Rachel Barendse

2009-07-10T08:07:00.001-07:00

So, new job is going good, Luke finally went to California and got back early this morning, and we got a new car. Things are going good. But I have to get back to work.

God bless

short update

2009-06-11T23:36:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it's been a long time, but we don't have Internet, so it's really not my fault. So, last I wrote I said that I decided to leave my job. And surprise, surprise, I got offered a new job a week after leaving. (Well, it wasn't really a surprise, we knew God would provide.) But He kind of went above and beyond. We weren't going to be picky about what kind of job I got, but it did end up being a medical position. With better pay, benefits including vision and dental, and way closer to home. Their M.A. is leaving for nursing school, so I start on June 22ND. So I've got about a month off. It's been a nice little break. I came up to my parents this weekend, so that's why I have Internet access.

Well, actually, that's really all that's new.

Sorry it's so short.

God bless,

No one compares

2009-05-04T12:06:00.000-07:00

My employer is out of the office for a while, so because of that I'm currently working shorter days. Since Luke and I still carpool, that leaves me with a few hours to find something to do before work. So I've been going to the (only) Starbucks in town to study. And it's not like I can't study at home, but something about getting out of the house and finding a place where you can just zone out helps a lot. I actually read a lot this morning that I wanted to share, but to try and keep this post not a novel I think I'll only share half of what I was reading.

A lot of times I'll find a specific topic and go from there, sometimes just one certain passage. But sometimes I just thumb through and look at what I have highlighted. (Sorry if that offends people that I write in my bible, but I'm one of those.) There's always different reasons why a verse may stand out to me, but when I go back and look at it all I find it encouraging. This may be a jumbled mess of thoughts, but it makes sense to me.

Isaiah
30:18-"Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him."
19b-"He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you."
21-"And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' "

33:6-"He will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;"
(The stability of our time, how true is that? Everything in the world is un-sure, but not God. He is always the same, someone to cling to that doesn't give in or give out.)
22b-"the Lord is our king, he will save us." (I have to pray to ask help not to lose sight of that. God is my king. Maybe it's hard to grasp because I've never lived in a time where you had a king, and so that idea doesn't stick with me. I find it interesting to watch movies with kings and to see the devotion the people have to this person.)

35:10-"And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."

38:5b-"I have heard your prayers; I have seen your tears,"

40:11-"He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young."
31-"but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

41:13-"For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, 'Fear not, I am the one who helps you.' " (This is one of my favorites.)

This is probably getting too long, so I'll stop there at 41:13. But wow, who can compare to our God? That seemed to be an appropriate title. He chose to create the earth and heavens. He made man and loved him. Even through our sinful flesh, he still loves us and sacrificed to make a way to heaven for us. He continues to make ways for us in our daily lives and provides our daily needs. Even more than just the salvation of our souls. As if that wasn't more than enough. He knows what we go through and is there besides us, helping and leading when we seek it. And he's still there loving us even when we aren't looking to him.

Why in the world do I complain? The truth that God loves us even though compared to him we're utterly worthless is pretty heavy to understand. For lack of a better word, it makes me feel pretty lame. And very thankful to have an Almighty God. So many reasons to praise Him. So, all this was a much needed reminder of the love God has for me and that we truly do have a living Savior. Hope this brings encouragement.

God bless

Let love be genuine

2009-04-29T12:43:00.000-07:00

Romans 12:9-21

"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.' To the contrary, 'if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you well heap burning coals on his head.' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

My bible has this passage labeled as "Marks of the true Christian." So, how are you doing? I don't know about you, but I'm shamed when I read this passage. How far I fall! My pastor was going over the idea a few weeks ago about letting love be genuine. And that idea has stuck in my head, I've noticed more when my love is being "fake" in a way. Where I'll act loving, but only because I know God wants me to, not out of a desire to really be loving. And I'll tell you what, blessing those who persecute you sure is tough. Though I wonder if it's considered persecution if they treat you wrong just because their mean, not because of my faith. However, feeding your "enemy" pretty much would include mean people. (Has anyone ever read that last part and inside found secret satisfaction in being nice to your enemy for the idea of "heaping coals on their head?" I know, this is really showing my heart.)

Like I said, I fall far. Reminds me of Phil. 3:13-14 -Straining forward toward the goal. (paraphrase) And with a promise like 1 Cor. 10:13 -No temptation that He hasn't provided a way to escape, it's hard not to feel confident that the Lord can help me.

So, praying for me and you, that we can have genuine love through Christ to bless others.

God bless

monthly update

2009-04-14T07:12:00.000-07:00

So, I've been lacking, and much has happened in the last month. But at least I'm not as bad as the folks over at out of the miry clay. Let me try to let you in on everything that has happened. First, we had my brother and sister in law and the kids stay at our house. And it was so much fun. It was different having kids running around, but we really enjoyed it. It was nice to see Megan again, she is at such a fun age, and such a happy little girl. And I can't believe how big the boys are. And of course Luke plays the "crazy uncle" role well. Daniel kept calling him silly the whole time. Michelle put up some pictures of our place on her blog, thanks Michelle, in case you want to see what our place looks like. They were able to go to church with us and meet our church family, so that was nice. They went home that night, then that same night three of my friends from my time at Christian supply came out and spent the night. That was a ton of fun as well. They stayed until Monday night then went home. So it was a full weekend of guests, but it was wonderful. A few weeks before Ryan stayed with us as well, I can't remember if I wrote about that. But Luke and I love having people stay with us. Mom and dad might come in May, and so might Chantal and Justin. So anyone who's interested, let us know!

We had our Easter service this past weekend, and that turned out nice. We had about the same amount of people as last year, but we rented out the high school. Which was a great idea because it would have been very cramped in our church building and we also had a meal after the service. So it was nice to have the use of the school's kitchen. It was very stormy though, so by the afternoon, everyone was soaked from having to move everything back to the church. However that adds to the experience.

Probably the biggest news for us right now is that I gave my notice at my work. A lot was going on and Luke and I decided it was best to move on. I was very happy with the decision and we're looking forward to see what God will bring next. I'll still need to work, so I've been looking around at a couple different places. But I'll let you know when something turns up. We've noticed how nice it is to not have to worry about finding another job, because we already know that God provides. Some people might have though this was a bad decision with where the economy is, but we can just say "God's bigger than the economy," and be just fine. It's nice to have an unmovable foundation to lean on. Knowing that Luke and I are excited to see what God will do and not worrying about it is a huge blessing.

Also, today is our 2 year anniversary. We both have to work today, but went out for coffee this morning. Next weekend we're going to stay in Portland to see a comedian that Luke really likes, Brad Stein. So we're looking forward to that. We will be missing a Sunday for that, so it will be weird to have nothing going on on a Sunday. But I guess that's ok to take one off once in a while.

Well, that's about all.

God bless

more thoughts for today

2009-03-17T12:26:00.000-07:00

So I decided I wanted to write more today. I noticed this verse the other day and had forgotten about it, when I saw it again it brought a new wave of encouragement. 1 Cor. 7:17- "Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him." That with the added promise of Romans 8:28- "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." You know what this verse means? -There really is a reason why we are where we are, and it's from God!

I really needed that reminder right now. I question things so often wondering why they aren't different. Or why doesn't the "right" thing happen, this isn't "fair" what's happening, why can't "this" be a part of our lives? But God is in control and has a purpose and a reason. (I feel like I wrote a post about this same thing a while ago, I'm obviously not learning my lesson.)

The story of Hosea always stuck out to me. This man loves the Lord, and God asks him to marry a whore. I mean, what's fair in that? But he does, and she goes back to being a whore. But then God tells Hosea to get her back, and he pays fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley for her. ( I don't really know what any of that it, but sounds like a lot.) But Hosea bought his wife back! He paid a price for what was already his. Does that remind you of anyone? God made us, but had to pay a price to get us into heaven. We are a wicked people, but God is so holy. Praise God that He loves us!

"In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:9-10.

"For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world-our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?' 1 John 5:4-5

So, basically, God has a purpose for me, paid the price for my soul, loves me, and has given me victory over this world. Why do I complain again? I feel humbled.

Well, hope my random thought process is of encouragement.

Praise God, and God bless

thanks for praying

2009-03-17T12:04:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who was praying for Luke. His teaching went very well, and he got good feedback about it. Here's another thing to think about, the band he used to be in may get back together. And also for his work, they're running out of jobs. But they might send Luke to California to do a job for a week, so that would be some good job security for another week. Well, it's always good to have a list of things to pray about. We have some other things we're dealing with that need some serious prayer, but they aren't things I can write out here. So, thanks in advance for praying. :)

I saw on my blog that I have one follower, I don't know what that means. Could someone explain that for me?

My brother and sister-in-law and kids are staying with us this weekend! I'm very excited, and need to figure out how to little-boy/proof a room.

Well, that's all for now, God bless

a nice long week

2009-03-09T12:19:00.000-07:00

After a long week we went into a long weekend and are starting a brand new long week. But at least we're staying busy and aren't bored. Luke helped out at a wedding this weekend, which stretched him a lot. They asked for things he didn't know, so he had to hurry up and learn things. He also had to finger pick for 1/2 hr before the wedding, and then be limber enough to do the songs for the ceremony. So his hands were pretty numb by the end of it.

We also had Ryan stay with us for Sunday night. Amy and the girls were too sick to make it, which was a bummer. But Luke and I had a lot of fun. He was our first non-family guest. He'll have to let us know how we rated. Right now it's been snowing on and off and hailing. It's snowing pretty hard, but none of it's sticking, so that's good. I just hope Ryan got home safely, we sent him on the back roads home because it was faster.

Our church is in the middle of a teen program of basic Bible teaching. And Luke will be teaching this Saturday on spiritual gifts. Which is probably a fun topic to teach since a lot of people feel differently about it. But it sounds like he has a pretty good outline made up. I think he's just nervous, he hasn't taught like this for about 3 years. So, if you think of it, remember him in your prayers this Saturday, I know he'll appreciate it.

Also, I read today that our President has increased the funding for stem cell research by a lot. Which I guess people feel differently about this as well, but please keep him in your prayers. I can imagine running a nation has difficult choices, I pray that he is seeking God's guidance on his decisions.

God bless

Psalm 85

2009-03-02T12:28:00.000-08:00

"For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!" Psalm 85: 10-12

This past weekend I ended up going to my parents house to use their turbo tax, and it happened to be the missions conference. Which I'm sure everyone who actually reads this went to. But I was very glad to go. Rev. Price was good to listen to, though I think his microphone was unnecessary. I left with a headache from sitting in the front row.

Luke and I have prayed and talked about missions- long and short term. But believe that where we are now is our mission field. We want to stay open to what God might bring us in terms of moving somewhere else for ministry, but at the same time, we don't want to pick up and leave when we're suppose to stay. I think of Paul who wanted to go to Asia, but the Spirit kept saying no. he had good intentions, like sharing the news of Christ, but it wasn't where he was suppose to go. Or David wanting to build God's temple. I'm not comparing us with Paul's missionary journey or David, but knowing there are some things that we may like to do, but maybe we're not suppose to. At least not now.

Well, this month is full for us. The Woods are coming this weekend, Luke is in a wedding this weekend or next, the Allen's are coming the weekend after that. And Laura, you are welcome to come that week after,(23-27). But I do work Mon. and Tues. of that week. Just let me know what you guys want to do.

That's all for now, God bless

Of course God knows what he's doing

2009-02-17T12:08:00.000-08:00

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11

I'm coming to the point that if I say I believe this, then I should really believe it. Sometimes I find myself quick to say "trust God," and realizing I'm not really trusting in Him. Maybe a combination of Him and myself, which gets me no where. What's that phrase? -Walk the talk. Anyways, I know it's a matter of the heart, and I do trust God, but I feel that I question what He's doing a lot of the times. And just who do I think I am to question God?! I guess sometimes I think highly of my own opinion, I mean, who knows better about my situation than myself, right? Well, God is good, and is patient with me.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher that the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9 Man, God is really big.

Well, just to answer some questions from my comments, I don't know when the pirate ship is coming to Ilwaco, but I'm sure it's on line somewhere. And the 8th works great Amy. Will you be spending the night, and if so which nights?

God bless

Mt. Hood weekend

2009-02-10T06:38:00.001-08:00

Our staff retreat went very well. I was still sick, so the drive up and down the mountain was really tough, my head felt like a balloon. But other than that, it was a very good weekend. It was nice to get to know the others better. We took some time to pray together about the church, and that time really blessed me.

Our apartment is almost put together. Luke and I haven't had a day off since two weeks ago, so we haven't been motivated to do the last part of it. But tomorrow I have the day off, so I'm hoping to do all of it that I can do.

