, mental homeless...those we cross the street to avoid.
Not at the top, but right up there, are guys like this...
Well, not during this picture...everybody loves a winner, don't they? But put them after the game in their hoodies, four of them walking down the street together, scowling faces, tattoos showing and watch those same fans lock their doors. Everybody wants them on their field, but not at dinner. Not Wayne...around here we just call them our guys. He loves these young men. Delights in them. It's amazing to watch. One day I felt that same impulse to grab the kids off the streets and lock the doors...until you see their whole face light up as they see him and yell, "Coach!" and start running to wrap him up in huge hugs. They want his delight and approval like they would a father. Makes me cry to watch. They couldn't pick a better one.
John 20:17 Which brings me to the last one...simply for the sake of space. I was drawn to Wayne from the moment I met him, but there is really one reason I longed to marry him as soon as he'd have me: I saw him with a child. A friend of ours in college became pregnant. The guy responsible was out of the picture. How would she finish college? It was Wayne who suggested to me that we help her out. So, we all worked out our schedules so one of us had Lane. When she needed to work, we made sure Wayne or I had off. Our class schedule was rearranged. Cribs were set up in each apartment. And I watched Wayne be a dad. I was amazed, amused, touched, encouraged...and huge hurts in me began to heal as I watched him sacrifice his life for a child not even his own. He has only become better at his role as Dad. My girls run at the sound of the door opening. Fight to answer the phone when they hear his ringtone. Pray with him every night. Lean on him when they stand beside him.
But when I watch him, I think...if he's that good at this...if he has figured out how best to care for our girls...if he knows what delights them and what needs to be taken away...if he inspires such trust and love...how much more my heavenly Father deserves from me. How much more should I lean on Him. Pray to Him. Jump at His voice. Fight to answer him. How much more trust should I have? How much more love and devotion? Watching Wayne with my girls makes me a better disciple.
There is a plaque in our house which reads:
Live in such a way
that those who know you,
but don't know God,will come to know God
because they know you.
That's what Wayne does for us...shows us God...inspires us to know Him better. How grateful I am for all the added praise to my God because I have seen Wayne's good works. I thank you Father for the blessing of Wayne...for giving me a life that has had more of him in it than without...for loving me enough to give me eyes to see past your gift of him to the real reason you gave him life at all. You are glorified in him. And we are grateful.
I love you, honey.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Happy anniversary to me!
I love my husband! We're coming up to our 19th anniversary this month and he really knows how to give me good gifts that hit right at my heart. And the good news is...you can join me for it! Even though October is right in the middle of football season, he has graciously allowed me to sign up for Desiring God's Regional Conference, Job: When the Righteous Suffer. I'm so grateful that even though he can't attend, he was excited for me to go. Have I mentioned how much I love my husband?
It's October 17-18th in Austin at Hill Country Bible Church NW. I've attached links to the information below so you can see if it's something you might be interested in coming to. I promise you that you will be blessed by being there...and I'd be blessed by you coming with me! It'll be one of the best things $25 can buy! Let me know what you think...
Conference summary
Schedule
Travel info
It's October 17-18th in Austin at Hill Country Bible Church NW. I've attached links to the information below so you can see if it's something you might be interested in coming to. I promise you that you will be blessed by being there...and I'd be blessed by you coming with me! It'll be one of the best things $25 can buy! Let me know what you think...
Conference summary
Schedule
Travel info
Good fruit
I mentioned yesterday that coaching school was another great time with Wayne and the girls. We played, rested and enjoyed each other and old friends. All of this included the "traditions" that make up great memories for us all. But most of those weren't planned...they just happened because we did some of the same things twice. Most of these are special for the girls because they don't happen any other day of the year. The other thing they have in common? They all cost more money that we ever spend in our "real" lives.
We live on a single paycheck from a public school. It is more than enough, truly. It well supplies not only our needs, but more wants than we should have. But a curious thing can happen when you get a taste of another lifestyle, can't it? When you are able to stay where you normally can't...or can buy what you usually don't have money for...or can spend time doing what you generally can't...what happens inside of you?
Well, since 1 Corinthians 10:13 says that no temptation has ever come to me that isn't a common temptation for us all, I bet you've faced the battle of contentment in your heart, too. Nike, Coca-Cola, AT&T and Disney all know how it works. Get us to see what else we could have, show us what our lives could be like, create in us just a little discontent in our hearts and watch our wallets open. So, you'll understand that I'm always a little ready for battle when we come home and face laundry, making our own beds, cooking our own (much cheaper) meals, finding entertainment without cable TV...you understand. You've been there. So much more fun to pack than to unpack...to plan the day before you leave than to live the day after you come home.
