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| To play along, just link up over at Susanne's which you can get to by clicking here! |
I also love looking back at my week and finding those 5 favorite things that God blessed, or surprised me, with.....we call these the Friday Fave Fives. Susanne from Living to Tell the Story is our gracious host!
The following 5 things are what the Lord blessed me with this past week:
Watching my 7 yr old niece (Emma) and my 11 yr old (Claire) playing together at a family picnic. It was held at my sister's house where she and her hubby have a place in the woods. The cousins had fun chasing and feeding Aunt Hope and Uncle Donny's chickens! They had a lot of fun at the "little house in the big woods of central NYS!" Another part of the picnic that was a fave for me and my hubby was seeing one of my uncles I hadn't seen in about 10 years.....that was very special to me!
A spontaneous paddle on Long Pond at Grafton State Park, which is about 30 minutes east of where we live. My neighbor had left me a message after church asking if I was free to do something with her. She really needed to get away for the afternoon and chat, so I agreed to get the tandem kayak on my hubby's car and off we went! This was my very first time getting the kayak on without my husband to help! We had a lovely day....and even though I didn't get any housework done, and had virtually TWO Sabbaths over the weekend, it was worth it. Memories were made, a friendship was bonded even closer, and glory to God...she is joining my women's small group later this month!! GOD IS GOOD!
Monday and Wednesday I had the privilege of walking around the high school and elementary schools where my daughters attend classes. This was a "Jericho Walk" that our church's youth pastor put into place. Basically, on Monday at 7 a.m. 3 of us, including Jason the Youth Pastor, met at the high school and walked/prayed for demonic strongholds to come down, for the students, the Christian club my oldest is an officer in, the teachers/staff and administration, etc. etc. Then on Wednesday my "moms in touch" colleague and good friend Dorrae, met at our daughters' elementary school and prayed and walked 7 times around the school. My youngest daughter is in her last year there so it was a "bittersweet" thing for me to be doing. What power there is in prayer....we expect awesome results and will give all the glory to God!! HE IS ALIVE in the PUBLIC SCHOOLS! (and if you think of it, could you please pray that Courtney and her other LIFE Club friends will convince the building principal to allow a teacher advisor? the Muslim club has one...so we believe it is only fair that the Christian club be allowed the same right!) THANKS! (so far, in the history of LIFE club, it has had to be "student-led/run")
This tiny gift! This tea is from my friend Monica who came over for coffee one morning. She and I reconnected at a women's Bible Study about 4 years ago, before I went back to teaching every day. When I saw her at church, we recognized each other from years ago when my oldest and her son were in Kindermusik as toddlers. She is now a good friend of mine and not only is a member of the Moms in Touch group I lead, but she is also going to be taking my small group class called "Got Teens?" I am so excited to have her in my life.....we pray often together and share about what God is doing in our marriages, our personal lives, and in the life of her son and my daughters. She has really helped me this past month in dealing with a certain situation that has left me somewhat guarded about opening up. She reminds me that sometimes we need to take risks to do what God calls us to do. She is a huge encourager.....and I love that she knows my love language and meets it! It was so thoughtful of her to bring the tea.....I am saving it to serve as iced Citrus Mint tea for our first small group meeting!
This Honda CRV is the car my hubby owns (on left). The Nissan Sentra is the car I own (on right). And guess who is now qualified to drive either of them??
YES....our oldest daughter, who just turned 17 in July, now has her license! She passed her very first road test on Thursday morning. I think I was more nervous than she was! She did very well and already has plans to take my car to youth group next Wednesday evening. Unless it is bad weather...then she'll drive the CRV (it's a safer vehicle!). This is a very much fave for the week but it is also a "bittersweet" moment. I cannot believe the little girl who loved to ride horses (and did for 6 years of lessons/shows!) is now legally able to drive a car by her self! These last 17 years have just flown by....it is sometimes so hard to believe that she is a senior and yet how I treasure each and every developmental milestone that has occurred and the few more that will occur in the next couple of years. I am so proud of her, her daddy is proud of her and we look forward to what God is going to do in her life during this last year of high school.
That's it for me. I would like to finish up a book review I have been working on and get it posted on here sometime over the weekend. It will be a regular book review but it will also include what I have learned from the study. The book is "Deeper: Living in the Reality of God's Love" by Debbie Alsdorf. This book has really helped me through a couple of struggles I've had, emotionally and spiritually, this past year.....nothing like depression or backsliding, but more like wondering what my place is, in the church as a whole, and wondering how to "go deeper" with God as well as with friends...and it has helped me with showing other people, especially other women friends, in how to "go deeper", too. It has also opened up my eyes to some of the hurt/emotional pain that women carry and how that "stuff" can affect friendships/relationships or bring about an element of shame or paranoia that often gets hidden or not talked about, and how those things often hinder relationships in the marriage and in friendships. I have learned alot from this book and hope to share it with you soon.