There's really nothing new for me to talk about. I did find out though, that the ship from Pirates of the Caribbean comes into the port of Ilwaco. I'm not sure why, but I hear we should see it from our front room. So that's kind of different.

Well, God bless

Numbers 6:24-26 "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord life up his countenance upon you and give you peace."

my 25 things list

2009-02-02T12:14:00.000-08:00

We moved, and we survived. We love this new place, and so do our parents. They were all very impressed by it. It's almost like living in a lighthouse.

But, an overview of our weekend- mom and dad came Thursday night and stayed in a hotel. That night we took the first 3 car loads of stuff over there. On Friday, Luke's dad came by with his truck and moved the heavy things. And a couple more carloads. We stayed in the new place that night because our bed was moved. Then Saturday me, mom, and Luke's mom finished what was left in the old place and cleaned it all up. Then we gave the keys back, got our deposit check back (thank you Lord!), and started unpacking all our stuff. I'm very glad that we had my parents there, since Luke and I were both sick, it was nice to have them motivate us. We're mostly done unpacking, but have a couple few things left. We're probably 80% done. Our next day off won't be till Sunday, so it may stay the way it is for a while.

This weekend we have a staff retreat for the church. Which is us, the pastor and his wife, and the elder and his wife. But I think it'll be fun with such a small group. We're going to Mt. Hood, I think. I'm just glad we didn't decide to move that weekend.

Also, with our new place, we have a guest bedroom. Mom and dad tried it out one night. We're trying to get the Basshams to stay with us this month. And anyone else who wants to too, just not at the same time. Did I mention this place used to be a vacation rental? Yeah, the view is that good.

Well, my parents and husband came up with a list of 25 things about me. And their list is pretty good, but I felt maybe I should at least try. So, this list was a group effort. Here we go;
1. I was born is Belgium, but don't have dual citizenship.
2. I hate glitter. So much that I've given it the nickname "devil's snot."
3. My parents did weird stuff when I was a kid just to make a memory.
4. I'm listed in Luke's phone as love sponge.
5. I love the water, but I'm too afraid to go into it.
6. The sound and sight of people scratching their skin makes me cringe.
7. I own 9 seasons of ER
8. My dad used to give me $1 every time he used me in a sermon illustration.
9. My favorite food and music change with my mood. -Sometimes it's oatmeal and John McLaughlin, other days it's tacos and Nat King Cole, and sometimes it's just gum and the Almost kind of day.
10. I love flowers, but I kill anything I try to grow.
11. Three life goals for me are; ride an elephant, see the northern lights, become a mom.
12. I've worked at Point Defiance Zoo.
13. I've lived in or visited 7 European countries, Russia, Canada, Mexico and the U.S.
14. When I was a teenager I felt that Psalm 55:6-7 should be my life verse. When I got closer to God is became Psalm 56:8-13. These days its more like Phil. 1:6. With a little 2 Cor. 12:9-10 thrown into the mix.
15. 99.9% of the time I can't stand Will Ferrell. But Elf is one of my favorite movies, followed closely by Bewitched.
16. I share the same middle name with my great-grandmother, grandmother, and cousin's daughter.
17. I'm a closet Harry Potter fan.
18. I've always loved Anthony Hopkins's voice.
19. Luke and my first kiss was when we were walking on the beach one night.
20. I have a new fear of raccoons from living in our old place.
21. I draw blood from patients every day I work.
22. I cried when Steve Irwin died.
23. I was president of the French club my senior year in high school.
24. I've always wanted to find those fields of grass that you always see in movies. (kind of like my background picture.)
25. I'm going to heaven when I die.

That was kind of hard to come up with. But that's me in a nutshell. Hopefully it's entertaining. Well, I think I'll stop for today.

God bless.

seriously, this week?

2009-01-27T12:20:00.000-08:00

This is our big moving week. So much to do; still need to pack, take everything over there, make phone calls, and Luke and I are both sick. Naturally. But we will get it all done, even if it kills us. Luke left work early yesterday and stayed home today. Since I only worked two days this week, I thought I would try to tough it out. So, I'm sharing my lovely germs with my whole office, I love sharing. We got some sort of cough/flu thing. We're pretty pathetic to watch. Last night we were both sitting on the couch, holding our heads because of bad headaches. We looked so dumb we started laughing at each other, which made us cough, which hurts our head way worse. It's a losing battle. But we ARE going to get everything done with moving this week.

My voice is starting to go, I'm surprised how much I sound like a man. I'm worried Luke may sound really bad this Wednesday night at church. Nothing like a little humble pie. Maybe you could pray God will heal it for Wednesday night, (nobody likes that kind of pie anyways.)

I just talked to my dad on the phone, so him and Tim got back safe. Thanks for praying. I know it puts a lot of people at ease just knowing they're home. Myself included. They're coming to see us this weekend to help us move, I'm excited for them to see the new place.

So, a couple people on their blogs "tagged" me to write 25 things about myself. I'm going to need to work on that. I don't think I can think of that many right now, my head is in a fog. It's taking me 20 times longer to remember how to type properly right now. Maybe when I'm not sick. Though I don't know what I would put down. Any suggestions? In fact, you're welcome to write one for me. I'm sure it would be more interesting too, especially if you make stuff up.

Well, that's all for now, God bless

life is good, (thanks God)

2009-01-21T12:37:00.000-08:00

This week has been pretty easy going, so I'm thankful for a break from stress. We should be getting the keys to our new apartment this weekend, and will be able to start moving things in then. That will give us a week before we need to get everything in. And since it's just down the road from where we are now, we don't think it will take us too long. I have decided to paint the apartment since I was given permission from the owner, but we'll do it after we move in. I don't want to add stress about getting it painted in two days. I think we'll try to get it done in Feb.

Dad's in Africa with Tim now, sounds like things are going good. I've been getting his emails so it's nice to stay in the loop. Please continue to pray for them both and their families left behind.

I have to admit that I haven't been keeping up too much with national news this week. I've worked this whole week so I haven't been near a TV, and our bunny ears at home don't work well, so normally we don't even try to work with them. I have had mixed feelings about our new president, but I read the prayer Amy put on her blog, and that pretty much sums it up for me. I really enjoyed reading that, (so thanks Amy.) God is good, and on the throne, so life is good.

"The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.
Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:28-31

So, praying that God blesses our new president, and guide his heart to Christ. I think waiting on the Lord is probably the best place to be. Allowing Him to control and not me. Well, my thoughts seem to be a little scattered, so I'll end this here.

God bless

not a fishy apartment

2009-01-19T12:19:00.000-08:00

Just to answer Ryan's comment about the apartment, it doesn't smell. We went there last Friday to sign the papers, and outside and around the building it was pretty "fishy" smelling. But in the apartment, no smell at all. So we were very pleased to know that because we were concerned about it.

Over the weekend we had the reunion for Ecola. It was very fun and we got to see a lot of people. But we're pretty spent. We're not used to staying up late anymore.

Hope everyone is having a good Monday,

God bless

moving again

2009-01-13T12:12:00.001-08:00

Luke and I found a new place in Ilwaco. And apparently, the Carter's know exactly where it is. Small world. But it's a 3 bedroom apartment on the 2nd floor of a part fish store/coffee shop. But since it's on the 2nd floor, it has a wonderful view of the bay and docks. So, I'm excited about this. We were the first ones to look at it, and were told right away that we could have it. They're very flexible and seem to fit all the "requirements" that we wanted. (Like mth to mth rent, keys early to move in, etc.) So, praise God, He knew it all along. Oh, also, it's right next door to a book store. :)

Other than that, nothing else is happening. Just trying to get things ready to start the moving process. This weekend we're going to be going to the Ecola bible school reunion. The first one in 3 years since we went there. We're very excited about going and hopefully seeing some faces that we know.

Dad is leaving soon for Africa, which is always a weird feeling. Something to do with it being dangerous, but it's ok because it's the Lord's work, but what it the Lord's plan. End of the day, it's not worth worrying over because God is good.

Well, God bless.

nevermind

2009-01-05T12:48:00.000-08:00

I figured it out. But now I have to try and get all my friends back. (I thought this was going to be easy.)

a new year already

2009-01-05T07:44:00.001-08:00

We had a good Christmas. I got 11 books, so it's been keeping me busy. I've read three already, and I'm on my forth. I feel like I started pretty motivated about it, so I'm hoping that I can keep that up.

New news, we're moving the end of Jan. Not sure where, but the same area. Please pray things will work out. We're trying to get a hold of someone right now about an apartment, but have yet been able to. We're hoping to do that this week.

This Saturday Luke's family will be burying his grandfather. Please pray for his Grandmother. Last Saturday would have been their 60th anniversary.

That's all for now, God bless

p.s. I've been trying to change my background for a couple months now and can't figure it out. can anyone help me?

Merry Christmas

2008-12-23T12:14:00.000-08:00

I haven't been posting as much lately. Mostly because we don't have Internet and I can only do it at work. So, maybe if this one's long, that might make up for my lack in writing.

I can't believe Christmas is here already. This month has been so busy, that we have had something going on every day. Our church Christmas party went very well. We had about 20 people in our little house, but I think everyone had a good time. Luke and I were planning on seeing my family for Christmas, but with the weather, we may not be able to. Mostly, I want to meet Megan and hold her, but I suppose I can wait if I have to.

I feel like I've been distracted with "Christmas spirit" this year to really dwell on Jesus. I love the music, smells, decorations, and buying presents that I get so worked up about the season. So, I'm trying to focus more on Christ this Christmas. I have been very good to only say "Merry Christmas", instead of the "happy Holidays." Somehow that makes me feel better, I'm not sure why. It might be more of a sticking it to the man type of thing, and in that case, maybe it's not so good.

But anyways, Luke 2 9-11
"And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."

We have good news of a great joy, salvation! No better gift than that. That God loved us so much that he lowered himself to take the form of a man and live among us, and suffer for us is a wonderful gospel. I'm praying that this Christmas, many would get the gift of salvation.

Well, this wasn't that long, but I'll try to be better with writing.

God bless and Merry Christmas

home with Jesus

2008-12-15T06:51:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend Luke's grandfather died. I'm not sure if I ever posted it, but he grandmother also died about 1 month ago. However, with Herb's death, Luke and the family seem to be taking it a lot better because we know that he is with the Lord. We were able to go to the hospital in Portland on Friday to see him and spent a good part of the day with him. When we left we thought that we was more or less getting better, but complications came up and he died Sunday morning. But Luke is doing ok, and we were with his parents yesterday, and they seem ok as well. It just shows the peace God gives us when we know someone went to heaven. But we didn't have to wonder with Herb. His funeral will probably be this Saturday out at the Jewell church. Luke has been asked to play his favorite hymns for the service. Please pray for his family and his wife. They were married for 59 years, so I can only imagine how difficult it is for her.

-To live is Christ, but to die is gain

God bless

what to write?

2008-12-10T12:19:00.000-08:00

I haven't' written anything for a while, I think because I can't think of anything to write about. Nothing is really going on with us, yet we're always busy. I think mostly what it is, is that I'm going through a dry spell right now. I try to read, but I can't concentrate on it. I'll read the same thing 20 times before I know what it says. But I think it's just for a season, and I'm praying God will help me get out of it soon.

To be more up-beat; I love Christmas! And our pastor blessed us with a real tree! We own a fake on from last year when we were in our tiny apartment, but couldn't really afford to buy a real one. We were with him getting one for the church and he got one for us. I had already put together the fake one with all the lights and decorations. But I think it only took me 20 min. to switch everything from the fake to the real and then pack the fake away. It was rather exciting.

We're planning on having a Christmas party for our church at our house the same weekend Megan should be coming. We're hoping to come up around Christmas to see her. So I'm hoping she's here by Christmas. You don't get long weekends every week!

Well, hope things are going good for everyone and God bless.

Monday already

2008-11-24T07:20:00.000-08:00

It's just been one of those difficult times, where many things happen and you would think someone was planning them all. I feel like my theme verse right now is Psalm 55-" 'Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness' "

I have to say that it sounds pretty lame because I'm not dealing with anything close to what David was at this time. But I have to be honest and say this is my heart right now. A whole bunch of questions with not many answers.

But then there's Psalm 69- "But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness."

So, just trying to work out my Monday. And this may sound more like an invite to my own personal pity party, but I don't mean it too. I think possibly 3 hours of sleep may have to do with my attitude as well.

Well, on that cheery note, God bless because He's still good.

Praise the Lord!

2008-11-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

Psalm 150

"Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens!
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his excellent greatness!
Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with sounding cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!"

(So, I think the main idea of this might be to praise the Lord, what do you think?)

