The Day Has Come

The day has come!! Oh no, he is getting ready to call us on stage. My hands are sweaty, my heart is pounding. Here it is, "Joel and Amy come on up and tell us your story". My feet feel like concrete blocks, I don't want to go.  WHY GOD, WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS?
A week or so before this I start to think to my self is there any way out of this, maybe I could just have Amy do it this time. NO JOEL! God talked to you, you are the leader of this, this is your deal no pawning it off.  Maybe just maybe pastor Bob will announce it for me (good luck with that one). All right all ready I will do this, but God how am I going to say it all? You know how my thoughts get all twisted up and I can't get out what I want to say. Pray, yeah thats what I will do. He will tell me what He wants me to say its His story to tell any how. Okay God its the night before I have to present this to the church and nothing yet, can you give me something, anything? Pleeeeease! Sunday morning 5 am I wake from a sound sleep to all kinds of thoughts rolling in my head (finally). I better get up and make some coffee sounds like God wants to talk and I am all ears. 

James 1:5 - "If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you"

That's what I am talking about God, keep it coming I'm listening.

Exodus 4:10-11 - "Moses said to the Lord, "Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tounge." 11 The Lord said to him, "Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord?"

Yeah that's me; not eloquent (never). Joel just remember "Its my story, let me do the talking." All right God, let's do this.

Back to my feet and the concrete blocks.....All right, now all I have to do is get up on stage, tell them we are going to be full time missionaries for a few years, read a couple of verses.......I got this. Oh no! My knees are shaking....Keep your voice steady... Don't make eye contact....Well, here we go!

LOKING FORWARD

I went to bed last night reflecting on 2013. What an amazing year for our small family! God has really taken our family on quite the journey and as the last few months of 2013 approached, God decided He wasn't done with us. What a comfort that is! Think about that for just a minute....HE is not done with YOU! He never ever lets us out of His sight or out of His heart. YOU ARE ALWAYS IN HIS PLANS! I look back at the times I thought I was alone even when surrounded by His love and His family and I realize I was never alone. Even through the hard times this year He was always there. I know or some of  you are thinking....Of course; well Duh, Amy! I know this too, I've grown up knowing that God is always there but, there are times in the midst of things where I have doubt and am not sure I really comprehend fully that He is with me always.  But, as they say, hindsight......

But, as I awoke this morning things were different for me. I was buzzing! I woke with unusual energy for not going to bed until 1:30am. I am not looking back on what last year brought to us. I am looking forward to the unbelievable future that God has for us! I am fully aware and confident that my God is an awesome God! He loves us all more than the human brain will allow us to comprehend. His grace and mercy and peace and love overflow unto us and this morning I feel it fully! He has sent us a personal invitation to follow Him, to trust in Him and to know Him more closely than ever before! He has not promised us it will be easy or trial free. In fact we know this will be a hard road...that we are walking into a refining process unlike any we have been through as a family so far. But, we fully trust the Lord. My one question for myself is : "How can I not follow Him?" Seriously, How can I not follow the One who has blessed my life in so many ways that I can't even see them all? How can I not place my life into the hands of the One who gave me this life? 

I read a verse this morning... Habakkuk 2:2 : And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readth it. So ladies and gentlemen that is what I am going to try to do. As Joel and I have been trying to figure out how to share the stories of what God is doing; I keep getting told to document it. Ok Lord, I get it....no more knocking me over the head I will listen and try to get it all down. I am not a good writer and I have a terrible time telling stories but, I trust that God will give me the words and even in my mistakes God will tell the stories.

So, as we look forward to the coming year I invite you join us.... 

What a Blessed Christmas

We had such a great Christmas! Time spent with family and friends over the last few weeks have been priceless. God has truly blessed Joel and I in the last year.

Instead of boring you with all the present pictures...I am just going to post the one picture that sums it all up for me......PURE JOY!

Family Additions

Introducing the newest family members......

------------------------------ Ben and Rosa-----------------------------

We are enjoying them so much. Carmen loves them immensely! She reads to them, rocks them, dances with them. it is really cute to see how she is with them. She is doing very well taking care of them and cleaning up after them.

We are still not quite sure that Ben is a boy so if we find out that he is a girl...she will be Daisy.

September 2009

Playing in the sand....

The Moms..... (taken by Carmen)

Cheese......

First doy of school......

Mushroom hunting......just for fun