The Calm Before the Storm

Does that sound ominous or what?

No, we aren't expecting any major terrors around the corner, but in about 2.5 months we will have an addition to our family - and one that is basically completely dependent on us. Look - you can tell she's really in there (and no, my brother isn't having a baby too, he just wishes he looked as cool as me).

Based on conversations with many friends who have recently had babies, Daryl and I are planning for the first 3 months at least to be like war! :) While you can't prepare for what life will be like after baby, we have been assured that things will be different - especially in regards to my sleep.

So tonight we are just chilling. I confess that unless it's a weekend evening I often feel very lazy if I'm not doing something productive - even if it means having coffee with a friend, making phone calls, or writing letters. But I've decided that any chances we get to just chill out these next few months, I better enjoy!

That doesn't mean we are becoming hermotized sloths, but it does mean that tonight after cleaning up dinner I sat on the couch with Daryl and watched him play video games and now we are in bed reading (and blogging)...and just for fun - not for increased learning or anything. I even took a 30 minute nap today.

I know these moments may be fewer and farther between in the near future, so I am relishing it. :)

Any last minute date ideas before baby arrives?

ps - thanks for all of the condolences/prayers regarding Simon. We are doing MUCH better already. :)

In memory of Simon

This weekend Daryl and I rode with my parents to visit my brother and sister-in-law at their new place in DC. Before leaving, we dropped Simon off at the kennel (which he thankfully loved visiting), and sadly pulled down the road with him watching us from the kennel yard - something he didn't usually do.

The following morning Kathy from the kennel wakened us via telephone. One of the girls had let Simon out in the morning after feeding him, and when she returned just a couple of minutes later, he was laying on the ground. When she got to him, he wasn't breathing.

We lost our dog on Sunday.

While I know how nice it will be able to get a new couch without fear of it being quickly destroyed, and how nice it will be not to have to bundle up every morning to take him out, or not have to wash the couch cushion covers every couple of days, I wouldn't have traded him for any of those things.

The joy Simon brought both of us (and especially Daryl) has been amazing! We've been reminiscing about how much we loved having him around. We loved being greeted by Simon when we came home. We even loved how he would steal our seat on the couch if we got up for just a moment and look pleading to Daryl for permission to stay there. Daryl loved when he'd look at us like he was smiling and how much fun he had playing outside or going mountain biking with him as a puppy. I loved how he would put his head next to mine on the bed at night time for his nightly rub, how much fun he had on walks with me, and how he would keep me company when Daryl wasn't home yet.

While these next couple days/weeks/months will be a huge adjustment to us, we recognize God's kindness to us in gifting us with Simon at all and in all the joy we were enabled to have through the gift of Simon. We also recognize that Simon was a tremendous companion for Daryl and how gracious of God it was to keep Simon around until we got married and right before we hope to have another pair of little feet pattering around downstairs to hopefully preoccupy many of our sad thoughts.

We won't ever be able to replace Simon - he was one of a kind and as the woman at the kennel said, "their favorite dog," (sorry if you take your dog there - haha), but maybe we'll get another one soon.

For those of you who don't have dogs or don't care for them, this may all sound ridiculous, but he was part of our daily lives - and a responsive part. We will really miss him. We'll miss him when we come home from work. We'll miss him sitting at our feet at dinner time. We'll miss him spinning around in circles at feeding time. We'll miss him in the morning when we wake up. We'll just miss him.

Thankfully God is a good all the time, and who knows, as Daryl reminded me, Joni Ericson Tada once wrote that while God doesn't owe us or any animal any good thing, wouldn't it be just like Him to have a few more surprises for us in our heavenly home?

Goals and objectives

This month has been fun for me as I've been trying over the course of the past week to narrow down what my goals for the year should be.

As many of you know, I LOVE the Mahaneys, and so I visited the Girltalk.blogs.com and printed off some of their resources from the beginning of the year regarding goal setting.

The issue they really encouraged their readers to grapple with was - are our goals "self-exalting" or "God glorifying"? I love this quote, "If 'good looks' or any other goal is driven by selfishness, or a desperate grasp for glory and attention, we are merely resolving to sin against God. If James 4:6, 'God opposes the proud' means what it says (and Scripture always does), than God is actually opposing our efforts instead of blessing them."