But wow, what a worship service that must be! I have a feeling it may be like that in heaven. It's coming up to Thanksgiving, so what a good time to praise the Lord!

God bless

What's going on with us

2008-11-11T07:02:00.000-08:00

Luke's grandmother passed away over this past weekend. So if you think of it, please pray for him and his family. They aren't sure, but think she wasn't saved, so it's a very sad time right now. And please pray for Luke's dad, Jamie, since he's the eldest, a lot of the pressure is on him with all the arrangements. Luke is doing better then when he found out, but has already started his week at work rough. So I think it will be a blessing once this week is all over. The funeral will be this Friday.

As for the house hunt, things haven't really changed. There was this one house that Luke really liked, but I didn't, so we're still looking. It was further than we really wanted to live, so I think it's a good thing we're still looking. There's this one town where we live that we want to move too, but everything is very expensive. But I've been praying for something to show up there, and yesterday I found a house there that is about 25 thousand less than what our range is. So, we're excited, but we haven't seen the inside yet, so we're trying not to get too excited. But who knows, it's in His hands.

Last weekend we were able to go up and stay with my parents for Michelle's baby shower. We had a lot of fun, and got to hang out with some good friends. Overall it was a good weekend, other than Luke's grandmother passing.

My parents showed us their Wii Fit game, and that thing is pretty addicting! You should ask them about my soccer score, it's pretty amazing. And their puppy is getting so big, we were both shocked to see how big he is. But he's still fun, even with his times of high energy.

One last thing, please pray for us about the place we're in now. It's been having some trouble, and we're having to deal with it and our land-lady. And no one likes confrontation. But it's difficult for us to know how to handle. Do we lay down the law, or let it all go and be gracious. Probably being gracious is always a good way to go, but there are things that just need to be addressed. Well, pray for His leading, that would be best.

Thanks, and God bless

I want a cooler blog

2008-11-04T07:37:00.000-08:00

I really need to put more pictures on my blog. Luke and I haven't decided yet if we're getting Internet or not, but maybe we should just so I can make my blog more exciting. Though if we do get it, then I need to work on getting my camera to work. So much to do,

I tried to change my background the other day, but couldn't figure it out. I need my friend Jenaya back! But I'm glad to hear the Susan has one of these now, it's like a cult. But this one is MUCH cooler than scrap booking!

So, I'll just throw this out there. Luke and I weren't going to say anything, but he's already told all of his friends. But we're praying about buying a house. Again. (Sorry if I got you excited, no baby yet.) So, please pray for us, it's a little scary. But we know God will let us know what to do.

Well, I have a patient that showed up like a hour early, and since he's here for a fasting blood draw, maybe I should just go take care of him.

Hope you all have a good day,

God bless

trying to be stress free

2008-11-03T12:42:00.000-08:00

This past week seems to be pretty crazy for everyone when watching the news and all the political commericals. I was worried about the elections and what might happen if one of them were elected. But no matter what happens this week, God will still reign! When I trust God I always have so much freedom, more than what America can offer. And I don't have to be chained down with worries and burdens. Our God is good! So, enough said, right?

Well, this morning was pretty stressful. For some reason, neither Luke or my alarm clock went off. And mine goes by batteries, so we know it wasn't due to power going out. But, we normally leave the house around 6:10 because Luke starts at 7 and I start at 8. Well, I was the first one to wake up and it was 7:25. So, we were both a little worked up today.

Well, over the weekend God been working on me and reminding me of Psalm 37

"Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him." -This seems to be our theme lately, waiting on the Lord, and being content about it. And also to trust in Him and He will act. Did you notice that? He will act.

Down in verse 8- this morning it stood out to me while reading during lunch-"fret not yourself; it tends only to evil."- Well, is that true! This morning I was so worried about being late, that my driving was defiantly not of the Lord. To be honest, I think I had to repent pretty much the whole way to work. And with me, when I repent I still feel guilty and just down. But Psalm 94-"When I thought, 'My foot slips,' your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul."

What can I say, God never disappoints.

Hope you're having a good Monday, and don't worry about tomorrow because God will still be in control then too.

God bless

a love like Christ

2008-10-28T12:21:00.000-07:00

Phil. 2: 1-11
"So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, and participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

I don't know about you, but for me, verse 3 and 4 is not easy. Counting other people more important than ourselves. I'm pretty good with thinking of other people and their needs as being important, but of more importance than me? In this I lack. Especially with the mean ones. But God is powerful, and able to make a sinner like me love others more than myself. 'Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,' -I was giving the ability from Jesus, I just need to work on showing what I have.

I wonder how different my life would be if I saw people like Christ sees people. Loved them like He loves them. I think my mind might explode, personally. But God is amazing, and His love is amazing. I'm so glad He's God, and not me. I would make a horrible god. Anyways, I think I'm starting to trail off.

But I like what it says in chapter 3-"forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." I think that was the main verse for Olympians.

God is good, all the time. I'm looking forward to what He has planned for Luke and I. Hope this is of some encouragement.

God bless

Isaiah 30:18-21

2008-10-20T07:24:00.000-07:00

This has been of encouragement to me, so I'm hoping it will be to you as well.

"Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for the Lord
For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more.
He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry.
As soon as he hears it, he answers you.
And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity
and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore,
but your eyes shall see your Teacher.
And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying,
'This is the way, walk in it.' "

The Lord waits to be gracious to you, we are blessed (or happy) when we wait on Him, he will be gracious at the sound of our cry, He will guide us in our life.

Wow, I often wonder why I even complain? What an amazing God we serve!

God bless

updates

2008-10-13T12:31:00.001-07:00

Luke and I decided not to keep the dog. It wasn't an easy decision, but after living with him for a while thought it was best. His problem was his aggressive personality, that I could hardly physical control with him just as a puppy. But he was always going after our faces and would not stop biting us. If we disciplined him about it, he would get more and more determined to get you. The only way I was ever able to get him to stop biting me was by putting him away in his room. I was very worried we wouldn't get this out of him before he got big, and then one day he bit a child on one of our walks. So I didn't feel comfortable keeping him. It was tough, and we both miss him, but we think he'll find another home soon.

On other news, the church's first baptism went well. There were two young ladies who got baptized then afterwards we had lunch. It was a really good time, and some new people came out for it.

We're hoping that Chantal and Justin and come stay with us for the weekend. It would be so nice to spend time with them. But they have Sunday school they need covered, so that's what we're waiting on. So, if you're reading this, and you're available for Sunday school, call Chantal! That way they can come.

The next weekend my mom and grandma will be staying with us. So, it'll be a nice month of seeing everyone.

That's really all for now.

God bless

the confidence I have

2008-10-07T12:27:00.000-07:00

So, today and yesterday I've been an emotional roller coaster for some reason. Which if you know me, isn't like me at all. But I've been having my mini-meltdowns, and then feeling better, and then starting it all over again. And it's always about something stupid. Well, today at work I could feel one coming over something and was getting really worked up about it. I tried to hold it in since I was at work, but all my remarks were coming out short and un-loving. I've already had to ask my co-worker for forgiveness for my attitude. Anyway, I was really worked up and begging God for this situation to be fixed. And during my begging came out the prayer "please let it happen before lunch, I need help." Well, 11:59 comes around, and the phone call I was waiting for comes. So, there's nothing else to do but go into the bathroom and cry.

It's amazing the burden I felt fall off me, and I felt horrible for getting so upset, but my gracious God decided to answer my pathetic plea. Well, during lunch I was reading through 1 John 5 and verse 14-15 stuck out. "And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him."

I'm thankful that it is always God's will to help me. He's done it so many times. So, I'm going to head back to work soon, and hopefully keep my composure. Hope you're all having a blessed day like the one God has given me.

God bless

Arthur

2008-10-06T12:13:00.000-07:00

Well, Luke and I got a puppy. His name is Arthur and he's a rot/shepherd mix. He's about 8 weeks, but has huge feet, so will probably be bigger than me when he grows up. We got him on Saturday and today is his first day of being alone all day while we're at work. We've set up our laundry room for him, so we shut him in there while we're gone or at night. We're working on getting our backyard fenced this week so he can be outside.

Luke called me at work today to say he asked our pastor to check in on him, which was nice of him to do. So he was able to let him outside. We have a puppy pad in there for him, but he tries to hold it till he's outside. So he's learning fast. He still does #1 inside sometimes, but is starting to go by the door when he needs to. And also, we're able to tell when he's about to go, so we can rush him real quick outside. But when we take him outside he goes right away, so that makes us think he's understanding that he does that outside.

The nice thing about potty training him is that we have hard floors all through out the house. So it's really easy to clean up. And he hasn't #2-ed yet in the house.

Well, that's about all the new stuff for us right now. A couple things you could pray about for us;
1. Pastor James is planning on doing a baptism next week, so please pray for all the details that come with that.
2. One of the families in our church has an 18 year old daughter who is in the hospital right now for chronic pancreatitis. We're praying for a quick and full recovery and that she can come home soon. She's been in Portland for almost two weeks, but after surgery they say she's starting to recover.
3. A new man came to church last night who got saved. Please pray that he will continue to come, but mostly seek the Lord in his life. He's a very "worn-out" person, so I think a new type of living may be difficult for him.

Thanks, and God bless

Psalm 40

2008-09-30T07:44:00.000-07:00

"Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust,
who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!
You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with You!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
yet they are more than can be told." -Psalm 40:4-5

With seeing many people around me worry about the economy, stock market, elections, etc; it's good to boldly say I'm not worried, and I don't have to be. What an amazing life we can have because we can trust the One who knows everything and loves everyone. It is so true that people who have put their trust in the things of this world are following a lie, but God is so true. Praise Him! How can it be that the "wondrous deeds and thoughts towards us" are "more than can be told?"

God bless, God is so good

Pastor's Conference

2008-09-25T13:10:00.000-07:00

Luke and I got back yesterday from a pastor's conference that was north of Seattle. We're a little tired, but we had a very good time and were glad that we went. I will admit there were some things there that I'm not familiar with. But Calvary Chapel is a little different than IFCA and NICE, which is what I was raised knowing. Not that any are right or wrong, just different. But the impact it really made with me was that even though there are many different types of people with different likes and personalities, it's always the same Jesus. So, I don't have to worry about fitting into a certain "type" of person to be a good Christian, God knows who I am, He made me who I am. Sometimes you can have the pressure to be more charismatic, or more conservative, but you really don't need to be a certain way to serve God.

So, it was nice to go to this conference and not have to feel pressured to be a certain way, but just praise God and pray and learn more. Maybe this doesn't make sense, but anyways. One thing that I thought was really cool was they had a performance there by a rapper from Seattle, and then the same day one by a classical pianist who majored at Julliard-sp?. So, it kind of went with what I was saying how many different type of people, but the same God.

Well, we were only back for one evening, but Luke was able to fill up the whole weekend already. If only he could get paid for plan-making. Oh well,

God bless, Rachel

Psalm 63- cling to Jesus

2008-09-15T12:31:00.000-07:00

Psalm 63

"O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you as in a dry and weary land where there is not water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for you.
My soul clings to you; you right hand upholds me.
But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth;
they shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals.
But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult,
for the mouths of liars will be stopped."

-"but your steadfast love is better than life"-I pray that I would live my life with that always in my thoughts. If I always kept that in mind, then I know I wouldn't get worked up by things. But I mostly pray that those who don't know Him, would get to know this love and be saved by it. "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8"

-"my soul clings to you"-have you ever thought of that phrase before? It makes me think of when you go into water with clothes on and they cling to your body. I always hated that because it is so difficult to get them off, they just don't want to. But to cling to Jesus, what an amazing thought.

Praying that we can cling to Jesus and show others about this amazing love.

God bless

all moved in

2008-09-08T12:29:00.000-07:00

1 Chronicles 29: 10-13
"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name."

What more is there to say? Our God reigns.

So, we're all moved in to our home. I'm sorry that I don't have any pictures to put up yet, but I will try to get on that. I un-packed the last box on Friday, so everything (for the most part) is put in place and away. It's nice to go home and know there aren't boxes waiting around for you to get to.

It's been a long couple of weeks and I was looking forward to last weekend. But we did end up having people over every day, which was fun, but not exactly relaxing. Luke and I did go out on our bikes the other day on the path right next to the beach, but I crashed into a tree. Which wasn't really relaxing either, and so now I'm a little bruised, and hesitant to go back out. I probably haven't been on a bike in 10 years. Partly because I never wanted to wear a helmet and also I'm not a big fan of exercise. But since I'm an adult now, I don't have to wear a helmet if I don't want to. Though maybe I should till I learn how to stay on the road.

Well, Luke says we'll be getting Internet next month maybe, so then I can write more and put pictures on here easily.

