Happy things

Life has been intense for the last couple of weeks. Just how I like it. And it's about to intensify even more with next week's book release! More on that later. For now, I have to tell you the happy things of today. First, we took some time out to chill, and do some pumpkin carving. Ever since Levi's field trip to the "punkin patch" last week, he's been relentless about wanting to make something happen to his punkins.




Here is a pic of Matthew's brilliant work of carving my logo into a pumpkin!




I even managed an afternoon snack of baked pumpkin seeds!!

In other happy news, my Mackenzie has been saving for over a year and tonight was able to purchase her own Nintendo DS game system with her own money. Below is a shot of her spending her stash on her long-awaited DS. Notice the grin on her face, and the bag of coins on the counter. With a stack of bills (mostly ones) and a bag of change, my girl made her first major purchase! I'm so proud of her disciplined saving for something she really wanted, plus, I'm a sucker for that smile!

Waxing Poetic

Today was a crazy day. It was like drinking out of a fire hydrant. So, I did what any girl would do on a particularly stressful day. I visited a salon!! Got a good eyebrow wax, and all was well. Somethin about settin' your face to rights... just makes everything else better, too!

Gifts

So I told you that God tells me secrets. He also gives me gifts. Here's one of 'em:

Yesterday I happened to be in Alexandria, Louisiana at the Baptist Building. (For those who might not know, the Baptist Building is the Southern Baptist state headquarters. Sort of like church command central.) While I was there, I stepped in to say hello to Janie Wise, the state Women's Missions and Ministry director for Louisiana. Janie wasn't in, but we stood around laughing and joking with her staff. After a few minutes, the subject of my book came up, and I gave each of the girls a card telling about the book. Suddenly, one of them said, "Janie just got this in today!"

She ran into Janie's office and sure enough produced a shiny new copy of my book!! Imagine the odds of me happening to be in Alexandria at the Baptist Building on the very day Janie gets my book in a promotional packet in her office. What was I to do but SIGN MY FIRST BOOK?!?! Here's a picture of me signing my book at Georgia Barnett's desk, no less.



Could there be a better gift than this?






I went to the Baptist Building for a committee meeting. (Boooooorrrring!) And just look at what He gave me while I was there!! God spoils this girl, I tell ya.

Secrets

This weekend, I sat by a lake and "had church." Me and God, my thinline HCSB and about half an hour. He kissed me with some breezes and winked at me in the sparkles on the lake. And... (hear me whispering) He told me some secrets.

They were secrets I really needed to hear. I needed more than a sermon, more than a Sunday School lesson. I needed God's heart and mine in an unbroken embrace. I needed connection with God that can't be explained in something as limited as human language. The kind of connection where He works on parts of my heart that I'm not even aware of. The scars of tears and snot on my onion skin Bible pages are the only tangible remnants of those moments. Yet, I'm different somehow.

Here's a little gem from those precious minutes by the lake:

Philippians 1:9 "And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment so that you can determine what really matters..." This is something I desperately need: the kind of love that knows what is really important. I need the knowledge that can differentiate between good and best. I need the kind of loving discernment that knows when something is important enough to take a stand, and when the most important thing is to let go.

At this moment, I know one thing that really matters: God wants to whisper to me. This weekend, He did just that.

And to top it all off... GEAUX SAINTS!!! It ain't been easy so far, but we finally came out winners tonight!!

Saturday Night

Life's been busy this week. Man, am I ready for Monday. But I still have a day to go before then.

I'm learning something profound. I'm learning to rest. I'm learning that I can let Jesus live through me and care for the things He brings my way. And when I can't help them anymore, I can rest in the fact that He can. I can keep giving my heart away because He keeps restoring it. I am getting better at casting those cares upon Him. I'm more desperate for Him than ever. I love it.

For now, a bubble bath awaits and the man of my dreams is putting my kids to bed. Nobody pinch me, ok? Ya'll have a great Saturday night! I'm sure fixin' to!!

What I Did This Weekend

I had an INCREDIBLE weekend! Here's a little glimpse of the amazing privilege that is my job:




Here's a peek at us loving on God.



Here's the place where it all happened.




I gotta tell ya, there aren't words to express how grateful I am that God decided to let me do this part in His work. I deserve absolutely nothing and He kisses me with His grace all the time. Ain't life grand?