Of course the opposite is true because James 4:6 continues to say that "'[He] gives grace to the humble.' If we depend upon God to do good works and perfect our character in order to reflect His glory, we can anticipate His grace to blow life into our feeble efforts."

While I've really had to study and grapple with my motives and goals, what a refreshing truth it is that when we depend on God and are setting goals in order to help us glorify Him more He is our biggest help and biggest fan. I haven't finalized all my goals because my heart is taking me a while to ascertain :), but while I'm in the process, I'll share with you a goal a friend of mine helped me with in college that I've found worthy enough to continue all my days...

SCRIPTURE MEMORIZATION!

Here is the key she gave me to really memorize verses FOR LIFE, and I love it, so I thought I'd pass it on (and as Anne Rheney says, "repetition, repetition, repetition").

1) Pick the passage you want to memorize and write it down
2) Say it 25x the first day, 20x the second, 15x the third, 10x the fourth, and 5x the fifth day while looking at the verse as little as possible
3) Then say it everyday for 25 days
4) Then say it only once a week for 7 weeks
5) Finally, repeat monthly

This means a lot of time has to be put in, but I generally use my time while driving to work or while taking walks or on the elliptical machine.

Also, I write mine on index cards and keep them in this handy dandy index card organizer from Office Depot hat is like a 3x5 fabric pocket organizer that has multiple sections in it. That way I can keep the ones I'm saying tons of time a day in one section, the once a day verses in another section, the once a week ones in another section, and over course the once a month ones in another section. Go office depot! (I'm sure you can find similar ones at Wal-Mart, etc).

Feel free to ask me what verse I'm working on to keep me accountable. I need it! :)

Psalm 118:1

Psalm 118:1 says, "Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever."

It's not very often that we get public forums to thank the Lord as we are so often commanded and compelled to do, so today I'll use this blog to do so :) Then you have to respond with what you are thankful to the Lord for! :)

I am thankful to you, Father, for:

Redeeming me and for being a great Savior
Your patience with me and perseverance with me
Sending your Holy Spirit to guide and to teach me
Disciplining me and saving me from making more mistakes than I would have chosen
For redeeming my husband in a miraculous way and saving him for me :)
For giving me a great family
For providing so generously for me
For all the tools we have to grow - Bibles, books, study guides, friends, friends blogs, teachers, preachers, etc
For relaxation and for beauty
For a warm house with a great view
For friends and awesome memories
For meeting needs/desires through others - most recently for our plane tickets, for our awesome stand up freezer, the babies crib, maternity clothes, etc
That my mom loves our dog and is willing to take care of him while we're out of town
For a baby in my tummy!!!!! That's amazing
For making my dreams come true even better than I thought
For chocolate
For Christmas
For physical touch
For baby showers and bridal showers
Running vehicles
An eliptical machine
A husband who forgives quickly, is great at conversation, handsome, and fun
For game nights
For laughter
For days to work and days to sleep in
For our church and the family they have been
For food and water
For the ability to do good, to exercise self-control, and to love others
For my families health
For the ability to visit our families
Practical wisdom from others (regarding marriage, managing our home, recipes, pregnancy, raising children, etc)
Glory revealed in those around us

I could go on and on, but I'll stop there. What are you thankful for?

Treasures

This Christmas season we're in Texas enjoying our family (and while there is no snow like in the picture above, it is 30 degrees here this morning). Unfortunately when your traveling from house to house, awoken to the sounds of our nieces and nephews sweet little feet shuffling around, and surrounded by people you haven't seen in months, it makes slipping a way to a quiet place and communing with God more difficult than usual.

I can usually sense when I'm pretty disconnected thanks to the Holy Spirit's gracious work in my life, and yesterday I told Daryl I had to have an hour to myself for a quiet time before going anywhere else! We closed the door to our room and God gently and kindly revealed some areas of my heart that I should be aware of.

I was reading in Luke 12 where Jesus is telling his disicples not to worry about what they'll eat or wear because He'll take care of their needs, but, "Instead, seek his kingdom," and to "Fear not...for it is you Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destorys. For where your treasure is, there your heart is also" (Luke 12:31-34).