Till next time, God bless

Going back to Washington

2008-08-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

Today my mother in law and I were able to spend a couple hours cleaning the new house, and tomorrow we start moving everything else. We've already been able to move over half of our boxes and stuff, but tomorrow we're doing all the big furniture things. Well, Luke and some other guys are moving all the furniture things. I just get to tell them where to put it.

Well, we aren't going to be having Internet for a while, I'm not sure how long. So, I might not be able to write on here as much. But I do have Internet at work that I can use during my lunch breaks.

Also, I thought I would change the music on my playlist, I'm sure people are getting tired of hearing the same old music. So, I hope you like the new songs.

We're really looking forward to this new place, and can't wait till this time next week, because it will all be over. Oh, today was also my last piano lesson. I can't believe it's been ten weeks already. We may be getting a free piano, so hopefully I can keep on playing on a piano, instead of our keyboard. It's amazing the difference in sound it is, it's almost like I'm playing different songs.

Anyway, next time I write I'll be a Washingtonian again! No more of this Oregon-mumbo-jumbo! :)

God bless, Rachel

Proverbs 16:3

2008-08-26T12:38:00.000-07:00

I found this today and it seemed like a good verse for us this week.

Proverbs 16:3 -"Commit your work to the Lord, and you plans will be established."

When you look at it that way, it kind of makes everything easy for you. No need to worry.

God bless,

moving in this weekend

2008-08-25T12:29:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Luke and I were able to move two car loads of boxes and stuff into the house. And also, we were given the key, so we can put more in on Wednesday, and the bulk of it on Friday and Saturday. This will be a pretty busy week. Luckily I only work two days this week, so I have loads of time to pack everything up. My parents are coming up this weekend to help us move, and will be staying at our new place. Yesterday I was able to clean the new house a little, but there's still a lot left to be done. It's an old house that nobody has lived in for a while and has had people working on it, so, it's dirty.

Also, this Wednesday I have an eye doctor appointment. I'm hoping to finally get my contacts, after 3 mths, and (a lot) of money later. I'm just going to have to be bold and tell him I can't afford to come back, because Luke doesn't want me to continue going to him, if I keep paying him for nothing. So, we'll see.

I am really excited for this weekend though, it will be our first big move. I'm noticing all these things that we're going to need to get. For one, we need a rug, because it's hard wood floors through out the whole house. It was hard not to just pick one up at Fred Meyer for $40, but I knew we needed to wait. At least till next month.

Anyway, this is what I was reading today;

Romans 12:9-10
" But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecution, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

Well, can't say that I have this verse down, but it's an encouragement anyways. I guess it seems like a weird thing to pray for, -Lord, please make me weak, but it's when I'm weak that I'm able to really see my need. Somehow I always get distracted when things are going just fine, and I tend to forget my need on good days.

So, praying to be content in any situation, and using His power instead of the no-power that I have. (is no-power a word?)-Luke says that if you can say it, it's a word. But I think he's wrong.

Anyways,
God bless

It is Well with my Soul

2008-08-18T12:20:00.000-07:00

You know how everyone seems to have that one song that moves them like no other? The one you can't really sing because you're trying not to cry? And that you tell all your family that you want it sung at your funeral? Well, mine is the hymn "It is Well With my Soul." And I thought I would share it, but I'm writing this all from memory, so forgive me if I get a line wrong.

"When peace like a river constraineth (is that right?) my soul,
when sorrows like sea billows roll
whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, It is well, with my soul

It is well, With my Soul,
It is well, It is well with my soul

My sin, Oh, the bliss, of this glorious thought
My sin, not in part, but the whole
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, Oh my soul.

And Lord, hast the day, when my faith shall be sight
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll
The trumpt shall resound, and the Lord shall descend
Even so, it is well, with my soul."

I'm pretty sure that's the right words, but I love this song. It has always been a comfort to me. And I remember the night that my cousin was passing away, it was a Wednesday night, so we were at church. And I didn't know it, but Luke had picked out this song to sing that night. Isn't God wonderful?! He knew the exact thing to tell me that night to comfort me. Even, now writing it, I start to cry, what a wonderful Maker we have!

Yesterday at church my pastor was sharing the back story of the writer of this song. He said it was a man on a boat in the middle of the Atlantic and he had gotten a telegram that his whole family had died in a fire. And then he wrote this song. What a rich life he must have had if he could sing this at a time like that. I pray that I would have such a faith.

God is good all the time, I just wish I could boldly show that in my life all the time. Instead of letting things bring me down.

Well, praying that whatever happens, we can shout and sing "It is well with my soul!"

God bless

new home

2008-08-14T12:07:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update, we are moving to Long Beach on Sept. 1st. We've given some money and signed all the paperwork, so for at least the next 6 mths, it will be our home. We're very excited and can't wait till we move in. Dave and Michelle and the boys are coming down for this weekend, so I've decided to wait till after that to start packing and getting everything put together that we need to.

Well, I need to get back to cleaning for this weekend, but I'll put a couple pictures up of the house.

(That one room is the upstaires, which will be our bedroom.)

God bless

car sold!

2008-08-06T12:34:00.000-07:00

Last night Luke and I sold our car. Maybe you remember us getting a new one a couple months ago, well, we never got around to selling the one it replaced. It just sort of sat there. And maybe I haven't really put this on my blog yet, but we're about 80% positive that we're moving to Long Beach on Sept. 1st. Anyway, we needed money for the first month, (it's a house for rent,) and thought, why don't we sell our 3rd car? So, praise God for His timing, huh? If we had already sold it, we wouldn't have had the money to move in. They want the first months rent as well as the last months rent and deposit. But with selling the car and a check that came in the mail, we have last months rent. So, it shouldn't be too hard to get together the rest for the deposit.

The only downfall to this house is that it doesn't have a hook up for phone or Internet. So, for the first month or so, maybe longer, we won't have Internet. That's probably not going to last too long, but it can be expensive to get someone to come and hook everything up. Anyway, just wanted to update that our car was sold. And we're looking forward to seeing how God will provide the rest!

God bless

prayer requests

2008-08-05T12:39:00.000-07:00

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." John 3:16-17

It's always the well-known verses that I read over and don't consider. But when I do, it's like I'm reading them again for the first time. How great is our God! We have a wonderful and true gospel, that I'm so thankful for.

I don't normally put prayer requests on here, but a few just popped into my head so I think I'll share them. The first is for my piano teacher; during our last lesson, we never got to playing because he kept asking me questions about Jesus. So, for about 1 1/2 hours, I was able to share with him loads of stuff. I was very excited afterwards, because I've never really been able to do that before, so being the vessel God chose to use was rewarding. But he is really seeking, and dealing with family things. He told me he has looked into Christian Science, so please pray that all he seeks is Jesus, and not a false religion.

The other prayer request is for something that happened in the town next to where I live. A small plane crashed into a house and exploded about 30 sec. after that. They said there were 5 children and a mother in the house, and they never found 3 of the children last time I heard, which was yesterday. So, many people are upset, and mourning. No one I know personally, but it still breaks my heart to hear about. There is much prayer needed for the whole town, especially for the family. It was a vacation house, where the father went out on a walk for coffee when it happened.

James 5:16b"The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." Praising God for His promises to us.

Thanks, God bless

Psalm 46

2008-07-29T13:30:00.000-07:00

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved
God will help her when morning dawns.

The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolation's on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the chariots with fire.

'Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nation,
I will be exalted in the earth!'
The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress."

I love that, a very present help in trouble, it can also say a very "well-proved" help. It is a huge comfort to have such a dependable rock to lean on. Not to have any doubts about how things turn out, or why some things happen, but to just "know that I am God." I don't need to know the whys, I only have to trust that He is in control and is God.

I also love -he utters his voice, the earth melts- what power! Our God is anything but weak. What a mighty God we serve, and still, what a mighty God that loves us.

Praise God for who He is.

God bless

a home maybe?

2008-07-27T17:08:00.001-07:00

After much praying, Luke and I think we may have found a place to live near the church. It's a house that's for rent in Long Beach. We've put in our application and are now waiting to hear back. It's been a nice relief to work towards this place because we believe that it's what God has put aside for us. But of course, if it isn't offered to us, then that's an answer to prayer as well.

Church today went well, and many more people are coming on Sunday mornings now. Success has never been in numbers, but it's amazing to see so many people coming with the desire to worship God, it's a blessing to see. The children's ministry started today, which is basically a nursery so parents can sit through a service. After it was over I asked the lady who was in there today how it went and she said it went well But she did say she now understood why some animals eat their young. So, I'm not sure what went on in there, but I'm looking forward to when it's my turn with holding breathe.

But I should be doing housework right now, so God bless

Come Lord Jesus, come

2008-07-21T21:07:00.000-07:00

"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls." 1 Peter 2:24-25

I was thinking about what it would be like if we had to pay for our own sins. And I know I wouldn't be able to. "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us.." I love that my Maker loves me.

He made a way for us, doesn't that amaze you?!

Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness for sins- And God doesn't demand us to shed our own blood for our own filthy sins. I am so thankful that He in charge of my soul, and that I'm not my own overseer. (What a mess that I would make if I were.)

And we know how it ends, we're allowed to read the back of the book. In the Valley of Vision it has this phrase, -"Thy departure was not a token of separation, but a pledge of return." In the back of the book it says "Come Lord Jesus, Come."

Praying that's the heart of all of us as we walk out our faith each day.

God bless

I watched the Goonies finally

2008-07-18T12:36:00.000-07:00

Last night I watched Goonies for the first time. It was very impressive. I was amazed by how quickly they were riding around in Astoria and then they were in Cannon Beach! But I thought it was a cute movie over all. I guess now I can official be called an Astorian. They kind of take that movie pretty seriously over here, it's weird. I have learned many of the spots from the kindergarten cop movie, but I've actually seen that movie quite a few times. Another fun movie fact; in the movie the Ring 2, (which I haven't seen) is made in Astoria. And the newspaper place where she works is the same building that I work in. Though I thought about watching it just to see the town parts and fast forward through all the scary parts.

So, for the church, I know some people wanted more info about it; we're going through Acts right now. We're almost done, and I assume we'll be in Romans next. They're trying to set up the kids program by next Sunday, or the one after that. And it's not really like a "program", the pastor described it as crowd-control. We have a room where children can go, but the parents have to be back there with them. So, it's like a nursery so the parents can sit through a service. Many people have singed up to be in there, and I think the pastor just had to finish all the back-ground checks before he could start it up. I've singed up for it, but I'm not sure how often I'll be back there. I'm glad that so many people have signed up and it's not the same person back there every time. Because then they would never be able to sit through a service.

Eventually we would like to have a real program with a Sunday school type of thing, but we have one room where infant to 6 year olds are, so it would be difficult to do with out splitting them up. Well, that's pretty much all of it.

As far as the moving over to Washington, it doesn't seem like that will work out for us right now. So, we're thinking we're going to wait. We've been offered an apartment in Astoria, which is a little closer to the bridge. We're going to go see it today and probably make a descion about it then.

So, we're praying that we'll know where we should end up.

God bless,

cake and pictures

2008-07-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

Well, here are a couple more pictures for my blog. The first ones are of our 1 year anniversary cake. When it was our anniversary in April we didn't have it because it was at my mom and dad's. But last time I was up I remembered to grab it and we broke it out a couple night ago. It wasn't that impressive, I remember it being kind of good. But it was still a sweet night. Luke drove us out to the beach right by our house and we sat in the car watching the ocean, listening to Guns and Roses, :) and eating our cake. It was a really clear night, and Luke even pulled me out to dance, (but he did change the music.) And we were out there until the night cop asked us to leave. It's odd how close we are to the beach and we never go out there anymore. We're always so busy. We're going to try to go out there more often. But I felt like taking a picture of it before throwing it away.

Another funny thing about the cake, is that it isn't in the colors of our wedding. Now the orginial top of the cake got "messed up" so the bakery re-did it for us. And I wonder if she forgot the colors of our wedding were purple, or just after a year it turned blue. I'm sure the insides were still our oringial cake, but the outside was all re-done differently. Oh well, it doesn't matter really, I just found it funny that it was blue.

The other picture probably won't mean anything to anyone except my parents. They bought us a couple prints when they were in Paris, and I just wanted to show mom that I had them up. There pretty cool, we got different frames for all of them, so it looks neat.

Well, I'm in the middle of cleaning, so I should get back to that.

God bless

Luke's birthday

2008-07-07T18:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Luke's birthday, he turned 23 (the same as Amy I hear.) So, on Saturday he hung out with all his guy buddies, then Sunday his mom came out to church and took us out for lunch, and then tonight we're going to go out for his birthday dinner. So, he gets a weekend long birthday this year. I'm very thankful for him, he's a wonderful husband, and very patient with his wife. I'm blessed to have him as my own.

thy prayers my comfort

2008-07-05T12:25:00.000-07:00

"Give me the assurance that in Christ I died, in him I rose,
in his life I live, in his victory I triumph,
in his ascension I shall be glorified.