Understand that the major battle isn't with the girls...it's in my own heart. But there have been years that vacations have given rise to bad fruit in our lives...when all we want to do is eat out again...veg in front of the TV again...or just the opposite: go and do something instead of just sit at home again. Plus there's the added bonus of having Wayne home at 3pm instead of 9pm.
But, I have to tell you, that's not true this time. This time I am filled to overflowing with tasting the fruit of what God is doing in my girls hearts. This trip marked the first time that all of them chimed in over and over during the week to say that they'd rather live the life we have than to spend it like we do at coaching school. All of them were more than ready to come home. Each of them expressed a complete disgust with spending so much money for one dinner that we could make at home. They all thought that though TV was nice, it would not be good for us to have in our house. Fiesta Texas was okay, but not something they wish they could have a season pass for. It's not that they don't like Pop-tarts, but they're tired of junk food, they said.
What a blessing and challenge for me as their mom to continue to try to lead them this way. If they see it clearly then I certainly need to see it. If they are content, I have no excuse. A great reminder to me as we head Monday to football season. These days are given, God says, for me to rejoice and be glad in. Habakkuk reminds me that that is isn't conditional on whether there's enough grocery money or we're able to buy all we want... whether Wayne is home a lot or a little... whether I am bored or overwhelmed... whether the kids are sick or well...
Contentment...Paul says in Philippians 4:12 that knowing how to face abundance or to face need is a secret. It's not known to all, as our society well plays out. It must be uncovered... pondered... sought out... dug for... disciplined into my life. But that doesn't mean that it takes a book to explain. Paul did it in one short sentence, in the very next verse. Won't take much effort to memorize. Want to join me this fall in working it out with all our might? Yeah. Me neither. Sounds painful. But we'll look more like the Savior if we do. Jesus said others will see our good work and glorify our Father who is in heaven. We might even be asked to give a defense for the hope that we have like Peter said. Will we avoid suffering that we might be more comfortable? May it never again be as true in the future as it has been in the past.
Well, here it is.
I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13
Believe it? That contentment isn't from anything more than believing God? My girls do. And if He can do it in them, He can do it in me. I believe Him...Lord, forgive me my unbelief.
We live on a single paycheck from a public school. It is more than enough, truly. It well supplies not only our needs, but more wants than we should have. But a curious thing can happen when you get a taste of another lifestyle, can't it? When you are able to stay where you normally can't...or can buy what you usually don't have money for...or can spend time doing what you generally can't...what happens inside of you?
Well, since 1 Corinthians 10:13 says that no temptation has ever come to me that isn't a common temptation for us all, I bet you've faced the battle of contentment in your heart, too. Nike, Coca-Cola, AT&T and Disney all know how it works. Get us to see what else we could have, show us what our lives could be like, create in us just a little discontent in our hearts and watch our wallets open. So, you'll understand that I'm always a little ready for battle when we come home and face laundry, making our own beds, cooking our own (much cheaper) meals, finding entertainment without cable TV...you understand. You've been there. So much more fun to pack than to unpack...to plan the day before you leave than to live the day after you come home.
Understand that the major battle isn't with the girls...it's in my own heart. But there have been years that vacations have given rise to bad fruit in our lives...when all we want to do is eat out again...veg in front of the TV again...or just the opposite: go and do something instead of just sit at home again. Plus there's the added bonus of having Wayne home at 3pm instead of 9pm.
But, I have to tell you, that's not true this time. This time I am filled to overflowing with tasting the fruit of what God is doing in my girls hearts. This trip marked the first time that all of them chimed in over and over during the week to say that they'd rather live the life we have than to spend it like we do at coaching school. All of them were more than ready to come home. Each of them expressed a complete disgust with spending so much money for one dinner that we could make at home. They all thought that though TV was nice, it would not be good for us to have in our house. Fiesta Texas was okay, but not something they wish they could have a season pass for. It's not that they don't like Pop-tarts, but they're tired of junk food, they said.
What a blessing and challenge for me as their mom to continue to try to lead them this way. If they see it clearly then I certainly need to see it. If they are content, I have no excuse. A great reminder to me as we head Monday to football season. These days are given, God says, for me to rejoice and be glad in. Habakkuk reminds me that that is isn't conditional on whether there's enough grocery money or we're able to buy all we want... whether Wayne is home a lot or a little... whether I am bored or overwhelmed... whether the kids are sick or well...
Contentment...Paul says in Philippians 4:12 that knowing how to face abundance or to face need is a secret. It's not known to all, as our society well plays out. It must be uncovered... pondered... sought out... dug for... disciplined into my life. But that doesn't mean that it takes a book to explain. Paul did it in one short sentence, in the very next verse. Won't take much effort to memorize. Want to join me this fall in working it out with all our might? Yeah. Me neither. Sounds painful. But we'll look more like the Savior if we do. Jesus said others will see our good work and glorify our Father who is in heaven. We might even be asked to give a defense for the hope that we have like Peter said. Will we avoid suffering that we might be more comfortable? May it never again be as true in the future as it has been in the past.
