Unforgiveness

Quote from an article I read earlier today:  John MacArthur was asked by Daly what he observed to be the most prominent problems among all the married couples that he has counseled over the course of more than 35 years of being a pastor.

"Sin and selfishness, and a lack of forgiveness will devastate any relationship," he answered. "We all have to deal with sin. We all have to deal with selfishness, but the final breaking point is the absence of forgiveness. In the end, the destruction of any relationship comes down to whether or not you can forgive because we are going to need to be forgiven. We have to forgive each other in our marriage. We have to forgive each other as we work together in the Kingdom." 

The lack of forgiveness is spoken about many times in scripture.  I can testify to the destruction it causes in relationships.  

If I could ask one thing today, it would be to look at your heart and truly examine if there is any forgiveness.  If so, then take the time to go to the person, if possible, and make things right between the two of you.

Another famous phrase that I come back to often is this: Forgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. 

Forgive and thrive.  Forgive and experience true freedom. 

Feeling Weary

It has been WAY TOO LONG since I have written.  And I had almost decided to delete the blog and stop this writing thing.  But then I realized I still needed an outlet to share my heart and stories – even if it is only a few times a year.

In reality, I could have written a novel with all that has happened to our family so far this year.  For now, I will stick to what is happening in the present.

I am stuck and have been struggling with many, many things.  One of them is … am I making an impact where I teach at Summit Academy?  I do not have a teaching degree.  I am a homeschool mom with a love for teaching.  I enjoy kids and having fun while learning.  But are the parents getting what they paid for?  Are the kids learning?  Does it make a difference?  The answer is … YES!

How do I know this?  Last week at Summit, I had at least five of my students come give me hugs after class.  One student, a middle schooler, said that she looked forward to my class more than any of the others.  I asked her why? (Thinking she would say it was the material we were learning.)  She replied, “You are upbeat, kind, and engaging.  You make this class so much fun.”

Trust me – I was not expecting or looking for that response.  And I don’t write it to toot my own horn or make myself out to be something grand.  I write it to let those of you reading know that it was an answer to one of many, many prayers I have been praying. It was God, through the sweet voice of a student, reminding me that I have a purpose.  And not to grow weary … because I do feel so weary.

Scripture says. “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”  Galatians 6:9

I keep saying this to myself, but if feels like a losing battle.  So the encouragement this week at school came at a great time.  However, I find myself waiting for encouragement in other areas of my life … parenting, being a wife, being a friend, running my little organizing business, and the ministries I participate in at church.  Lord, please give me strength - I am growing weary.

He will be faithful to answer in His due time.  I have seen Him do an amazing healing in my daughter in the last week.  I now wait to see what is in store for me.  I have hope it is something amazing and will bring Him great glory!

Prayers appreciated.  Let me know how I can pray for you.

Gleanings from the opening ceremonies

• What a brave little girl to be lifted that far in the air.
• Technical oops on the snowflakes turning into the Olympic rings – it was still very pretty.
• Really liked how the athletes came from the middle of the stadium with the projected globe on the floor - beautiful.
• Kudos to the athletes who wore shorts in the winter.
• What was up with the outfits worn by the ladies who carried the names of the countries?  They just looked weird – the outfits, not the ladies.
• Team USA definitely rocked the best outfit.
• Three white horses – spectacular!
• Ballet – I think that was a first and so fantastic!
• The lady who sang the Olympic anthem – glorious voice and I want that dress!
• Enjoyed the technical light show that depicted some of the sports.
• And of course, the torch - simple and elegant.

Let the games begin and go Team USA!!

Passionate Parenting

I have said it many times – parenting is NOT for wimps.  It is the hardest yet most rewarding job on earth.  However, I do sometimes wonder if it would be JUST a little bit easier if my children shared my talents, abilities and passions.  

I LOVE to read.  I want my children to love to read.  They enjoyed me reading to them when they were little.  And truth be told, they enjoy for me to read to them now.  But for them to read for pleasure will probably never happen.  My daughter does not share the passion.  “I don’t get it, Mom!” And for my son, asking him to read for fun is the equivalent of asking him to perform surgery.  It is not going to happen.  He is doing great to read what he needs to read.  So, this aspect of a shared thing with my kids is gone.

I LOVE to organize.  Spencer use to.  Now, he doesn’t.  Shelby does pretty well, but it is on her level and time frame.  My level and time frame are different.  Again, I have to let this go.

I LOVE to clean.  My children do it out of complete necessity and fear of their mother.  They do not clean for the pure enjoyment of cleaning.  They do not get the rush I do from accomplishing chores in a fast amount of time and then sitting back and enjoying a clean environment.  They think I am nuts.  I think they don’t know me very well.

I LOVE to write.  When it comes time for Shelby to write, she is super sweet to me and says in the most precious voice, “Mom, can you please help me?”  Spencer asks why writing is necessary to life.  Ugh.

I LOVE to watch movies.  Hey – so do they!

I LOVE to watch certain shows on TV. They do too!

I LOVE vacations.  They do too!

I LOVE the holidays.  They do too!

I LOVE to hang out with my friends.  Ditto for the kids!