Adorable redeemer,
thou who wast lifted up upon a cross, art ascended to highest heaven,
Thou, who as man of sorrows wast crowned with thorns,
art now as Lord of life wreathed with glory,
Once, no shame more deep than thine,
no agony more bitter, no death more cruel,

Now, no exaltation more high, no life more glorious, no advocate more effective,
Thou art in the triumph car leading captive thine enemies behind thee,
What more could be done than thou hast done!
Thy death is my life, thy resurrection my peace,
thy ascension my hope, thy prayers my comfort."

-The Valley of Vision

weekend apart

2008-06-30T12:28:00.000-07:00

Our weekend was pretty full for us, sometimes it's nice to get back to work for things to slow down. I went up to stay with my parents for the weekend, and Luke stayed home. We had never spent 2 nights away from each other before, once we spent 1 night away, but 2 is our new record. It was tough, this sounds lame, but I felt incomplete everywhere I went. However, Pastor Frank said we would probably enjoy nights away from each other soon. But I don't believe him.

Anyway, Luke had an overnight youth event at the church. He said they had 30 kids sign up, then 15 extra showed up. They were very encouraged by the numbers. (And just so everyone knows, this is from our original church, not the one were are involved with now in Long Beach. This is the one that planted the new one.) Luke said that 4 teens accepted the Lord. So we have 4 new brothers or sisters in Christ, pretty amazing isn't it? Sometimes I find myself not getting excited anymore when I hear that, I don't know why. It's my flesh, I'm sure, but I'm praising God for these four souls.

Well, Luke stayed up most of the whole night and got home around 10:00am the next day, where he was able to get a little sleep then. But then he had church the next day, so he was pretty wiped out from the weekend.

My cousin was having a baby shower, so that is why I went up. If I get sent pictures of it I'll put some on my blog, (hint, hint mom.) But I had a really good time. I didn't really make any big plans with friends, so I was able to hang out with my mom mostly. She took me shopping. :) But on Saturday, we had the shower, and it was nice to see everyone. We try to make an effort whenever there's an event that the whole family is getting together for. That night I was able to spend some time with Jenaya. And then I was able to see a lot of people at church the next day. After church I went out for lunch with mom and dad, and grandma and grandpa, then drove home. So when I got there, I was pretty wiped out too.

It was nice to see Luke again, it seemed like too long. I was glad to hear that he missed me too.

There isn't really any new news about the property. We need to make some phone calls and meet with some people, which probably won't be happening until next weekend because the day Luke has off is Friday, and nobody is open. But I'll keep you all posted if anything new comes up.

My break is almost over, so I'll end this.

God bless

our strength

2008-06-25T12:42:00.000-07:00

This is what I read today and found very encouraging.

Isaiah 40:28b-31
"The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.
Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

Praise God

psalm 19 and 27

2008-06-23T12:34:00.000-07:00

I've been reading through Psalm right now and there were a few verses I felt like sharing.

27:4- "One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple."

19:7-11- "The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward."

What rich words! (Thanks Ryan for suggesting I do this.) It's so nice to know I don't serve a little god, but this God. I'm so thankful to have the Lord in my life. Luke and I are dealing with family problems with people who are so lost, it's sad. It has made us to thankful for our salvation and our relationship with Him.

We have been given the opportunity to buy some land in Long Beach with some friends. We're praying about it, but feel our emotions and ideas about it keep going back and forth. We're trying not to make any decisions about it until we feel lead by the Lord. But please pray for us, this isn't something we want to get involved with if we're not suppose to. But in the same way, we don't not want to do it, if we should. It's right by the church, so Luke really likes that. But while we're praying about it, we're looking into all the details involved and looking at the houses available that could be built. All this is so over my head, so I'm thankful that I'm not in charge. Luke keeps bringing up the verse -seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (I don't remember where that verse is,) but we're trying to keep that in mind.

Well, my break is about over,

God bless

my first lesson

2008-06-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

I had my first piano lesson today. What was suppose to be a 1/2 hour lesson turned into a 1 1/2 hour lesson. I'm all up for time I don't have to pay for. But it went well. It was a bit humbling, but overall very useful. This man is very good when he plays, and even showed me how to do some simple things and sound like a professional. (Sort of.) It sounded better when he did it. But I'm very excited about these lessons. However, we now need to get a piano, I can tell that a keyboard just won't cut it. A digital would be nice, because then it would have a volume button. So, if anyone wants to give one away, I would be glad to take it off your shoulders.

Luke should be home soon, so I should go.

God bless,

and Ryan, thanks for the help, seriously. :)

I need God

2008-06-18T16:20:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I wrote last. I've found myself in one of those "dry" spells. Where I can't seem to make the time to daily meet with God. And I feel worn out. I'm ready to be done with this season and go on to the next. I'm so encouraged when I go to church or bible study, but I can't seem to bring it home with me. So, please pray that I'll become more disciplined. I miss the days where I used to be getting fed all the time, I felt so rich! Now, not so much. So, this is my main concern right now, other than that, things are ok with us. We are having family issues that we found ourselves in the middle of. We've never really had to deal with drama like this before, so we're both at a lost of what to do. That could also be prayed for.

Tomorrow I start my piano lessons, I'm pretty nervous. I can hardly read music anymore. But I'm still looking forward to it.

I did find out some pretty interesting things, that the Costco right by our place is the smallest in the U.S. and the Fred Meyer is the most expensive in the U.S. Pretty impressive, isn't it? I think the Fred Meyer is so expensive because it's really the only thing around here.

Well, Luke will be home soon, then we need to head out for bible study.

God bless

tough days

2008-06-10T22:24:00.000-07:00

Well, I changed my layout again. I really like this one. However, right when Luke saw it he said it looks emo. But what does he know? I thought it was pretty.

Anyway, Luke and I both had a hard day at work, so we decided to go out to dinner. Somehow that helps. But there's this place in Astoria that I really like, but we normally don't go there because of the price. But it was nice to go, they have probably my favorite meal around here.

But Luke had one of those days where everything just goes wrong, those days are so frustrating. But today I learned of one of my patients who had passed away yesterday. (I guess that means I win between the two of us.) But we had an old man who came in a lot, who was a pretty big character in our office. Basically he was the meanest grump of all our patients. But he was fun in his own way. You never knew what to expect with him. Well, I think the thing I'm really the most torn about is that he came in last week and I saw him then. And just the idea that I saw him in his last week of life and I don't think I said anything fruitful. And where is he now? I don't know, hopefully he knew the Lord. But I always wonder if I should have said something, if I did, would that had made a difference? Was God leading me to say something, and I didn't catch on? I seem to always feel this guilt when one of my patients dies. Especially when I saw them right before. I once had a patient come in and I spent a lot of time with him because of different labs he needed, then he died the next day.

I only knew this man for the last 9 months of his life, and did I encourage him to seek God? Probably not. With some patients I'm able to share my faith with, but others aren't really the "chatty" type. Well, it's time for bed, so, God bless

2 Kings 13

2008-06-10T12:51:00.000-07:00

Do you ever notice those passages in the Bible where something really big happened, but it only has 2-3 verses about it before they move on to something else? Today I was reading 2 Kings 13.
"So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet." And then they go on to a different topic. But you almost miss what just happened, because there wasn't a big deal about it.

I was just thinking of how crazy this must have been to see. A guy is getting buried, and the men get scared so they just throw the body into the grave. Then all of a sudden, he stand up. That would scare me. I wonder if he gave the men a hard time for throwing him? (Probably not.)

Can you imagine?

"Hey Bill, how was your week?"
"Fine, I planted some new fruits, fell in the river and died, saw my uncle, nothing much. How about you?"

That would be interesting to see, maybe I'll rent that one in heaven.

Well, my lunch break is over,

God bless

parents in Paris

2008-06-09T12:45:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting at work right now, and wishing I was with my parents. (I am on my lunch break, just so you know I'm not slacking.) But they are on their way to Paris right now. I am very excited for them, and just a little jealous. But please pray for travel safeties for them.

The other night Luke and I went to a local coffee shop in Astoria, where they had a live performance. I don't know what their group was called, but it was this woman with a very nice voice and another man. She played the guitar mostly while he played a stand up bass. They had the kind of sound like old country-blue grass, but they did a couple oldies. But there was this part where she handed her guitar over to him and stared playing the accordion. Apparently you can't play that instrument with out dancing. But it was pretty impressive, they sung about the common country things; cheating, drinking, and love. But I'm always amazed at the things I see living in a small town, it's a bit shocking sometimes.

Well, for a verse to leave; Phil. 4: 11-13
"For I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me."

Though I need to add, this is what Paul has learned, I'm still working on it. I understand the concept, it's just putting it into practice that I still need to work on.

(Oh, and I'm not trying to make it sound like it's so bad living here. This verse is more for real life problems, not just living in Astoria!)

Well, God bless

Praise God for salvation

2008-06-06T15:23:00.000-07:00

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher that the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thought than your thoughts." -Isaiah 55:8-9

Luke and I have been talking about this lately. How we don't understand everything about our faith. Like can we lose our salvation, can we not? Does God choose people for hell, does he not? All those fun topics that bring up such cheery conversations.

And no matter what we think is right, there is always someone who disagrees, but what a relief to say, "It's ok not to know." I always feel like it's a weight off my shoulders when I remember that I don't need to understand everything, but just trust God. When it comes down to it, I know that I'm saved, and that's all that matters.

Luke and I always seem to get put into situations with people who like to "discuss" these topics until we agree with them. A lot of people don't like the saying -agree to disagree, we've found out. It's been a bit discouraging to Luke, because of people at work who want to fight with him all day on doctrine. But we've come to just be content in saying, "I know I'm saved, and that's what matters."

So, praise God that he saved you! And me.

good-bye contacts

2008-06-04T14:20:00.000-07:00

I had an eye exam today that was much over-due. I have problems with my eyes and contacts almost everyday, plus my prescription for contacts has expired. I've always had bad eyesight and mine aren't shaped the way they should be. Normal is a baseball shape, but mine are footballs. Anyway, the Dr. today said that the contacts I have are fitted for someone with a step 5, but I have a step 12. (I knew I was right when I thought my contacts didn't fit my eyeballs!) Well, to try to clearly explain everything, basically, my eyes aren't getting enough O2, so they're growing blood vessels, which is bad. So my Dr. wants me to switch to glasses for a month and see if my eyes change after getting enough O2.

I'm hoping that they do, because there's a certain brand of contacts that provide more air flow, but they aren't made at a step 12. So, if I go down a lower level after 1 month, then maybe I could get these other contacts. However, if my eyes don't change, I would have to get custom contacts, which I'm sure are much more. Because they don't make them normally for my level.

So, I have to ditch the contacts for this month. I'm not too happy about it, but this is all to get those contacts I want, hopefully. Well, that's all I have for now.

God bless

For the love of Christ controls us

2008-05-29T17:26:00.000-07:00

I've been dwelling on the 1 Cor. 5:14a- "For the love of Christ controls us," and thinking about my own life. I looked it up in different translations, and KJV says "constraineth us" and NIV says, "compels us." All very strong words. So, the question is, what controls, constraineth, compels me? Sadly, the answer is mostly me, I control myself. I notice that I try to have good intentions, where I'm trying to do God's will as is sounds good to me, what I think I should do for the Lord. But that's not a life wholly submitted to God. I seem to have my own ideas about how things should be, and catch myself making God fit into that.

My reading today was in 2 Kings 5, (it's so wonderful that the things I think about God teaches me in His word.) But Naaman goes to Elisha to be healed from leprosy, and he doesn't get the answer he thinks he should. He was expecting something a bit more dramatic than washing in the Jordan seven times. But he did listen, and was healed. I find myself expecting things to go one way, and surprised and discouraged when God leads them another. Naaman thought God wasn't going to work in his life because things didn't go the way he thought they should. But God is good, all the time. And He really does know what He's doing, even if, more like when, I don't understand.

Lord, help me to listen to Your will, and not my own. You've always been faithful to me, why do I doubt? Thank you for your patience with me and Your word to teach me.

Hallelujah, what a Savior

2008-05-28T12:46:00.000-07:00

"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith-more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire-may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of you faith, the salvation of you souls." 1 Peter 1:6-9

Isn't it always true that unbelievers notice your faith more when your going through hard times? And if we are praising and glorifying and honoring God through tough times, don't they listen more? It's kind of weird how that it, but it's true. This passage helps me remember that people are doing this more during trials. It helps me watch myself, but also reminds me that Jesus is coming back! So, trials are only for a little while.

