Fixing my eyes

Sometimes things seem hopeless.
There was a HUGE Easter party in our neighborhood park on Sunday, given by our "famous" local drug dealer. People come from all over the city, bringing their kids.
We drove past on our way home from my parents house and were amazed at the number of people! About ten minutes after getting home, we heard gunshots and saw people running down the street, toward our house. Somebody had fired shots into the crowd. For the next hour or so rumors flew. The final story is that 2 people were hit, but did not suffer life threatening injuries. (Thank you, Lord!)
Bk walked down there in the midst of it all to see if the people involved were any of "our" people :) I really do experience the peace of Christ in these situations, knowing that God and his angels are with Bk when he needs to do things like this.
I kept our kids inside, started the bedtime routine, and felt myself begin to feel overwhelmed. I take that feeling and transfer it to my parenting/ home, when in reality I believe it's a desire to control this community and protect it from evil.
But that's Gods responsibility.
HE IS here, and at work, and I need to trust Him and his timing.
But I also need to pray more. To fight this battle on a spiritual level. Fighting against the powers of darkness as I seek the Lord and His reign over this neighborhood.
I have tried to remember to FOCUS my thoughts on Jesus, eternity, souls of people and the sovereignty of God. This is a challenge for me, because apparently my thoughts are focused on cleaning my house, changing a paint color, yard-work, kids disobedience and disrespect, etc etc etc. As I take the initiative to refocus, I am experiencing grace.
Please pray for me! I want to truly experience victory in this!



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Have you seen our garden?!

We even have chickens!!

Saturday fun

There are now 5 boys that we know the Lord wants us to invest in- 3 from one family, 2 from another. We usually have some or all at some point on the weekends. They are wonderful- and wonderfully cute :)
They played outside all morning and now it's art time apparently.
Pray for these boys that God would use us to help them know Him and His love in deep and precious ways.




Bike shop in the backyard!


A party every Saturday


Deltas art class- haha - yeah right!




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maybe I can do this after all

So I just figured out an app for my phone that allows me to blog from it... Yay !
I am sorry I have been a terrible blogger but this may help- no promises!
The picture below is from spring break and whats missing is my precious sister and her baby boy. It was a crazy week, but full of fun and adventures. I have been volunteering one afternoon a week at CGM and I really so love it. I have a table full of 5th graders!
I will do a post soon about some health scares I've had lately, but just know I really am fine.
My boys are great and I can't believe another school year is almost over.
Well, I'm going to post this now and check it out. Hopefully , more to come soon :)

Eternal Perspective

BK sent me a text on Friday asking me if 3 little boys could spend the night that night... As usual it was a test of my spirit... and I pretty much failed.

I said yes, but really struggled with a bad attitude - just not wanting the extra work. The boys came and they were wonderful - so cute (they loved all of Ethan's costumes), and very well behaved.

I asked for prayer from Antoinette, and she was so great at speaking truth to me that has come up again and again all week in my heart. She reminded me that the Lord had ordained for those boys to come over and I could not know the eternal benefits that He could have planned just because of their time here. I had a quiet time on Saturday morning (the boys were all up at 6:15 am!), and the Lord really strengthened me and renewed my eternal perspective. Over the 7 bowls of cereal later that morning, I was truly thankful.

Later that week, as I was praying, I realized that really believing that God is weaving a beautiful story at ALL times gives ME purpose as well. I began praying that God would raise up my sons, my godson, and the children in our lives to be the next-generation leaders in His kingdom. I pray that I would be a faithful parent, wife and minister so that His story will be filled with people who stand for Christ because I truly loved the Lord and made Him known to them.

Finally - a picture of Demetrius Jamal Reynolds!

How this lifestyle is saving me #3

"Let it GO!"

