Beautiful Things

Yes, I know...it's been awhile; but Chad is killing me - literally.  Okay well maybe not literally; but I feel like it sometimes. :)  I have dug 41 post-holes, set 41 posts, dug a 50' trench and cleared out 20' of woods.  I'm pathetic, I'm covered in bruises and burns (post-hole diggers and I don't get along) and I'm exhausted.  So when we are done for the night it takes all I have to put some semblance of a meal together for my children, shower them and get them to bed.  I then proceed to collapse and not move until 7am the next day.  So stringing sentences together to form thoughts and thus a blog has not been on my radar.  The only reason I can function this afternoon is because friends came to help and rescued me.  (That might sound a bit dramatic but I definitely feel 'rescued!')  Many hands make for light work (or whatever that old saying is that my grandmother used to say) and I am so very thankful for the 'many hands' today!  When they left this afternoon Chad and I looked at each other and said, "we'd have killed each other if we'd had to do that!" 

I'm whining, I realize it; but between tubing at the lake this past week and digging a trench muscles, hurt that I never knew existed.  It's good for me; and both let me know I'm alive, and leave me thankful to still be alive when they're done. 

These jobs have been messy.  Like mud-caked-on-shoes-dirt-smeared-all-over-faces-can't-find-a-clean-spot-on-me kind of messy.  Dirt and mud don't bother me, I guess that's a side-effect of growing up with brothers; I actually kind of like it.  I tried to get Malachi and Silas to play with some of the mud with me but they looked at me like I was crazy and after a few 'squishes' in their hands they both had a minor freak-out moment because their hands were dirty.  They've got a lot to learn...

...but so do I.   After one particularly messy afternoon we were spraying off our tools and our shoes with the hose; I seized the moment and sprayed Chad with the hose and slung mud at him from my caked shoe.  Since he hates cold water you can imagine how well that went over.  I said I was just trying to help; but he wasn't buying.  However, learning self control to not spray my husband with the hose isn't the lesson I need to learn.  That same mud-slinging afternoon we made one of our numerous treks to Lowe's and heard Gungor's Beautiful Things on the radio. There I sat covered in 'dust' listening to the words "you make beautiful things out of the dust" and I was overwhelmingly at peace.  

"Yes! Yes!" I wanted to scream.  Life is messy and oftentimes leaves us caked in dirt and sweat with bruises and scars that tell where we've been;but that's not the end.  Because of the cross "He makes beautiful things out of the dust...out of us."  He is making us new - He is doing a new thing.  

I pray this is encouragement for whatever mess of life you find yourself in.  God isn't discouraged and disheartened by the mess.  He knows what he's doing; and he is making a beautiful thing.  

"Forget the former things; see I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43:18-19

The Gift of Chester

As some of you know, today was Chad's birthday.  The greatest thing about Chad's birthday, for me, is not the excuse to eat junk food and sweets, or the buying gifts and spoiling him, but the mere fact that he is always older than me.  Completely selfish, I know, but it's comforting to know that no matter how old I turn each time April 19th rolls around on the calendar, Chad is always 315 days older.  It's just some justice for his lack of grey hairs, no wrinkles, his adorable baby-face and his ability to drop 10 pounds in 2 weeks.  

I want the world to know that I am thankful for the gift of my (slightly older than me) husband.  I love my husband and I am proud of him.  It takes strength of character, integrity and humility to do what he's doing and in the way he's doing it.  I'm proud of Him and I respect Him. 


So, I stole his idea.  He did this for me on my last birthday (how high he needed to count for me for that birthday is irrelevant) so I thought I'd do it for him too.  Since he is 31 today, here's the top 31 things things I love about my Chester:

1. He loves his Savior
2. He loves Malachi 
3. He loves Silas
4. He loves me
5. He loves Chinese
6. He gets me
7. He's gifted
8. He's humble
9. He's gentle
10. He's funny
11. He's sweet
12. He's sincere
13. He speaks sarcasm
14. He loves people
15. He's a good friend
16. He desires to learn
17. He knows he doesn't have all the answers
18. He respects those older than him
19. He values those younger than him
20. He desires to continue learning
21. He's cheap (he prefers "frugal") :)
22. He watches football with me
23. He loves the Colts
24. He's a gifted communicator
25. He calls me his Baby Girl
26. He spoils me
27. He defends and protects our children and me
28. He would lay down his life for our children
29. He loves hot summer nights just as much as I do
30. He chose me
31. He chooses to follow his call

This list just scratches the surface - and I look forward to many more birthdays together.  I am so thankful for the life God has called me to live - even if there are rough days.  