I was convicted because it seems this holiday season, even though I've had good intentions, I've allowed my heart to plant itself right in the midst of a bunch of good things, but certainly not the best thing. While enjoying our families, giving and receiving presents, and relaxing are certainly gifts God gives us to enjoy, enjoying them for themselves only without it connecting us more to our Maker isn't good. In fact, I enjoy them much less when I'm not connected to and loving Christ first.

So for the rest of our visit it is my aim to "seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God," and to, "Set [my mind] on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For [I] have died, and [my] life is hidden with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:1-2).

I pray the same for you. For it is in Him that we truly have life.

Merry Christmas.

The Dog Days of Winter!!!

While I'm sure not everyone will get a kick out of these pictures, I couldn't resist put them up today! We had a "snow day" today and it was the first time I've been able to play with Simon in the snow :) I think he had fun too...

Doesn't this one make you think of the fawn in Narnia????

Hope you have much fun this winter too! :)

the gods aren't angry

Perhaps not, but that doesn't mean "the God" isn't!

I personally have not heard Rob Bell's talk on this (he is currently doing a speaking tour entitled "the gods aren't angry" which you can learn more about at http://www.godsarentangrytour.com/ or http://blog.christianitytoday.com/outofur/archives/2007/11/heresy_on_tour.html), so I'm not here to discuss what Rob Bell has said or has not said and whether or not I agree with it.

However, based on the blog at Christianity Today I was compelled to do some research on just what the Bible has to say about the anger of God.

I HAD A BLAST! That may sound bizarre but oh how I absolute delight in learning and discovering more about our awesome Father. Let me fill you in on some of what I found...

In Exodus 32:1-10 God had anger towards His people for making an idol and being so quick to turn from Him (He had just recently delivered them from the Egyptians).

In Exodus 32:6 and 1 Corinthians 13:5 we are told that God is slow to anger. So, He does get angry, but He's slow to it - and don't forget, He is also compassionate and abounding in love and faithfulness.

In Deuteronomy 29:16-29 The Lord warns the Israelites that He will be angry with them if they forsake Him and follow other gods. He also warned that He would allow destruction to befall them so other people would know that THE GOD was angry.

In 2 Kings 22:1-20 His anger burns against His people again for forsaking Him and building idols with their own hands.

Seeing a trend yet?

God gets angry when His people forsake Him and worship other gods (or create idols).

Thankfully according to Psalm 30:5 His anger only lasts a moment, but His favor (once we have it through Christ), FOREVER!

The New Testament continues to speak of God's anger, wrath, etc.

In 2 Thessalonians (see 1:7-10) and Romans (all over, but 13:4-5; 5:20; 7:7-13; 1:8) it is towards His enemies - those who don't know God, who have not obeyed His gospel.

We often don't like to think of God as getting angry because we think He gets angry as we humans do. Not true. It's always a righteous anger.

His anger, says J.I. Packer in the stellar book "Knowing God" (can you tell I highly recommend it?), always:

1. Administers justice (which is why God allowed destruction on those He was angry with!)
2. Is chosen by us (we provoke it and have been warned of it)
3. Is a reaction to our sin

What's the good news? In the words of the beloved JI, "If we are Christ's, through faith, then we are justified through his cross and the wrath will never touch us, neither here nor hereafter. Jesus 'delivers us from the wrath to come' (1 Thess 1:10 RSV).

PRAISE GOD!!!!!!

He is righteously angry with His enemies and is a jealous God who does not like us forsaking Him to follow after other gods. I am SO thankful He disciplines us, according to Hebrews, to keep us close to Him!

I am also so thankful for this study because it has caused me hate my sin more (though still not enough), to fear and pray to not forsake or disobey, and to be so, so, SOOOO thankful for the justification I have through Christ.

"Since we have now been justified by [Jesus], how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him." Romans 5:9

Holiday

I love, love, love vacation time :) In fact, this has been the first time Daryl and I have had "vacation" time (not just weekends which are great) off since we've been married. It has been a BLAST!

To start things off we had my grandparents and parents over for dinner. This was an extreme challenge for me as my grandmother has been a domestic guru - yes, guru, for years, and they eat foods Daryl and I don't typically cook.

Daryl is a pie connoisseur, so he did that. Want to see?

