Prayer for Safety

My husband and son left at dawn this morning. They are driving to FL to catch a plane to the Bahamas where they will be sailing on a 42' boat - off to have a great adventure participating in a Boy Scout Seabase Excursion.

I am a puddle. I hate when our family is separated. I'm a homebody and I like all the bodies at home with me!

In church yesterday we sang a song about surrender and I just sobbed thinking that my boys may not ever come home. I've teased that I don't want them to end up a Reader's Digest story - "Boy Scouts barely survive storm at sea." Couldn't even think about the story of them not surviving.

They have many hours of driving, a puddle-jumper plane ride twice, and a week of sailing. Ugh. I'm happy they will have this trip as a memory, but I'd really rather not collect any life insurance money if at all possible.

Does anyone else have thoughts like this?

I then thought, "What if they're lost at sea? The insurance company might not even give me the money." Weirdo!

Anyway...

Our pastor has been speaking on idols - anything that takes the place of God. It's amazing how much I depend on my men, but I have to remember that they belong to the Lord. I don't have enough grace to think about losing them. The Lord doesn't give us grace for our imagined fears. He gives us grace the moment we need it.

On the way to church today I was singing along with a Chris Tomlin CD. We were singing, "Your grace is enough, your grace is enough..." It's so true. It's always been and always will be. I just have to trust and leave my loved ones in His hands where they are already safe and sound.

Psalm 28:7

The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.
My heart leaps for joy
and I will give thanks to him in song.

Father,

Please, keep my boys safe while they travel and sail. Give them something great to share and remember. Bond their hearts together even more. Let them enjoy your beautiful creation to its fullest!

Calm my heart and help me to trust in you. I thank you for the song that reminded me that your grace is enough. It always is. You are amazing, Lord.

Please, protect us (girls) at home. Give us a great week together. May we rejoice in your abundant goodness!

Thank you for my family!

Amen.

Avatar

A little behind the times? Usually!

Last night we watched On Demand James Cameron's Avatar. I liked the movie a lot.

When it was in theaters we heard it dealt with a lot of social issues, and although beautiful cinematically, it wasn't worth seeing. To be honest, I'm getting a little tired of reading movie reviews because there doesn't seem to be a voice out there that has my point-of-view.

Yes, there were social issues and you could totally go off the deep end with the "Save the Earth" bit. I know my mind on the issue and give room for other people's opinions. A fantasy movie isn't going to change that.

It was reminiscent of the Native American culture with some African tribal touches. Although I do not share the same religious beliefs, again, I can certainly be exposed to them without damaging my own faith.

There was bad language in the movie. Before writing this post I went to Plugged In Online, Focus on the Family's movie review site, to see what their reviewer posted. Last December I probably went to this site and read the review and decided to skip the movie. Last night I, obviously, forgot what I had read. There was more language in the movie than I actually heard. I hate how desensitized we can be to our Lord's name taken in vain. I do not recall one instance, but Plugged In assures me there was. I think when military men use foul language in a movie, you automatically dismiss it, especially when they're the bad guy. Not a good excuse, mind you. Just analyzing my lack of detection here.

Anyway, there were scantily clad blue natives and as a woman that didn't really effect me, but it does my teenage son. So I sometimes have to rethink inappropriate dress if we're watching something together.

I took Avatar as a breathtakingly beautiful movie - totally fantastical - love story with a touch of adventure and left it at that. If I had reread the reviews and decided not to watch it, I would have not missed the experience. (Profound, that one, huh!) However, a different choice was made last night and I thought James Cameron made an original movie. With all the remakes out right now, it was fun to have something that captured the imagination!

The movie returns to 3D theaters on August 27th for a limited time. I might sneak away and see it on the big screen. I might not. We'll see.

BTW, last Fall before the movie came out my daughter, Ashley, used a photo editing software to create this creepy picture of her eye. Maybe she was on to something... Ha!