How amazing it is that we can actually say that we have inexpressible joy? How many people can honestly say that apart from the Lord? None! And our joy is filled with glory, -I have no idea what that means, but praise God anyways.

But our outcome is our salvation; if you ever needed a purpose for life, that's it. It's good to now why we're here, and what's lying ahead of us on the other side of our earth.

verse4- "to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you."

Hallelujah, what a Savior!

our new car

2008-05-24T15:02:00.000-07:00

My aunt Moni is selling us her car. So, we will go and pick it up this weekend. It's always exciting when you get a new car. It's the same kind as Luke's is, but it's just in good condition. So, it's really different than Luke's.

Last night we saw the new Indiana Jones movie with some friends. I thought it was pretty good, but the others were disappointed. But I'm pretty easily entertained when it comes to movies, I don't really analyze it that much. There were some pretty corny parts, but those were my favorite parts! My favorite was when one of the guys starts swinging in the trees with the monkeys, it was pretty cool. But I don't want to give it all away. All that to say, I thought it was worth seeing.

On other news, I've decided to take piano classes at the college here. They start in June, I've talked already to the instructor a couple times on the phone to talk about times. It's all individual lessons, so you get to pick your own time to meet during the week. We have a keyboard, so I'll be able to practice at home. I did see a stand up piano on craigslist for $50, but we don't have anywhere to put it.

Well, I think that's all the new news for us, the biggest thing really is the car. Hope things are going good for everyone.

God bless

Psalm 16

2008-05-19T12:42:00.000-07:00

"Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the LORD, 'You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.' As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight. The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips.
The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at you right hand are pleasure forevermore."

Just wanted to tell every one happy Monday! His mercies were new this morning; hoping your hearts are glad in the Lord today. I was encouraged by Amy's post today, you should read it if you haven't already. (However, I don't know how to add links in my posts, but I have a link to her blog under my friends. )

God bless

Matthew 6

2008-05-15T15:39:00.000-07:00

The verse about not being anxious for tomorrow because today has enough troubles of its own has been popping into my head a lot the last couple weeks. I think with just the idea of getting a new car and other changes that might be happening for us. So I'm always remember this verse. Which at first doesn't seem like it would be that encouraging, but it actually is. But it's true that there are enough troubles in one day, with out thinking about tomorrow's.

Anyways, today in my reading I was in 2 Kings 4. The story of the widow and her sons. Her husband was a man of God who dies, and her sons are being taken away as payment for debt. So she goes to Elisha, and God does a miracle for her so she can pay off the debt and keep her sons with her. And I have that same God. It just reminded me that God provides. Nothing is too small for Him, but for some reason I keep forgetting that, and then I get myself worked up over nothing.

While I was dwelling on this concept the passage in Matthew 6 came to mind. (It's a beautiful day today, and I was sitting at my table and looking out the door and seeing robins all over getting food.)

"Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap not gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the wild, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

It's funny, because I didn't know that that last verse was in that passage. But when I went to read it, there it was. Obviously something the Lord thinks I need to keep remembering!

Well, Luke and I are going up to stay with my parents this weekend. It's my mom's birthday, she's a little over 30 now. Happy birthday mom!

God bless

our real God

2008-05-12T17:28:00.000-07:00

I've been reading in 1 Kings right now, and today I read the story about Elijah and Ahab and the priests of Baal. It's one of my favorite stories because it shows how much God rocks. It's pretty epic. So, it's in chapter 18, and I would recommend it. But you might want to start in chapter 17 to understand the story a little better, in fact, maybe you should just read the whole book.

I just realized how much my husband rubs off on me, I never say the word "rocks" like that.

Anyways, I also read in chapter 19 where the Lord speaks with Elijah, and what a powerful God we serve! It describes different things happening; wind, and an earthquake, and a fire. You really have to read it to see the amazing power God has. Because me explaining it isn't working.

Well, I've been thinking a lot about hope and faith. Last week I was reading some comments put on Ryan's blog when we wrote about that expelled movie. And one person, who does not believe in God, said that you couldn't have a foundation and then build from out of it facts, but that you had to have facts to build a foundation. (I believe I'm wording it right, but it was a while that I read it.) Basically his point was you can't take the Word of God and start there to come up with facts that theirs a Creator. But instead you need to get all the facts and put them together to find out the truth.

Thinking about it, I know all paths would lead to a Creator, whichever way you look at it. But really that's what faith is. Believing in the unseen. And I've been thinking about how we won't have faith or hope once we're in heaven, because we'll be with God. Did you know that hope has a different meaning than what we kind of use it for today? I learned this a long time ago and it made much more sense when the Bible always talks about our hope is in Christ. Our word hope that we use today means more "maybe this will happen, I hope I get a good grade" mostly something that we're not sure about, but would like to happen. But the hope in the Bible is something certain. We can put our hope in the sun setting tonight, because we know it will happen. Which is amazing when you re-think the saying our hope is in Christ now. We can be certain about it and not have any doubts. Praise God that he's not something we would like to be real, but we're not sure. I'm glad I don't worship a god that doesn't answer, like in chapter 18 of 1 Kings. But our God is real.

God bless

car shopping

2008-05-08T13:28:00.000-07:00

Well, we've decided to buy a new car. (A used new car.) Luke's is falling apart, and we would like to get one now, while we're being blessed with two incomes. Please pray for us that we find the right one. And also, we're getting more opinions, and negative ones at that, then help. So, we're just going to ask for prayer instead of "advice." Maybe that's bad, but God is big, and I would rather lean on Him. We do, however, have a friend who knows about car maintance, so he said he would go with us to check out the cars. Which is very nice, because we wouldn't have a clue about if it was a good working car or not. To me if it's shiny, then it's good. And apparently, that's not how it works.

But I'm pretty excited about the idea of us getting our first car together. I'm looking forward to talking to the car salesman and fighting about cost. Maybe I get that from my grandma, I hear she's very good at talking a car price down. All this grown-up stuff is fun. Well, that's all I have for now.

God bless

Psalm 19:1

2008-05-03T13:28:00.000-07:00

Wow, I did it! I got pictures on here. So, these are from our anniversary trip. Pretty amazing, huh?

Psalm 19:1

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork."

(Living on the Oregon coast isn't all that bad)

God bless,

Only Jesus

2008-04-24T16:28:00.000-07:00

"I want no other rock to build upon than that I have,
desire no other hope than that of gospel truth,
need no other look than that which gazes on the cross.
Forgive me if I have tried to add anything to the one foundation,
if I have unconsciously relied upon my knowledge, experience, deeds, and not seen them as filthy rags,
if I have attempted to complete what is perfect in Christ;
May me cry be always, 'Only Jesus! Only Jesus!' "

I read this today out of The Valley of Vision, and man, what a life we have! To serve God! I'm daily amazed that God made us, loves us, died for us, and rose again to make a way to be with us.

Ephesians 2:13- "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ."

Thank you Lord for your true love, and your amazing grace! May my life shout "Only you, Jesus!"

2008-04-22T18:46:00.001-07:00

Nevermind, I tried really hard to get pictures on here, but it didn't work. Sorry.

2008-04-22T18:33:00.001-07:00

So, these are the pictures from our weekend.

knowing Him

2008-04-22T12:41:00.000-07:00

What do I boast about? I've been thinking about that lately. I'm trying to keep my thoughts in order and watch where I let my mind go, not always an easy thing. I'm amazed at how fast my brain can change topics without me even noticing! One moment I'm thinking about the car in front of me and with in 10 seconds I'm thinking about how weird giraffes are. Sometimes I feel like I'm ADHD with my thoughts, I just can't seem to focus sometimes. But, I started this post about what it is that I boast about, back to that.

People tend to talk a lot about what they're proud of, which tends to be themselves. But I was trying to think, and I think I talk mostly about Luke, which isn't a bad thing, but he's not Jesus. I try to keep the right perspective between Luke and Jesus, but Luke is mostly who I boast about. And I know it's really not bad to be proud of your husband, in fact, I think it's probably healthy, but who is #1 in my life? Jesus! So, I've been praying a lot about that. Because Jesus is the one who I turn to first, and I want Him to be the one I talk about most.

It says in Jeremiah 9- "Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD."

And in Philippians 3- "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord."

If I really believe that, that knowing Jesus is all that matters, then Jesus would always be coming up in my conversations. If all that matters is to know Him, then I would be sharing that. Well, just food for thought. I'm praying that I can keep my focus and not allow my mind to wander. Hope this is encouraging to someone.

God bless

anniversary trip

2008-04-21T12:18:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went down the coast for our anniversary. We went to Lincoln City and Newport, we had a lot of fun. And we got a good mix of weather too, sometimes sunny, sometimes raining, sometimes hailing/snowing, so it kept it exciting. But we went to a couple of museums in Newport, the Ripley's believe it or not, wax museum, and the underwater garden. I thought the wax place would be pretty boring, but it was actually the best one. It was fun to goof off in there, and Johnny Depp was there. He was very quiet though, but allowed us to take our pictures with him. I'll put the pictures of it on later. But then we also hung around Lincoln City one day, and our hotel had a sauna, it was amazing! I would love to put one in our apartment, but I don't think it would fit. On our way back up the coast towards home, we stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory (it was pretty exciting,) and then went hiking in Cannon Beach. We got some great pictures, and I"ll put those on later too. It was a wonderful weekend, and we were so glad that we went!

Also, I'm suppose to say thank you to Jenaya on my blog because of all the help she's given me with it. She helped me figure out how to put music on it, hope you like the songs. His cd is one of my favorites.

God bless

my mother's daughter

2008-04-17T17:50:00.000-07:00

I just finished watching that movie Notting Hill, which if you haven't seen it is a typical chick flick. I remember when it first came out that my mom and I had a Notting Hill party at our house where a bunch of friends from our church came over and we all watched the movie and ate teriyaki chicken.

But, since I've moved out and started my own home with Luke, I've noticed more and more how much I'm like my mother. I enjoy the European culture, and if money and space allowed, I would decorate our place like it. And I have the same love for sweaters and dogs. I enjoy tulips more than any other flower. I do secretly love Rod Swart's music, in fact remembering many times while riding in my mom's car she would let me pick what we would listen to, and my reply was usually, "I don't care, we can listen to this one I guess," while grabbing his tape and putting it in. I have to pick up a magnet everywhere Luke and I go, and I have more coaster sets than I do cups. (However, Luke always knows to put down a coaster with his cup. My attempt I guess at keeping our table nice, though it already has a big scratch down the middle from where Luke put his big amp on it, and the burn from where I started a little fire on it. But at least it doesn't have any cup rings!)

You would think realizing that I'm a younger version of my mother would bother me, but it really doesn't. For those of you who know her, you probably understand. I have just found it funny; growing up I probably wouldn't have been ok with it, but when it comes down to it, I would rather be like her than any other. And there are more characteristics that we share, but those are just the unusual ones. And there are many other characteristics that she has that I would like.

I've been currently reading through 1 Samuel about David and Saul. And noticing different reasons why David is a man after God's own heart. He hasn't been perfect, but is still called a man after God's own heart. What really moved me today during my reading was in chapter 24 and again in in 26, where David has the oppurtunity to kill Saul. But when he just cuts off a part of his coat becomes grieved.

24:4-6 "Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul's robe. And afterward David's heart struck him, because he had cut off a corner of Saul's robe. He said to his men, 'The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD's anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD's anointed.' "

No man, without God, can really feel like that towards their enemy. But David loves God and Saul. Now, my mom has never been in this kind of situation, but she still seeks the Lord. And I try to do my best as a wife. It's different being a wife of someone in the ministry, but I've seen my mom and grandma do it my whole life. And while Luke is only part time in ministry now, that may change in the future, and I'm trying to become a woman after God's own heart as much as I can, so I can handle it. It's a blessing to be married to a man who wants to serve God, but it doesn't come with out it's trials. My mom is a good example, so I'm hoping to become more like her as I grow in my faith.

When Luke and I were engaged we picked out a verse that we wanted to be the "theme" of our marriage. Psalm 115:18- "But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the Lord!" So, this is what we're trying to do, I'm finding my own failures more and more as I seek God, but you can't change them until you know them. God has been patient with me, as has Luke. But I'm thankful for the examples I've been given in my life.

God bless

first anniversary

2008-04-15T12:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was our 1 year anniversary. Thinking back to 1 year ago, so much has changed. I remember how new and fresh everything seemed to be. And both Luke and I really felt like adults for the first time when we left together for our honeymoon. Our wedding was definitely my favorite, I have a lot of good memories, and a lot of nice pictures of it as well.