BEFORE

AFTER :) mmm

And I made my first stuffed roasted chicken. I would like to say everything went smoothly, but the chicken took about 45 minutes longer to cook than my recipe said. Oops. Thankfully everyone seemed to have a good time and after eating the pie, I don't think anyone minded the wait. Here we are, four generations (one is invisible to the eye, and if I were you, I would be thankful for that)...

Then on Friday Daryl and I packed up and headed to Columbus, Ohio to see the Newsboys in concert. I bought the tickets LONG, LONG ago because he mentioned at Kingsfest he would like to see them alone in concert and I wanted to get good seats at a place semi-close to us.

Packing was an adventure because shirts I had fit into just fine the week before now looked quite silly. I had a breakdown in our closet. Simon told Daryl and he had to come console me! (Lucky me - he encouraged me to go shopping!!!!! Hee hee)

Regarding our little mini-trip, he was super excited, and so was I! We had booked a hotel for the night because in the morning we were driving to my brother and sister-in-laws in Richmond to help them move to DC.

We really enjoyed the hotel, but unfortunately we arrived at the 7pm starting concert at 9:15pm because of a huge wreck that leaked some toxin all over I-70. By the time we got into the concert they had about 4 songs left. So much for our great seats :)

It was actually incredibly humorous and I didn't mind not being there very long. We actually skipped out right before the last song because the bass was SO intense I was a little worried about Baby Reynolds. Over protective already, I know, but you always hear those stories about how when things with weak hearts get really scared...well...you know.

Anyways, here's a picture of Daryl outside the hotel the following morning.



At least they had continental breakfast :)

Then it took like 8 hours to get to my brothers. GPS said we had "2 hours left" 3 different times that I checked in the span of 5 hours. That was interesting. Thankfully Cabellas was on the way and there were plenty of Sheetz. We stopped more often than usual :)

We had a BLAST with Jarod and Kadie and can I just say that when people have a moving company involved it is MUCH easier?

Jarod and Daryl took things down in the old house, fixed stuff up, etc.

Kadie and Lauren after a hard days work at Babies R Us, Motherhood Maternity, Coscos, and Firebirds. :) Daryl encouraged me to shop, remember?

Daryl and Lauren after helping clean up the old place. Unfortunately the new place kept us much more busy - unpacking, washing dishes, folding linens, directing movers, etc, so I didn't take any pictures. We left them with still quite a mess but both of their parents are in now, so I think they'll be just fine.

Daryl and I were delirious by the time we drove home! I'm sure we spent more than a day in the car total by the time we came home! We listened to more 80's music than I ever want to listen to again, laughed harder than we ever had before, and enjoyed John Piper sermon's as always (can I just say that the more I hang out with my husband the more I want to hang out with him? God is so good!).

Anyways, we came home and since then have been sleeping, eating, sleeping, watching football and old movies, sleeping, and decorating for Christmas...

Dad and Daryl carrying in our FIRST Christmas tree together and the first one Daryl's had since living at home!

Lauren - I wasn't sitting sideways, I just can't figure out how to turn this thing - decorating at 1am after having to run to Wal-Mart for more ornament hooks and a tree topper. We didn't find a tree topper we liked yet, but here's our tree so far (also sideways)....


Trying to get a family picture after Thanksgiving dinner with at my extended families....Daryl didn't quite make it in this one!


EVERYONE! Unfortunately it's blurry and Simon wouldn't look at the camera (he doesn't understand that he's supposed to be posing), but that's as good as it gets with a tripod!

Yesterday we spent the day registering at Babies R Us which was also HUGE FUN! We were pretty much clueless except from a few helpful tips from friends - btw, I love to see Titus 2 in action through my friends - they have given me such AWESOME practical advice and we are SO grateful!

Anyways, we literally went through one section of the store (there were 3) and decided we needed a break. We took our "faser" (which Daryl being a sci-fi fan loved that it was named) up to the counter and said, "can we go and come back in like an hour?" They said yes, we went to the mall food court and ate pizza, rested our feet, only to head back and up sitting in these awesome microfiber rockers they have there for like another hour discussing car seats. Who knew carrying a baby would be less complicated than shopping for it?

I think that's it.

Now that "vacation" is wrapping up, hopefully I'll blog more often.