So here is my challenge to you ladies out there: love the men in your life.  Respect them and show them you respect them.  Whether you're married or single - love your husbands, fathers, sons, brothers, uncles, cousins, friends...you get the idea.  Mark Twain said, "I can live for 2 months on a good compliment"; so I challenge you right now to speak life into your men again and give them an honest and sincere compliment.  It might be awkward and weird at first...but it could make all the difference.  


"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.  Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:9-10

A Swim Lesson

God is showing off through all of this in ways I could never have imagined.  I am humbled.  The out-pouring of support has just been completely over-whelming.  To all of you who have supported us, either financially, spiritually, emotionally, or physically and to the many more who have offered to help in any way you could - we are truly, truly grateful.  Not only can I not name names because of how many of you there are; but some of you I do not even know who you are.  You know who you are...and God knows.  I pray for God to continue to bless you as you have been such a blessing to us!  Great is your reward. 

I haven't really had much to update on this last week.  We are back home and trying to stay busy.  Chad's tackling his 'honey-do' list with enthusiasm...and I'm loving it!  I'm struggling to simultaneously keep up with him and clean up after him as he tackles all the projects he never had time to before.  It's great; and I sleep really well at night.  :)

One of the things keeping us busy is swim lessons for Malachi and Silas.  My idea not theirs.  Overall they've done really well.  However, Mr. Si Man hated his first lesson.  He screamed most of the lesson and clung to my neck saying, "this is not fun, mommy.  What are you doing?" like I had straight-up betrayed him.  No matter how much I prepped him and prepared him he still fought every step of the way. 

Fast forward to yesterday's lesson.  I was fully prepared for another battle. Feeling the potential outcome (his learning to swim) was worth it, I put on my game-face and braved the pool.  Nothing was different, same teachers, same location, same skills practiced.  Nothing was different, except Silas.  He was a completely different kid - he loved it.  He put his face in the water, blew bubbles, laid on his back and kicked his legs like a champ! He actually kept trying to pry my hands off of him saying, "I swim by myself Mommy".  However, since I wanted to make sure he would get in the pool next time I didn't let him learn the hard way why I needed to keep holding him. 

It was after we were dry, showered and fed that I started reflecting on that lesson and relating it to my walk with Christ.  Nothing in Silas' swim lesson had changed nor did his ability to actually swim.  If I had listened to him and actually let go he and his 36" would have sunk to the bottom of that 48" pool.  But Silas had changed.  He lived through it once before; and in his two-year-old way decided to relax, enjoy the water and to trust Mommy.  

Wow.  Leave it to a two year old to teach me a lesson on trusting my Father.  While I have actually never walked this specific road before; my Savior and I have walked other paths and He has always seen me through.  He is faithful.  

It is right now that I am going to not only show my age but also show how un-cool I can actually be sometimes.  I had a very sheltered childhood; and while I am very grateful for this it does afford us some humorous stories now that we're older.  One of the things we were subjected to growing up was Bill Gaither.  Lots and lots of Bill Gaither.  I know every word to every Gaither Vocal Band song from 1994-2001.  One of my favorites (yes, I just used that word) was a song called "Now More Than Ever". 

"The road I have traveled has sometimes been steep, 

through wild jagged places of life.

 Sometimes I've stumbled and fallen so hard

that the stones cut my soul like a knife.

But the staff of my Shepherd would reach out for me

and lift me to cool pastures green.

With the oil of the Spirit anointing my wounds

there I'd rest by the clear healing stream.

Oh but now more than ever

I cherish the cross,

more than ever I sit at his feet.

 All the miles of my journey have proved my Lord true

and He is so precious to me"

Now more than ever...He is so precious to me.  So for right now, for this moment I'll choose to relax, lay back and enjoy the water; because we've been here before, and 'all the miles of my journey have proved my Lord true'. 

(P.S. David Phelps is my ear-candy...so if you want to experience the acoustical goodness that is the tenor voice of David Phelps, see what you've been missing, or are just curious you can listen to him sing 'Now More Than Ever' here.  Enjoy.)