Complete in Him

This week we have experienced some van trouble. To preface this post, I want to give glory to our Heavenly Father for His sovereignty and provision for us. Our van decided to give it up after 450 miles of driving home this past Monday. We were about 60 miles west of Jacksonville, in the middle of nowhere, in the pitch dark! Thankfully, we did have power, so I was able to flip on the visor light and read to the girls while we waited for Bryan to get in touch with our insurance company and line up a tow truck to come get us - all 5 of us. It wasn't the most comfortable ride home, but it was warm in the truck and we all fit (snugly). We made it home just after midnight.


After two different automobile shops, we have determined that it will cost over $1000 to fix our van. I must admit, my heart sank into my stomach at the thought of putting that much money on a credit card this time of year. Aside from my feelings overall about debt and credit cards, the situation just seems overwhelming to me. How am I to respond to this? What should my focus be? Where is God in all of this?


It would have been easy to jump ship and lose all joy. There was a moment where I did lose joy. This was supposed to be Bryan's vacation week - time off, time as a family. It wasn't turning out that way at all! I wanted to go to the zoo, go shopping for Christmas together, start advent with the girls, maybe do some baking together. Our week was suddenly wrapped up in repairs and decisions and cramming all in one car to go anywhere.


Once my moment of self-pity was over, I went back to God's Word. I pulled out my Bible and read again from the book of Colossians, where our pastor has been faithfully preaching for the past several weeks. One phrase kept coming to my mind: "complete in Him." In Colossians 2:9-10, Paul says, "For in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in Him, who is the head of all rule and authority." I am complete in Christ! My circumstances, good or bad, have NO bearing on my standing with my Savior. He has died for me and cancelled my debt of sin. I am righteous because of His work on the cross. I am COMPLETE! Van or no van, my joy is found in Him alone.


Life lessons are such a blessing! They are hard to swallow sometimes, but once you get over the initial blow...it really quiets the heart and settles the soul. I am thankful. Thankful for a car we CAN drive; for a Father who knows what is best for me and my family; for friends who have encouraged us along the journey; for a husband who maintains a calmness in trials like these.  As I stated at the beginning: I give all glory and praise to my Savior and God who loves me and who has made me complete IN HIM!

Devotional Thought

One thing I seem to constantly battle is being overwhelmed with life. I wish there was a switch to turn off the evaluating voice in my head. My pastor recently asked me if I was overwhelmed with ministry. To be honest, there are times when I am. However, ministry is something that drives me and gives me such joy. I feel it is an expression of worship to the Lord. I feel it is obedience to Him. I'm humbled to serve Him. Each ministry that I get involved in is one that I am passionate about. Teaching Sunday School, playing the piano, and discipleship. So, I asked, which one do I drop? At times these ministries overlap in a way that I honestly don't know how I'm going to manage. Add family life, homeschooling, and teaching in our co-op and it can almost put me over the edge. I know this isn't how God wants me to feel or live. So what is the answer to this battle? The Word. It's always the Word of God. Tonight I came home from an event honoring a friend's birthday. I was feeling so tired and discouraged and...overwhelmed. Bryan decided to run an errand, leaving me alone (children in bed). I pulled out my Bible and a devotional book. Timely. God's Word is always timely.

Deuteronomy 33:27 - "The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms."

Psalm 27:14 - "Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD."

What are you overwhelmed about? Go to the Word. Take time to sit and wait for the Lord, eagerly and patiently (Ps. 40:1). Let Him give you rest for your soul. Getting overwhelmed is usually a result of trying to accomplish things in our own strength. We will fail every time. Aren't you glad, though? If we were strong enough, we wouldn't need a Savior. I don't know about you, but I NEED a Savior! I need rest for my soul!

Yum-O

So, my newest favorite thing has been a Mocha Coconut (1 pump mocha) Frappucino from Starbucks. That'll put a dent in your wallet, though, right? So today, I came up with my own version. I'm sure it could use a lot of tweaking, but it was very tasty and certainly didn't cost $4.00!

Here's my simple recipe:
1 scoop of Publix Coconut Road ice cream
1/3 cup of strong coffee w/ 2 teaspoons of sweetener - I used succanat w/ honey
Roughly 1 cup of crushed ice.

I used my immersion blender to mix all this together. So quick and very yummy!

New Year - New Plan

Wow, it's been a very long time since I posted anything on the blog! So much has happened since our chicken pox incidents. SO MUCH! In fact, that was kind of the beginning of the craziness for our family. Since Samantha's chicken pox, we have had Christmas (Dec), moved my parents to Fernandina Beach (Jan), said goodbye to my Grandma Cooksey (Feb), moved into my parents house (Feb), said goodbye to our precious pastor and his family (Mar), had Samantha's 2nd birthday (Apr), been to the FPEA conference in Orlando (May), graduated Katie from Kindergarten (Jun), welcomed a new pastor (Jul), had my 38th birthday (Jul), and started a new school year! Whew!

Here we are in August. Life seems to be settling in to some type of routine, which is very welcoming! Katie started 1st grade on August 1st. My plan this year is to do 2 days the first week, 3 days the following week, 4 the next, and then the last week of August have our first full week. So far, the plan is working and doesn't seem quite so overwhelming.

So, happy August to everyone! Hopefully, I can get back to a routine of blogging and maybe even shake things up some. We'll see!