So, yesterday, while I was at work, my mother-in-law came by and dropped off a card. But I was in with a patient when she came by, so I missed her. But they got us a hotel room in Newport for this upcoming weekend. We're excited to get away for a night.

But the best was when I got home someone was knocking at the door. And it was Luke all dressed up in slacks and a tie with a flower for me. He had gotten off work early to go home and clean up and get my a flower. And I'm standing there in my scrubs, so I threw something nice one real quick and we went into Seaside to our favorite Italian restaurant. We had a very good night, and now I can say I've been married for over a year.

for the sake of others

2008-04-13T18:25:00.000-07:00

Today at church was really good. Luke got to use his new shiny guitar and the word was very uplifting, in a convicting kind of way. James (our pastor) talked about how in Acts Timothy got circumcised before joining Paul for the ministry. It's kind of a small verse in chapter 16 about it, but our pastor basically wanted to bring up the act of brotherly love that Timothy had by doing that. How Timothy didn't have to do that, but for the sake of the ministry decided that his flesh and pain wasn't as important as the work of the Lord. And the thought that he shouldn't have had to do that, but the Jews were still under the idea of the law, is really powerful. James then went through a couple verses to just talk more about putting yourself aside for the sake of others and the Lord. Like in 1 cor. 9 Paul talks about surrendering his rights, and in verse 12- "but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ"

The main point really was why do we have such a hold on our personal rights? In our country we're very blessed, and we have rights more than most, but we can get so caught up in them. Not allowing anyone to take them away from us, but why? For our own needs and wants? Christ gave up his "rights" for the sake of us, didn't he? Jesus is God, and he put aside the honor and worship that he deserves and suffered the cross. So, whatever meaningless rights I stand for don't really compare. Mostly what was being taught today was watch yourself when you care more about your rights than the work of the Lord. There's really nothing wrong with having them, but it's not the end of the world if we have to give up something for Jesus. So, it was a convicting message today, which is good.

Well, after church Luke and I drove down to Cannon Beach for lunch and to walk around. It was nice to kind of get out of the area, sort of. It's really only 40 min. away, but we never seem to go down there anymore.

I hope everyone had a good Sunday, and God bless

Luke's newer toy

2008-04-11T21:14:00.001-07:00

We drove out today with our pastor, James, into Portland to the guitar center to get things for church. When we got there he pretty much told Luke that the church wanted to buy him a new guitar. They decided that he has been very faithful with them and his ministry and felt like they wanted to bless him this way. So, Luke got a brand new acoustic/electric Martin guitar. It was a huge surprise, neither of us saw it coming, and it really was a huge blessing for Luke. The Lord is amazing how he likes to bless people and puts it on other's hearts to bless people. We never thought we would be able to get this kind of guitar for Luke, and now he has one.

So, I need to update, again, our inventory; 1 acoustic/electric guitar, 2 acoustic guitars, 2 electric guitars, 1 bass, 1 keyboard, 1 violin, and 1 amp. However, the gal from church who gave Luke the violin has been saving money for a guitar so she can learn. So we're thinking of giving her Luke's old one that he had been using. Along with the mustard yellow guitar case that he got as a gift from Ryan. That case really seems to be a traveling guitar. Well, that's my update.

God bless

Luke's new toy

2008-04-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

A gal from our church offered Luke her violin for free. So, last night Luke got a new violin. It looks like a pretty nice one, and it has a good looking case too. He doesn't know how to play a violin though, so I'm sure he's going to be trying to teach himself a lot now. When I was in 6th grade I played violin at my school, so I was at least able to teach him how to hold the bow, and to not touch the bow hair. But that was about it. I have a feeling I'm not going to like hearing him learn the violin, nor will our neighbors. But I suppose it could be worse, at least it's not the bagpipes.

Just a quick inventory of all the instruments we now have in out tiny one bedroom apartment; 2 acoustic guitars, 2 electric guitars, 1 bass, 1 keyboard, 1 amp, and now 1 violin. All we need now are some drums and bagpipes.

Well, tonight we're going out to dinner with a bunch of friends from our church. This resturant by our house that we like has 80's night every Thursday night. So the prices are less, but the downfall is that they play 80's music. (Which I think only Amy would appreciate.) However, we're still looking foward to that. That's about all the new news for us.

God bless

don't be frazzled

2008-04-08T12:17:00.001-07:00

I'm currently reading 1 Samuel and this thought came up while reading that I wanted to share.
First 2:7-8
"The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD's, and on them he has set the world."
Then 3:18b
"It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him."

These verses were about two different subjects, but I think they go well together. Basically I was thinking how good it is that God dose what he wants and is in control. I know to some people that sounds like a lame answer to the 'what ifs' and 'whys' in life, but I rejoice that I don't need to know the answers. If I thought I had to understand everything that happens to be a good christian, well I would be depressed. Because I hardly ever know what's going on. I like to tell people, and myself, that God's in charge and will handle it. So many things in my day can get me frazzled if I let them, what a blessing to tell myself I don't have to worry about it. We serve a pretty big God. So, if you're frazzled, calm down; you have a big God!

"my heart stands in awe of your words"

2008-04-05T10:24:00.000-07:00

I think sometimes, and this probably true for many people, I lose my grasp on my God. I know that this side of heaven I'll never fully understand God or praise him like I should, but sometimes I find myself going through the christian loops and not keeping my eyes on Jesus. So, when I notice that I've gotten myself I normally go through the Psalms. If only I had a heart like the psalmists.

Psalm 89:5-12
"Let the heavens praise your wonders, O LORD, your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones! For who in the skies can be compared to the LORD? Who among the heavenly beings is like the LORD, a God greatly to be feared in the council of the holy ones, and awesome above all who are around him? O LORD God of hosts, who is mighty as you are, O LORD, with your faithfulness all around you? You rule the raging of the sea; when it's waves rise, you still them. You crushed Rahab like a carcass; you scattered your enemies with your mighty arm. The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours; the world and all that is in it, you have founded them. The north and south, you have created them."

I don't know why I ever stray from God, this amazing God. Sometimes I feel like I would like to know all of the Lord's glory and majesty, but to be honest, I would probably blow up if I did. I know that's not really the nicest way to put it, but I think it would happen. Our God is so big, and I am so small, I wouldn't be able to handle it. It does say in 1 Corn. I think 10:13, how God knows what we can handle and doesn't give us more than that.

But do you ever wonder why, out of all of his creation, that God loves us most? Our life is a "passing shadow" and our thoughts are "but a breath." This amazing, huge God loves me. Kind of remarkable, don't you think? Words can't express how thankful I am that we serve an intimate, relational God.

Psalm 56: 8-13
"You have kept count of my tossing; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you. For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life."

"my heart stands in awe of your words!"

sick Luke

2008-04-03T15:42:00.000-07:00

Well, Luke is pretty sick. He got what everyone else is getting. He had to cancel out on the youth group on Tuesday and bible study on Wednesday. Luckily, he was able to find people to cover for him. He's sleeping right now because he came home from work early. I've noticed that he's kind of like a little kid when he's sick, it's sort of cute. But only when he's home. One thing about Luke is that he hates to miss work, so he'll go even if he's miserable, and only come home if he's really falling apart. But when he's home, it's a little different. He loves to be babied by me. The other night he got in bed with the covers up to his chin and told me he was ready for his NyQuil. So, I brought him his medicine in bed. I guess I'm just a sucker. Also, his voice keeps going in and out, which he thinks sounds cool. So he'll keep talking to hear himself, which makes him laugh, which makes it worse. I'm hoping that it doesn't last too long. It isn't fun watching him be miserable and bummed about missing work.

On other news, we have some friends getting married this weekend. I'm always excited about going to weddings, especially now that I am married. I don't have to conveniently hide in the bathroom anymore when it comes to the bouquet toss. (And I know that I'm not alone on this, I always see 5 or 6 other girls with the same idea.) But I also realized that Luke and I will be married for one year this month. Imagine that. It's been a long and quick year. I can't believe it, I guess we will official be out of the "honeymoon" stage. I guess our next big event will be when we start having kids, but I'm still waiting around for Jenaya to get her act together. (I guess that's sort of an inside joke, but it's really not worth hearing about.)

I did finish the book of Ruth yesterday, I always like that book. It's a good book to show how the Lord provides for us. Well, God bless.

new picture

2008-04-02T12:28:00.000-07:00

I got a new picture. I hope everyone likes it. I had my friend Jenaya get on my account and change it for because I don't know how. And when she did that she took away the link for my brothers blog. I've asked her to put it back on, so I should get it soon. But Dave, so you know, I'm not mad at you, it was Jenaya.

:)

Tova's service

2008-03-29T21:22:00.000-07:00

Luke and I just got back from up north and we were very glad that we went. We drove up Thursday night and came Saturday evening (today). On Friday was the memorial service for my cousin Tova. First there was a grave-side service for the family and some close friends, and what a blessing it was. It was actually snowing during the service, and it was so quiet and peaceful and beautiful. If was almost funny, everyone was standing outside with their umbrellas in the snow. I'm not sure how much a person who passes away actually sees back on earth, but everyone thought that Tova would have found that funny.

But it was beautiful, and very special. My grandpa spoke at that one and talked about how we had all lost a little bit of our hearts because we had given it to Tova, and how true that is. It was a moving, emotional time, but the Lord was present and that was a comfort. He finished the service by saying "goodnight sweetheart." It was a very nice service. After that was the main service where someone said there must have been over 300 people. It was so amazing to see all those people and all the different people that Tova had touched. It was wonderful.

So, now the family has to go back to normal life. Please pray for my family, I think it will be hard for those who were closer to her. Mainly her mom, husband, sister, and dad. God is good and can do amazing things through trials. He has already done amazing things and I'm looking forward to what he has next. Thanks for your prayers, and God bless.

snow

2008-03-26T17:01:00.000-07:00

It's currently snowing here at my house, kind of werid for the end of March. But we've had weird weather this winter. I was planning on taking my car in today to have the studs taken off of the tires, but maybe next week. It was coming down pretty strong for a while, but has now turned into rain. They say there will be more tomorrow and Friday.

Luke and I are going up north this weekend for the memorial service for Tova. It's been a hard week to be away from my family, so I'm thankful for the couple of days we get to spend time with them. Nothing new has been happening with us, I'm still sick so I'm not getting much sleep these days. But I have so many days off that it really doesn't matter.

We have bible study tonight, so I'm glad we still have the studs because we have to go over the Astoria bridge into Washington. We need to leave soon, so this is all I'm going to write for today.

God bless

Thank you Jesus

2008-03-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

My cousin went home to Jesus last night. Thank you to those who prayed, many things happened right before she died that really blessed the family, so thank you! Last night around 7:00 my mom called me to let me know it was soon going to happen, and I had a very hard time fighting the tears back. Once I was off the phone I had to help Luke with worship music and do the overhead, and it was difficult. But once I got the phone call that she had died, the Lord blessed me with more peace than I thought I would have. In my heart I could feel this burden being taken away and God was telling me that he had her, and everything was ok. Praise God! Other members of my family had the same kind of comfort as well. My mom said after she heard and was heading towards the hospital that she heard the new version of Amazing Grace with the line "my chains are gone, I've been set free," and told me how much that comforted her. God is good and faithful to take care of us.

A friend of the family had visited Tova different times while she was in the hospital, and once had talked about the difference between goodnight and goodbye. For an unbeliever, when they die it's goodbye. But for a believer it's goodnight here and good morning in heaven. This man came and saw her this last week and while leaving said he wasn't sure when he would see her again, so was going to say goodnight for now. And her response was "Amen". (Thank you Lord so much for her salvation!) Our whole family is so joyful to here things like this and we really do praise God for what he has done for her. It is very comforting to know that Tova has in no way ceased to exist, but it very much alive with Christ right now.

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enable him even to subject all things to himself. Therefore, my brother, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved." Phil. 3:20-4:1

To think about how her body has been changed and she is now glorified with Christ in a place where there is no tears, and no pain or sorrow makes my heart fill with joy. It's difficult for the family that's left behind, but it only has to be goodnight for now.

The hymn It is Well With my Soul has been going through my mind the last week or so and I just want to write out the words as I finish this up.

When peace like a river, attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, thou has taught me to say,
"It is well, it is well with my soul."

It is well with my soul, it is well, it is well, with my soul.

My sin, Oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Oh my soul!