Well, here it is.
I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13
Believe it? That contentment isn't from anything more than believing God? My girls do. And if He can do it in them, He can do it in me. I believe Him...Lord, forgive me my unbelief.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Traditions
Coaching school...sounds like a joke doesn't it? But it's real. Seminars from professional, college and high school coaches on everything from conditioning to scheduling to retirement to how to run specific aspects of an offense or defense...and not just for football. Lectures on track, baseball, golf, etc. happen as well.
So about 7:30am Wayne quietly gets ready and leaves us at the hotel, attends meetings, eats lunch with old friends, more meetings...until finally around 3pm he heads back to us so the real fun can start. This includes several traditions at coaching school that are mostly a product of being able to do there what we don't do here.
Too many of our traditions have begun that way...without purpose. Doesn't mean that they don't matter to us or that they haven't led to some amazing times with our girls. But they didn't start the way good traditions should...on purpose, to pass down what is most important to us. God, however, being the redeemer that He is has used our vacation traditions to re-affirm our day-to-day traditions...
But how 'bout I write more on that later...and actually get up from here and live them out first! More on this tomorrow...
So about 7:30am Wayne quietly gets ready and leaves us at the hotel, attends meetings, eats lunch with old friends, more meetings...until finally around 3pm he heads back to us so the real fun can start. This includes several traditions at coaching school that are mostly a product of being able to do there what we don't do here.
- We are reminded why we don't have cable TV...because we would watch it. We proved that over and over. It came on as soon as we entered the room and stayed on until we had to leave...all while we did nothing but lay on fluffy beds with feather pillows! We were fascinated by the home shows (no food channel in this hotel...what's up with that??!!). The girls and I agreed also that if there were a "Jon & Kate plus 8" marathon on TV, we'd sit in front of it all day long. Ridiculous. (And she needs to stop treating him like the 9th child...seriously...)
- Because we are able to stay in the highest of the high end hotels, there is no complimentary breakfast (if you can stay there, you can afford $6 toast!) and there is no way that I'm paying $3 for a Sprite and $4 for a Snickers out of the "hospitality" tray...that means that the girls get to make a grocery store run unlike any other in the year. Poptarts, soft drinks, juice boxes, bottled water, whatever snack foods sound good to each of them...and the big favorite: those tiny individual size cereal boxes. They get to choose whatever they want while I try not to cringe.
- Because it rotates between three great Texas cities, we get to experience a few days of downtown fun as well as our yearly theme park run. This year it's the Alamo, Riverwalk, Witte Museum and Fiesta Texas...we love San Antonio. It is hands down the most beautiful to us...the architecture, the flowers (some of the bougainvillea was more than twenty feet tall!), the river, the art, the history...wonderful stuff...and nothing like our day to day lives!
- A more recent tradition is sleeping really, really late...like the girls all get up after 10am!! It's fantastic...especially in a hotel like the one we had which gave us separate rooms! I can't sleep that long any more so it meant I had at least two full hours of quiet to wake slowly, read, lay, think, ponder, pray...and to thank Him for all that was in my life. That's a much different start to our day. (And for those of you with toddlers...yes, I promise...it'll happen one day for you, too!)
- How is it possible that we were in San Antonio and never ate Mexican food?! Not sure...except to say that there are so many amazing choices on the river...and there's the fact that I cook Mexican food almost every day! But food is one of our big pleasures during the week. We budget to eat out a cheap, fast-food type meal at lunch usually at a mall or Mickey D's. But dinner is another story. Then we eat the meals we would never eat otherwise. Joe's Crab Shack... Rainforest Cafe... Hard Rock Cafe... Pappadeaux's... yummy. We do try to make sure that we share between us so there are no leftovers. (High end hotels don't have a fridge in the room either! Rich people do not re-heat...) This is possible because TISD allocates Wayne $36 a day for food. Seems ridiculous until you try to eat downtown on less. Wayne hoards it by eating pop-tarts for breakfast...spends about $6 for lunch...and contributes the rest to dinner. That makes it possible for us to kick in about the same $30 and eat really, really great food.
Too many of our traditions have begun that way...without purpose. Doesn't mean that they don't matter to us or that they haven't led to some amazing times with our girls. But they didn't start the way good traditions should...on purpose, to pass down what is most important to us. God, however, being the redeemer that He is has used our vacation traditions to re-affirm our day-to-day traditions...
But how 'bout I write more on that later...and actually get up from here and live them out first! More on this tomorrow...
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