My family didn't have tons of money while I was growing up, but we always had everything we needed. One of my favorite memories is the day I was able to buy my grandmother's convertable from her for $900 - money I had saved from working at American Eagle in high school. I was a senior and it was a GREAT first car! I loved driving up and down Troy Highway on my way back and forth from Troy to Montgomery with the top down and music up. God provided scholarship money for college and my parents were able to cover my housing and meal plan costs. Life was SO good..... Except that my car broke down. a lot. And every time, I would PANIC. How was I going to pay for it? Even if I had the money, I didn't want to spend it on CAR PARTS! One of my sweet friends always suggested that I take it to her dad, a mechanic, and he would always fix it -s ometimes for free, but often I ended up paying something, and the Lord always provided. The main point is : even though God always provided and showed Himself faithful, I would still have that sick feeling in my stomach (fear, worry, anxiety, greed) every time the check engine light came on.

That pattern continued into my early years of marriage, ministry and child-raising. LOTS of anxiety of having to spend money I thought we just didn't have.

That feeling was still very much a part of my life even in the first year of living here in the hood... If I give away all my snacks, what will my kids eat? If I spend all my money on food for my family and countless neighbors, is that good stewardship? If I pay someone else's power bill, will I have enough money at the end of the month to make it?

Sometime as that first year came to a close, I began to hear the Holy Spirit, loud and clear : "Let it GO!"

He wanted me to STOP worrying and to give. He wanted me to stop being greedy and be generous. He wanted to prove to me that He would meet all of my needs, and that I needed to let go of some of my wants. It was an AMAZING freedom to really start to let go... even if it meant going BACK to the grocery store for the 3rd time that week. I was literally telling myself out loud to just let go.

And that was just the beginning of what God was wanting to do in my heart.

Over the last 2 years, He has been telling me other things I need to let go of...

*clean floors - sounds funny, but the more I held on to the idea that my floors had to be clean, the more unhappy I was!

* peace and quiet - now there is a time for that for sure, but PEOPLE (esp kids) make noise, and PEOPLE are the very heart of God!

*the things of this world - sound familiar ? - I think there are a few verses in the Bible about that :) - but I tell you, the more I pray to Love the Heart and purposes of God, the less room there is for selfish comforts and pleasures. Now THAT is cause for a whole seperate post!

I know He is not even close to finished working on the super-selfish heart of mine. I am so thankful for the growth I have seen in this area and hope to see even more as the years go by.

PS - did I tell you I am an official god-parent?! My godson was born on my birthday - Oct 12. I am so blessed! I would attach a pic, but my computer freezes every time I try :(

How this lifestyle is saving me #2

This was the first song that came on my Pandora Radio this morning as I was doing some cardio, and I was loving it!

It paired perfectly with a quote from a sermon by Platt: "We don't come to God to get stuff - prosperity, blessings, etc - We come to God to get GOD!"

I have to check my heart almost every day on this issue and I fail often. But I do see a change in me and I know He is giving me more and more desire for HIM and not stuff. Living here has helped reshape my needs vs wants. I want to see my life as in the midst of a WAR for the kingdom, and this war requires the things God has entrusted me with - my time, possessions, gifts, and money.

I do want God - do you?!

Things Like You by Sanctus Real

Loving things like you has wrecked my life, made me cry
Loving things like you has made me lose my mind
And I can't figure out why I've been hanging on
To all these things I've tried to leave behind me for so long

And I think it's time to find a better way to live my life
Than loving all those things that keep me wrapped so tight

Everyone wants everyone else's eveything
Some time's the more we have the less we really gain
I'm tired of life and all that money has to buy
Get out of my heart, out of my mind, leaving you behind

Loving things like you has left me bruised, black and blue
Loving things like you has made me so confused
And I can't figure out what I've been waiting on
God I can't be living for things I know are wrong

Now I think it's time to write a better chapter in my life
Leaving all those things that keep me wrapped so tight

Why are we obsessed with possessions here on earth?
Go and take a look at the flowers and the birds
God is always taking care of nature's every need
And how much more important in The Father's eyes are we?
I said, how much more important in The Father's eyes are we?
He sees everything