Love and blessings to you all!!!!!!!! Hope you had a fantastic holiday!!!!

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." 1 Timothy 6:17

It's a....

GIRL!!!!

We are so excited! It was so cool to watch her swim all around! They were having a hard time getting good pictures of everything they need - from it's belly, to it's lips, to all it's little limbs...

She was so cute! Unknown to her, for a while she would come into view and give us a big thumbs up! It was so fun! Then they rolled the device around on my tummy and we saw her feet - all five toes and everything, pressed up against the womb!

They had trouble capturing good shots of her to figure out whether she was a girl or boy at first, but when they finally got some I was quite pleased that the little thing appears to be modest all ready ;)

Anyways, we are at a total loss for a good name for her. Give us your ideas!

Love,
Lauren

Can you hear me now???

Supposedly, this is what are baby looks like right now as far as drawings go. This week it's little ears are formed and it can hear! Whattoexpect.com said it is actually even startled by loud noises like the dog barking, but that this will help it to sleep through loud noises later - bark on Simon!!!

Anyways, one site I was reading said that typically if you sing certain songs to your baby it will recognize them when it comes out and that the songs will calm them.

I've always been a little too analytical for anyone's good, but ever since I read that I've been wondering what songs I should pick to sing over and over. It's been a tough decision, and just tonight I decided on my first one.

I know the baby won't know the meaning of words for a while, but I want to infiltrate it's little head as soon as possible with meaningful things. Tonight as I was reading I realized I was humming the song, "Jesus Loves Me."

I kind of laughed because it's been so long since I've sang that song, and I'm also one for not liking things that have been really overused, but as I thought about it a little more seriously I realized that God's love is for sure one of the key truths we want our baby to grasp asap and that the song is simply and exceptionally true. If God illuminates that truth to our little one, how much better will it's life be?

Anyways, that's song 1. If you have any other good ideas, let me know.

And remember,

"Yes, Jesus loves [you]. Yes, Jesus loves [you]. Yes, Jesus loves [you]. The Bible tells [us] so."

Love, Lauren

sorry the pictures pretty graphic :)

Complete - to be filled; full; complete

Today in my time in the Word I was reading in John, primarily chapter 15.


My devotional said to "approach every phrase as if [I'd] never seen it before." I hate when they say that because it often makes me nervous. I take my Bible and focus real intently and act as though I've never read the phrase before. I often get into arguments with myself over whether or not this is being phony or a falsifying my past, and if not, am I really approaching it well enough? Will the author of my devotional find out?

Anyways, this time I just asked God through the Holy Spirit to make the words fresh to me (as I'm typing this I have moved my dog's head off of the keyboard four times. Finally Daryl moved his entire body to the other end of the couch only to have him just now snuggle back over and stick his neck on my chest and his nose right in my face, blowing his warm breath up my nose. I get no respect from him, but constant affection, no doubt).

I digress...

God answered my request and I was blown away by an obvious concept I so often ignore. Verse 11 says, "I have told you this" (this being to remain in Him, by remaining in His love by obeying His words - particularly loving one another), "so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."

Complete joy. Joy that is complete. Full of joy.

God wants me to be full of joy.

This is not what most people generally believe and often even Christians. We simply forget or are ignorant. We spend our lives in search of "joy" and so often come up without it - or at least without very much or only fleeting moments of it because we try to obtain it apart from it's source.

We're sort of like people who attempt to plug a hairdryer into someone's nostrils. It may look like the hairdryer should fit in there, but aint no power gonna come out! (ps - I have never met any of those people)

In John Piper's book Sex and The Supremacy of Christ (which I HIGHLY recommend for anyone interested in understanding God more, sex more and/or our culture more) he writes,

"In C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, the devil Screwtape tries to explain to his nephew Wormwood what he finds most appalling and disingenuous about God: that God is really out to make people happy, and that even the austere parts of his program, the spiritual disciplines
are really ruses, clever deceptions to make them more happy. 'He's a hedonist at heart,' sniffs
Screwtape. 'All those fasts and vigils and stakes and crosses are only a facade. Or only like
foam on the sea shore. Out at sea, out in His sea, there is pleasure and more pleasure. He
makes no secret of it; at His right hand are pleasures forevermore...'" (48).