If you are one of the USA readers, a very Happy Labor Day weekend to you!
If you are a reader from NYS, enjoy the last weekend of summer vacation with your children....and if you are one of the "other country" readers....leave me a comment about your fave thing from the last week or go and link up at Susanne's. You can find her page in the caption under her logo at top of this post.
HAPPY WEEKEND, EVERYONE!
(and please think of us at the T----family beach house this long weekend...we had to postpone our trip by a day due to Hurricane Earl coming up the coast....so...we are praying the house is intact once we get there! :) )
This Honda CRV is the car my hubby owns (on left). The Nissan Sentra is the car I own (on right). And guess who is now qualified to drive either of them??YES....our oldest daughter, who just turned 17 in July, now has her license! She passed her very first road test on Thursday morning. I think I was more nervous than she was! She did very well and already has plans to take my car to youth group next Wednesday evening. Unless it is bad weather...then she'll drive the CRV (it's a safer vehicle!). This is a very much fave for the week but it is also a "bittersweet" moment. I cannot believe the little girl who loved to ride horses (and did for 6 years of lessons/shows!) is now legally able to drive a car by her self! These last 17 years have just flown by....it is sometimes so hard to believe that she is a senior and yet how I treasure each and every developmental milestone that has occurred and the few more that will occur in the next couple of years. I am so proud of her, her daddy is proud of her and we look forward to what God is going to do in her life during this last year of high school.
That's it for me. I would like to finish up a book review I have been working on and get it posted on here sometime over the weekend. It will be a regular book review but it will also include what I have learned from the study. The book is "Deeper: Living in the Reality of God's Love" by Debbie Alsdorf. This book has really helped me through a couple of struggles I've had, emotionally and spiritually, this past year.....nothing like depression or backsliding, but more like wondering what my place is, in the church as a whole, and wondering how to "go deeper" with God as well as with friends...and it has helped me with showing other people, especially other women friends, in how to "go deeper", too. It has also opened up my eyes to some of the hurt/emotional pain that women carry and how that "stuff" can affect friendships/relationships or bring about an element of shame or paranoia that often gets hidden or not talked about, and how those things often hinder relationships in the marriage and in friendships. I have learned alot from this book and hope to share it with you soon.
If you are one of the USA readers, a very Happy Labor Day weekend to you!
If you are a reader from NYS, enjoy the last weekend of summer vacation with your children....and if you are one of the "other country" readers....leave me a comment about your fave thing from the last week or go and link up at Susanne's. You can find her page in the caption under her logo at top of this post.
HAPPY WEEKEND, EVERYONE!
(and please think of us at the T----family beach house this long weekend...we had to postpone our trip by a day due to Hurricane Earl coming up the coast....so...we are praying the house is intact once we get there! :) )
7 comments:
How cool that you were able to load the kayak without your dh's help. I am going kayaking tomorrow for the first time. My friend thought it would be fine if we went early in the day since we wouldn't be tipping over. My reply? "Don't count on that!"
I love small groups. Your Got Teens? book sounds like a helpful book for someone to lead at our church. I am always on the lookout for material others have used first.
Love the idea that you are involved in praying for the schools in your area. I'm going to ask our youth pastor if he does anything like that.
Thanks for sharing. ;)
I've done a prayer walk like you described before. They're so neat.
I know what you mean about a September New Year!
And I can totally relate to the bittersweet nature of your daughter's achievement. I'm right on that page with you, having sent my baby off to college this fall.
Great list. It is hard and wonderful to watch our kids grow up.
Well, it's Labor Day here in Canada too so that means a day off together for my hubby and me. Yay. Hopefully the weather will co-operate and we can go on a nice, long bike ride. Probably the last of the year (because our days off don't usually co-ordinate).
What a fun way to share some time with a friend who needed to talk. That tandem kayak is turning into an awesome blessing for you, isn't it?
This Tandem Kayak was a well deserved blessing for you both. It sounded like a lot of fun and frolic and free time to reflect.
I like your prayer walk. I loved reading about it. I had the opportunity to do something similar, it was spiritual.
Congrats to Courtney on getting her license!! I can understand your excitement yet the true bittersweet moment that it is....they do grow up fast!!!!
You tandem kayak outing sounded delightful!
Wow that is so interesting about the LIFE club, I will remember to pray about that!!! Good for you for doing a Jericho Walk, God is so needed in those public schools!!
I start back on Tues also!
Hope you guys enjoyed your Labor Day getaway. :)
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