A touch of the crazyies

Our life has a touch of the crazyies lately. Unfortunately, I know that we are not the only ones. So many of those who I talk to, or read blog posts about, seem to be in the same boat. And it's a rocky boat.

At our Bible study group recently we discussed rain. We talked about how rain is like the troubles in our lives. God sends rain and it can be good, and it can be bad. Our discussions stemmed from a great video brought by one of our friends. (You can get more info about that here. )

Our life lately has had some continual rain. Not life-threatening or even life-altering, but just consistent. driving. rain. I've been hiding under an umbrella, trying to wait these things out, hoping it will get better or slower. And then I realized that in the midst of the rain, God sends bits of sunshine. If I don't peek out from under the umbrella...I miss them...

....The leaves are changing...beautiful fall colors...and Ellie is quite taken with the whole process. She is learning what colors to anticipate...although, I think she is still holding out for pink and purple ones.

....At Owen's baptism on Father's Day, our friends planned the worship service for us, picking out great songs and words to remember what a gift it is to be a part of God's kingdom. One of the songs was "Love the Lord", a praise song by Lincoln Brewster. (check it out here, click on the link to listen). This song is the Shema, one of the most important words from the Bible about how we should live as followers of Christ. It has quickly become one of our family's favorites. When it comes on the radio, the kids yell out, "Owen's baptism song!" I was recently reminded about these words importance while reading this book. It talked about how when we focus on passing a legacy onto our children, we need to focus on these important words from the Shema found in Matthew 22:36-40. I love that our kids have these words in their heads and hearts. Josh mentioned that he caught himself singing it as he walked the halls of his school the other day.

....Dealing with our budget is like the largest and longest rainstorm ever. It's been difficult making the necessary changes to our life to make it possible for me to be home part time. Although we know this is best, it still is a trial to have to work so hard at it. It goes against our very hard-to-ignore materialistic nature. But in the midst, I've peeked out from under the umbrella and seen...coupons/rebates on some of our more expensive essentials (formula, kitchen items)...relief on our electric bill for the same amount that we needed to pay extra for the sitter for a busy week at school...a freelance job for the Hubs to help pay for a plane ticket to see a dear cousin get married.

All these streaks of sunshine remind me to get out from under the umbrella, dance in the rain and keep my eyes open for evidence of how he draws us close when the storms hit the hardest. He's trying to speak to me in small ways, I just need to listen. I suppose if He had to hit me over the head with this, it wouldn't be faith...He's called us to that...Faith in the midst of the rain, even consistent. driving. rain.