When will we grasp that through Christ it is in those disciplines, in moments of loving those who we certainly don't deem deserving of it, in obeying Christ's commands, in hanging out in His "ever-surging fountain" of love as Beth Moore puts it, we get joy - completely?

I get it some moments, and then other moments I drift out of awareness of God's love and desires for me. Then I return. Then I go...Cyclical really.

Oh how I pray and hope He will continue to remind us and teach us to remain (aka "to dwell" or more literally, "to live") in His love, and that we will take Him up on the offer.

That's it for tonight. Love, Lauren and Simon (as he was so faithfully involved), and the Girltalk.blogs from whom I stole the picture

Up and down, but mostly down

I haven't been very good at blogging lately and it seems quite a few things have been on the down and out since we found out we were pregnant - which we are still thrilled about, btw.

I thought at week 14, when the first trimester ended, that most people were completely relieved of morning sickness/all day sickness. I learned that while that may be true, I apparently don't fit into the "most people" category. Besides at night when I'm more emotional anyways, I don't really mind. I choose to believe God's just reminding me the little buggers safe and sound in there for now, and after what we went through in the beginning, I'm just thankful for every day Baby Reyonld's okay.

Besides being sick, I've also become incredibly tired the past few weeks. I don't say this all to complain, but because I've really found it difficult not to use pregnancy as an excuse to sleep in everyday, let the house be crazy messy, or go out to eat more. It was interesting to me that my friend Lorrie, who's blog you can link to from mine, just wrote about the hardest part being "getting up and going." I certainly agree!

While this week has been difficult for me because I have been irritated with myself for not being as good of a homemaker and employee as usual, I know that God is continuing to faithfully prod me a long - and I'm always thankful for his prodding because I NEED IT!

Over and over again this week He has pointed me to Proverbs 14:23, "All HARD work brings a profit..."

Every time I decide to do the dishes rather than sit on the couch and zone out, every time I decide to pray for someone rather than watch a movie, every time I pick up my pen to write a card instead of take a nap, every time I decide to cook dinner rather than ask Daryl if he can fend for himself, there is profit. Looking at "every" little decision in that way instead of trying to conquer the whole day before it's begun has been helpful! And understanding that seen or unseen there is profit, has been even more helpful!

For clarification's sake, relaxation and refreshment are a must, and something we highly enjoy in the Reynold home, as you will see. However, laziness is a no-no and that's what I'm harping on myself about; not the former :)

Some pics from our fun weekend after hearing that Jacob Allen was found alive and well...

With my pumpkin :) Aww...

Lauren surrounded by a bunch of food, free samples, and an "Almost Heaven" sign. Sounds about right.

Mom and Dad getting ready for grandchildren. I'm a little scared - Just kidding ;)

The petting zoo - my personal favorite since age 6. Before that I was afraid of goats and ganders.

"The Lama Whisperer."

A perfect ending.

Leader's Retreat

This past weekend Daryl and I got to join in on the fun of the student ministries leader's retreat in Deep Creek, MD (check out the awesome house we got to stay in). It's been a long time since I've attended something like that, but it was a little different for me this time. For the first time in a long time, I wasn't the one "necessarily" being fed, but one of the one's organizing, cooking, planning, etc.

While at times I wished I was one of the ones in on the cool stuff - devotionals, trainings, etc, looking back I am amazed at what God was doing in my own heart while I was on the outskirts. My quiet times and even outside readings that I stumbled on all weekend and the following week were regarding "abiding in Christ," from John 15.

Verses 5-8 say, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples."

So many times I start out connected to the vine and then at some point I disconnect. Much like the Galatians who Paul called foolish, I start out in the Spirit and then start trying to do things on my own (see Galatians 3:3).

This past weekend I was really excited about serving the volunteer leaders - THEY ROCK and I love them, and most of the time I maintained joy in doing so. But if I wasn't purposeful in keeping connected to God, sapping from His power, I would find myself getting irritated or stressed about making sure this or that was complete.

In verse 11 Jesus says not only are we to stay connected to bear fruit, but so we could have complete joy.

This week it is my aim to abide in Him in all things. I'm thankful for the Spirit's sweet reminders when I start to unplug and excited that He is eager for me to remain in Christ in all things.