Gettin' Stuff Done

Recently my mom shared this passage with me: Luke 1:29-31

(29)As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. (30)Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her. (31)So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.

Mom then joked, "Simon's mother-in-law probably thought, 'Look at all the things that didn't get done around here while I was down.'" That cracked me up!

Since I've returned home from clearing out my grandmother's house in IL I've thought about her "funny" and how true it was for me while being gone and leaving my husband and two oldest kids at home. They maintained an acceptable level of living, but I've been cleaning and reorganizing to put my house back into order for me. I was ready to tackle some of my own problems in the house after returning. You think about all the junk you're storing that just needs to go.

Thank goodness, it's summer and I have the time to purge, sort and scrub. What projects have you been able to tackle this summer? My list is long (too long to accomplish), but I'm working on it!

Grandma's China in the kitchen cupboards
Clean kitchen
Mountains of laundry
Put Grandma's Christmas acquisitions in storage room
Choose a container and place for Grandma's quilting supplies
Read/Answer/Delete way too much email
Run errands for supplies for boy's trip
Etc...

In A Stack...Report # 6 & I'm BACK!

Hello, fellow bloggers; I'm back! After spending three weeks clearing out my grandmother's house it is GOOD to be home!

While I was away I did some leisure reading before bedtime. Today I want to share a summary of a book with you that I have a feeling had a much greater impact on me than I actually realize.

The Walk has piqued my interest in a new series by Richard Paul Evans. The author paints a vivid picture of main character, Alan Christoffersen's, loss. If you have ever experienced a time of great loss in your own life, then Alan's emotional responses will more than likely resonate with you.

At a time when survival is a choice, Alan chooses to take a walk. He packs up the essentials and leaves Seattle to begin his journey to the farthest point on his map: Key West, Florida.

The Walk lays the foundation for this new book series. The journey begins by first crossing Washington state where many interesting characters emerge along the way. This book is chock full of great quotes written in Alan's diary. There are many paragraphs throughout where I mused, "I want to come back and think about this!" The quote that opens chapter three continues to resonate with me.

"The assumption of time is one of humanity's greatest follies. We tell ourselves that there's always tomorrow, when we can no more predict tomorrow than we can the weather. Procrastination is the thief of dreams." Alan Christoffersen's diary

Alan's wife implores him to LIVE! I'm reading this book at a time of heartache and great emotion. When you go through a loved ones possessions you think about their life and you also think about the life you're living. What will you leave behind? What will matter to those who inherit your stuff? What does your stuff say about you and your priorities?

My behavior has changed since returning home. I don't really even know if my family has noticed; I imagine my husband has, but I want to LIVE! Daily life is full of routine, but are you ALIVE while living it? Do you look for beauty in the minutia? Do you stop and take the time to truly express your love? Did you allow the interruption so the needy person knows you care more about them than about what they interrupted?

I'm tired of being afraid of what others will think of me so I bought a bright shirt and wore it to church.

I'm tired of being overwhelmed by the daily tasks that are always there so I do what I can and let the messy living room go one more day.

I'm tired of being tired so I worked out at the gym and followed it up by swimming laps at the local pool. Tonight is yoga with a friend.

I'm tired of not getting out of the house because I'm just too lazy so I took my girls to the library at night.

I'm tired of letting the to-do lists run my life so I have shared intimately with my husband more since coming home. I've stopped to read books to my girls and to watch tv WITH them! I've played games with my big kids and husband.

I've tried to ENJOY my family. We don't have that much time left where we'll be a family of six with a junior in college and a senior in high school. Things will change dramatically in the next few years. I want to ENJOY them all right now. Just as the quote admonishes, tomorrow is no guarantee.

Well, I hope that didn't feel like a sermon. It's just been what's been going through my thoughts these past few days.

Back to the summary: I enjoyed this book. Could ya' tell? It made me want to visit the small towns of Washington and maybe even take a long walk...just not to Florida! :)

I hope you'll go LIVE today and enjoy it!