My daughter and I do share creativity and an adventurous spirit.  If we had unlimited funds, she and I would travel all the time.  My son and I use to have more things in common, but he is going through puberty right now …

 

We share a love for people, a love for our family, our faith, our pets and a longing to have lots of fun on this earth.  The silliness talent runs rampant – no getting rid of that!

So when it comes down to it, my kids may not share all of my passions, but they possess the most important ones.  It may make parenting a bit more challenging, but I would not have it any other way. 

PCB 2013

Getting in the spirit for the beach.

The week before we were due to leave, a potential hurricane was heading for the Gulf of Mexico.  My vacation spot is on the Gulf of Mexico.  I did not want the two to share the same space – no way, no how.  But I am not the Almighty and the wind and waves do not obey my wishes.  I did pray and ask for prayers.  By the time our departure date arrived, the storm was small and the threat gone.  Our drive down on Saturday was perfect – except for listening to an intense Georgia game on the radio.  

This was our fifth year going to Panama City Beach, but lots of changes were in the works.  The biggest was that we took two cars.  The longest Shelby had driven before our trip was two hours to Columbus, Georgia.  Guess it was time to break her into road trips.  Her best friend, Abby, was going with us and would be her car companion.  Abby’s tasks were to answer all phones, be in charge of the radio, keep Shelby awake and make sure her hands were on the wheel at all times.  Abby did great and so did Shelby!  She kept up with us in traffic, managed herself well and, (GULP) drove on I-85 downtown, I-20 and I-285.  Whew!  I am very proud of my girl.

Now, you would think this two car thing was stressful – well, just a little.  But the perks were worth it!  More room to take all of our stuff – and our family has stuff.  The teenage girls had a bit more freedom to do a few things on their own and we could come and go more easily not worrying that we stranded someone at the condo.  Yep – I liked the two car deal.

My husband worked very hard to save for this trip and I appreciate it very much!  The biggest thing it afforded was for us to eat dinner out.  You see – this lady really does want a vacation and that includes NOT cooking, doing the laundry, cleaning, etc.  Breakfast and lunch were in the condo with very simple things that did not have to be cooked.  Meals were out at some of our favorite restaurants, usually by the beach enjoying a fabulous sunset.  This alone made me a very happy lady.  The next happy thing for me was reading and reading and reading.  I do it every vacation.  Last year I read six novels over 10 days.  This year I borrowed three novels and had them finished by Thursday morning.  So I went and purchased a few magazines to read on the beach Friday and Saturday.  Next year I will bring more books.

One of the many spectacular sunsets.

The weather was a bit yucky on Sunday evening and early Monday morning.  After that, it was absolute perfection.  We chose Wednesday as the day to go out on the pontoon boat.  That morning it was overcast and, with the wind, was chilly.  We girls were very smart to bring layers – we needed them.  By noon though, it was hot, sunny and perfection.  Shan and Spencer fished all afternoon, the girls tanned and I read.  We watched a pod of dolphins for about 30 minutes and that was the highlight of my day on the bay.  The “low light” was being bothered by a very large fish in the shallows next to Shell Island.  And since this is my blog, I won’t discuss here the after math of that encounter.  Gotta keep what dignity I have left.

Look closely.  This is Shelby, wrapped up in sweats and a towel keeping warm.  We actually took a 15 minute nap while the guys walked around Shell Island.  Soon after this photo was taken, the dolphins came out to play and so did the sun.

As a gift to myself, I splurged and purchased a new beach chair, beach umbrella, and beach bag.  They were the bomb diggity!  I was able to tote all the gear by myself, set up and have my supplies at hand.  See, I am high maintenance on the beach.  I need shade, lots of sunscreen, water, my outdoor reading glasses, book, towels, blah, blah, blah.  However, my spouse does not always accompany me to the sandy shore.  He is off fishing somewhere and that is perfectly wonderful.  But in order for me to enjoy the sand and surf, I had to have a way to go it alone.  This was the first year that happened and it was great for me and the hubby.   Once I got all settled under the umbrella, I was extremely content – until the earth rotated and moved my shade. 

In addition to resting on the beach and bay, we spent time at Pier Park shopping, eating and I FINALLY got to see some fireworks on Friday night.  Woo Hoo!

A special treat this year was having some family in PCB at the same time.  Uncle Toney and Aunt Ginger came on Thursday.  That evening, we all meet up at one of our favorite places for dinner – Boon Docks.  It was such a great time having them there.  Later that evening, Shan, Spencer and I attempted to walk from Edgewater to Pineapple Willy’s on the beach.  Shelby and Abby drove the van to Pineapple Willy’s to meet us there.  When we got to the half way point on our walk, she called to tell us it was closed.  But we still had a great time.  Saw a Blue Heron with a fish in its beak eating a late night snack and enjoyed the moon, stars and waves on our feet.  Next year, I am going to walk the entire way!

Uncle Toney, Aunt Ginger and me at Boon Docks.  Photo credit to my daughter who took this great candid.  Don't you just love Aunt Ginger's smile?!

Well, that was my vacation.  All in all it was fabulous and very, very relaxing.  Can’t wait to go back next year! Below is a little video I took on the pontoon boat.  It was the first embarrassing thing that happened to me that day.  This one I will share because it has dolphins.  I had intended to edit the embarrassing part out, but thought I would leave it in for your enjoyment.  Aren't I nice?