The goodness of God

This week I did something very out of sync with my typical self and I got on to facebook. I know, I know, like I need any other distractions in life, but I must say that it has been an absolute blast to reconnect with old friends and here how they are doing.

I was blown away by God's goodness as profile after profile of some of my closest friends from college, from youth group, and ever just around here testified to God's grace in their lives and His continued work in them, as we can be confident of for those who are saved (Phil. 1:6).

After pondering the glory of God revealed through my friends, I came across this verse the other day, "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people." Hebrews 8:10.

Again I was reminded that it is God who so graciously reveals Himself to the heart of man and that it is "God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose." Phil. 2:13.

May I always remember that apart from Christ there is nothing good in me (John 15:5), but as I abide in Him, there will be much good in me (also John 15:5).

Thank Him for so graciously revealing Himself to the world and for His promise to change from glory to glory those who live through Him!

PS That's my dear friend Robyn who I surprisedly ran into at my friend Julie's wedding - we hadn't seen each other for four years and how awesome all the cool things we had to share about God's dealings in our lives!!!! How fun!

I'm a baby Reynolds...

Yep, that's our little raspberry (literally, it's only about that big)!

As of today we are 8 weeks and 1 day pregnant!

God has been so kind to us and we are thankful for all the prayers that have gone into this little one as we had a slight scare in the beginning. We of course would love for you all to continue to pray for Baby Reynolds, not just for a healthy (and painless - yeah right) birth, but for the baby to grow up and glorify God like crazy! And of course for us to be good parents and love and train it well.

I promise we weren't trying for babies when I wrote the post about changing perspectives on babies. God was really just working on my heart, I believe, and now that we're pregnant, I can't wait to have the baby! We are so ecstatic!

On a side note, I thought I had successfully snuck out of bed this morning without waking my husband, and I was so thrilled - it's terribly embarrassing to have to confess that the real reason you awoke was because you are RAVISHINGLY hungry even though we had a great dinner and ice cream from Dairy Cream Corner last night. Much to my misfortune, about 2 minutes ago he came down to check on me! Oh well! :)

Anyways, "Every good and perfect gifts is from above, coming down from the Father of he heavenly lights who does not change like the shifting shadows." James 1:17

Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!

Jehovah Shalom...

...the Lord of peace is one of the names of our God, and a name that Daryl and I are recognizing of our God more and more these days.

While we have been facing some very perplexing and grievous trials, we are amazed at what we have learned about our awesome God.

Philippians 4:6-7 in the New Testament says this, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Though at current we are uncertain of certain things in our future, God, through Jesus Christ has been faithful to provide peace. Part of that peace comes from knowing a very precious truth about our Lord tucked away in 1 Peter 5:7, "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

God really does care for me. And while circumstances may not be as we would choose and we suffer and grieve, God is with us, every ready to comfort, ever read to heal, and ever ready to love.

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39.

Like trees that grow stronger by being tossed in the storms rather than grown in climate controlled greenhouses, it is our prayer that these trials will make us stronger, increasingly full of faith, and amazed by hope as we grow more and more aware of who our God is.

The Delight of Loving My Husband

That's actually a chapter title in the book "Feminine Appeal" by Carolyn Maheney.

I loved the chapter because it taught me so much and reminded me not only of the high calling to love my husband, but the great joy that there is in it.

In Titus 2 we are told that married women who believe in God through Christ should, "love" their husbands.

Interestingly enough, the word in the original Greek is phileo, and describes the love between two very close friends. Christians are called to agape love everyone - sacrifice, love unconditionally, etc, but Christian wives are called to go even further with their husbands - to enjoy them as a friend.

Some practical ways I've been encouraged to phileo love my husband, by God's grace:
Speak highly of him always
Laugh with him
Encourage him
Spend time with him
Spend time with him DOING THINGS HE LIKES (i.e. one of our new favorite past times is playing Burn Out Revenge on Xbox and I'm not half bad - the point of the game you see is to crash)
Be eager to serve him (dinner, picking up after myself/him)
Welcome him warmly (i.e. lots of hugs and kisses and joy) when he returns home

He hasn't made it difficult, and it is true - loving my husband brings me absolute delight.

I praise God for such a godly, unselfish, kind and wise husband, for "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." James 1:17