And, Lord, hast the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Lord, thank you for your comfort and peace that makes it well with my soul. Thank you for Tova and that you have her safely with you. Please continue to comfort the rest of the family and her friends during this time. Praise you Father, for who you are and the love you have for us. Thank you that you care so much about us, that you have even kept count of our tossings, and put our tears in a bottle. You know us and know our sorrow, thank you for your healing. In Jesus' name, Amen.

pray for family

2008-03-18T20:27:00.000-07:00

I feel like I've finally caught some kind of bug. Everyone around me kept getting it, but I had no problems. Until last night. But it's really not that bad. I don't think it's going to last long. Right now Luke is out doing the music for the church youth group, and yesterday he was out practicing for it. So I feel like I haven't seen my husband since Sunday, but some weeks are just like that. I'm looking forward to Thursday when we get to spend more than 20 min. together. We're going out to dinner with our friend from church. It's weird how you can live with someone, but feel like you never see them. But that's really not true, we just have busy weeks sometimes.

Anyway, I wrote about my cousin in the last post, and I didn't really understand how much longer she was going to live. I had thought it was a couple weeks to months, but it seems like it's more a couple days to weeks. I've never really known someone who's passed away before. I've noticed that I can't think about it without crying, but I still have peace. It's a weird combination; crying with peace. My family has been keeping me posted on the updated news about her, and it comes down to that her body can't continue on it's own. She will need constant help from people and through medical help. My grandpa sent out an email that said they are praying that God takes her to Him soon. So, though I'm peacefully crying, I ask that you do the same. Please remember my family, this is hard for all of them.

In Romans it says, "Likewise the Spirit helps us in out weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words."

I know I've heard different meanings for what this verse means, but it's good to know that I don't have to know what to pray for, but I can still pour my heart out to God. Thanks, and God bless.

Rachel

our weekend

2008-03-17T12:13:00.000-07:00

Luke and I had a very good trip, and I'm going to try and add some pictures of it later if I can. But we drove up Thursday night after Luke got off work. We enjoy driving up Thursday more than Friday, because then we can sleep in on Friday. So, when we got to mom and dad's, Jenaya was already there and stayed with us for the weekend. I guess she kind of house-hops all the time. Which I think is pretty cool, but I've always liked my own bed better then others. So, on Friday the three of us went to a movie, then to Dave and Michelle's house for dinner. Unfortunately, because of Michelle's schedule, we weren't able to see her there.

After that we went over to Ryan and Amy's to see little Anna. And she was so tiny! They were worn out, but it was still grat to be able to go over there. We all played a couple of games on the Wii till we left around 11:00. And Chantal and Justin came over as well. So, Luke and Justin have this really weird friendship that's kind of hard to explain. You just need to witness it for yourself. But they always want to hang out as long as they can, so the five of us went out to Denny after we left the Wood's. If you know anything about Luke and I, we have bedtimes! And we don't make it past our bedtimes very well. But, we finally got home before 1:00.

Saturday was a big day, first, Luke found out that one of our tires had a big hole in it. So, he had to deal with that for most of the morning. Then, my mom got a new puppy. My parents and Jenaya and I drove out to get him, and he is very cute. After that, (almost) my whole family got together for all the March birthdays. I think it's been since last May since I've seen all of them, so it was wonderful to go. This party was the whole reason why Luke and I went up for the weekend. To be honest, it was kind of a bitter/sweet event. My family is very close, and we have a family member who is very sick and is currently going through the end stages of cancer and having to deal with all that comes with that. It's difficult seeing her in pain for all of us. But I was blessed by the party. I really think it's uplifting to everyone to get together. We all used to do it a lot, but the business of life has slowed that down. Plus, all the grandkids got married and most of them have children, so it's hard to find a date that works with everyone.

I would ask, though, if whoever reads this, would pray for my cousin, and all the family. She has told us that she put her faith in Jesus. And if that's true, then praise Him! Her pain and sorrow won't last forever! Heaven's descibed as a place without tears, or pain; which is wonderful to put our hope in. But through all of this, God is in control. And it's a huge relief for me to give that burden to Him. I'm praying that my cousin is able to do the same. I can't imagine living my life without knowing Christ and having an acutal real relationship with him. I believe my cousin is going to heaven, because of what she has said, but life isn't really worth it without the Lord. Normally, when someone gets saved, they change their life over to Christ, but for some people, it's harder to pick that up. But I'm praying for her, and hoping she seeks the blessing of peace from God. I think that God really dose want to bless people, but we always have to choose to accept it.

Well, on Sunday we went to Valley Bible Church, and then drove home after that. Overall, it was a very good weekend!

God bless, Rachel

taste and see that the Lord is good

2008-03-13T12:27:00.001-07:00

I'm currently reading through Judges, and if you haven't read it, I would recommend it. I know some of the Old Testiment books are hard to read, but it's still worth reading. It has some pretty good stories in it, ones I always forget about until I read them again. But like the one of Ehud who stabs the bad king in the stomach, and since the king is so fat, the sword goes all the way in him and his fat closes up around it. Or of Shamgar who by himself killed 600 men with an oxgoad. And Jael, the woman who put a tent peg through the head of another bad king. Storeis like these you would think someone was making up, but they're all in there. At least the average person can't say the Bible is boring.
Anyways, I really didn't mean to write about that, I'm reading about the story of Gideon. The people of Israel keep going back and forth between God and idols. It seems like only when they have a leader to bring them out of suffering will the worhsip God. (Which reminds me of how patient and merciful our God is with us. When ever they call out to him for help, he answers. And you know he's just waited for us to call out to him.) But how the Lord delivers them from the hand of their enemies. And Gideon destroys their alter to Baal. The Lord was with him, and because of that, they had victory. When he (Gideon) first went out against their enemies, the Lord said they had too many people in thier army. The Lord wanted it to be clear to everyone that it was him that was saving them, not by their own strenght. So 300 men went out against their enemies. They're described as "locusts in abundance, and as the sand that is on the seashore." It shows just how powerful our God is!
But in reading this is made me think of how happy I am to be a child of God. The people of Israel choose to go back and forth with God, but we also have that choice. It seems so obvious to live for the Lord, but for some reason, many people choose not to live with the promise of eternal life with Jesus. There's a prayer in the Valley of Vision that says,
"How do poor souls live who have not thee,
or when helpless have no God to go to,
who feel not the constraining force of thy love,
and the sweetness of communion?
O how admirably dost thou captivate the soul,
making all desires and affections centre on thee!"
I don't like to think of a life without my Savior, and I ask that God will give me a heart for the lost. They don't know they can go to God, what a horrible thought! Psalms 36 says;
"Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgments are like the great deep;
man and beast you save, O Lord.
How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the aboundance of your house,and you give them drink from the river of your delight.
For with you is the foundtain of life; in your light do we see light."

I pray that God will use me to save the lost, that they could see the God that made them. And the promises he has. We will never be able to find a love like His, and if someone is reading this who doesn't know what I'm talking about, seek the Lord out! The bible says to "taste and see that the Lord is good."

God bless

busy weekends

2008-03-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

Luke and I went over to Bend, Oregon this weekend. We drove around 5 hours on Friday and came back Saturday. It's weird how you get so worn out after a long drive when you're not even doing anything. But we were very glad that we went. We got to see Katelynn, and it was wonderful to hang out with them. She was 8lbs, and 3 oz, and 21.5inches long. Very cute.

This weekend, Luke and I are going up to Auburn to see my family. We're having a March birthday party on Saturday. We have around 5 or 6 March birthdays in our family. I'm really looking foward to that and getting to spend time with them. Also, my parents are picking up their new puppy on Saturday! I've seen one picture of him and he' s really cute, so that's pretty exciting.

Other than that, nothing else is new with us, we have a pretty easy week. We only have one thing going on on Wednesday, other then leaving Thursday for Auburn. It's been nice to see our schedule slow down some. Well, God bless, and I'm going to try and put pictures of Katelynn on here if I can.

Babies!

2008-03-06T21:20:00.001-08:00

There were two babies born this week! Our good friends Amy and Ryan had Anna Sophia yesterday, and Luke's brother Aaron and his wife Kelly had Catlin Joe today. Luke and I have decided to go out tomorrow to Bend, Oregon to see Catlin. Next weekend we're going to be able to see Anna. So, we're pretty excited about all these new babies. Both moms are doing great and we're very happy for all of them. Maybe if I can figure it out, I'll try to put some pictures on my blog. And by the way, this is my first post from out apartment. We have internet!
Well, God bless

Psalm 103

2008-03-05T12:36:00.000-08:00

Psalm 103:11-14- "For as high as the heavens are above the earth; so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust."
What an amazing God we serve. I'm convicted that I can read a passage like this and totally read right through it. But when I really stop and think about the words it humbles me. These words weren't picked just becasue they're poetic, but because it's truth!
-As high as the heavens are above the earth-to just think about that phrase, and the distance that is, and that's how great his steadfast love is towards those who fear him.
-As far as the east is to the west-I've heard this before that no matter how far east you go, you'lll never start going west. If they had written as far as the north is to the south, well, if you keep going north you'll eventually start going south. But God decided to use these words. Which means our transgression are as far away from us as they could get. Never to eventually come back up again.
-As a father- The God of the universe decided to describe himself to us like a father. I don't understand it, but it's still so wonderful.
-He knows our frame- maybe this is out of context, but it reminds me that our God is a relational God. How happy I am that I don't wroship a dead figure or a piece of metal. But we worship a living God who loves us and is alive, and knows who we are.
I'm thankful that God is in control, what a sad life it would be to live without Christ!

Well, Amy and Ryan might be having their Anna right now, so Lord, please protect Anna and Amy, and please keep them healthy. And I ask that you would bless their day with her and Rylie. Amen.

God bless, Rachel

We're giving in

2008-03-03T12:20:00.000-08:00

So, Luke and I are actually getting internet. It will officially be turned on on March 5th. (If we can figure out how to set it up by then is another issue.) It's an added $50 to have someone do it for us, so we decided to try it ourselves. On other news, not much has been going on. Sunday service wnet very well, the worship music leader sounded wonderful. And he was wearing a new shrit that only cost $10. It's amazing how better things look when they're on sale.
Today has been a typical busy Monday in the office, but a drug rep brought M&M's, so things are good. Luke has had a little bit of a stuffy nose, so, his snoring has reached a new pitch. Which did keep me up last night, but I have a big bag of M&M's, so things are good.
Well, I'm almost done with the book of Joshua in my personal devotions, and 24:15b stood out to me. It's such a familiar verse that sometimes I read past those ones. -"But as for me and my house; we will serve the Lord."- It reminded me of how blessed I am with my husband! God gave me a man after his own heart, which is so true. If you only knew his heart like I do, you would know how much he seeks the Lord. And chooses to lead our family closer to Christ. He was sharing last night at church and while he was talking I thought about this verse, and how he is chosing to fullfill it. The Lord is good, in all that he gives. Especially Luke. (Even with the high pitched snoring.) I am so thankful that he loves Jesus!

God is good

2008-02-25T12:09:00.000-08:00

I had a wonderful weekend that I thought I would share. First Luke and I went to a couples conference in Longview. And his parents paid for us to stay in a hotel up there, so it was like a little getaway. But I was truly blessed. It was encouraging to learn under the speaker and his wife and it really put a couple things right in my mind. A couple things he talked about was the difference between obedeince and submission. How we can obey what our husband chooses, but we don't have a sumbisssive heart or spirit about it. Which I know that I do, I'll follow what Luke says, but I don't always support it. So, that was something I feel God really wanted me to learn on this trip. And also to try and see our husbands through God's eyes. Because I don't love Luke like God loves Luke. So, learning to pray that God will let me see him like he sees him. And it's funny because I learned a lot about how I'm lacking as a wife, but I was still blessed by it.
Then on Sunday James talked about suffering. (And I'm really not trying to connect the two subjects. It just happened to be what I learned this weekend.)
But he spoke froom Acts 9:16-"I will show him (Paul) how much he must suffer for my name's sake. " But basically how we will suffer as Christians, but God is good, all the time. And that he's worth it. Also, how people sometimes see your faith best when it's during hard times. But Romans 8:18 says-"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." Amen! Here in America we don't have to worry about too much hard suffering for Christ, but we all hear the stories about it. And that is not to be compared! What a day it will be when we are in heaven!
1 Peter 1:8-9- "Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy tht is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls."
1 Peter 5:10-"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. "
I love that God is in control, especially during the difficult times. And that I can have Jesus as my hope. I can't imagine going through a hard time with out the hope in Christ. Thinking about it that way makes me pray more for people who aren't saved.
Well, hope that my rammbling encouraged someone, God is good, all the time.

God bless

a hard week; cont.

2008-02-20T12:03:00.001-08:00

Also, one of the hardest things about moving to Oregon is being out of touch with Ryan and Amy. :)

a hard week

2008-02-19T12:23:00.000-08:00

It has been a frustrating week, and it's only Tuesday! I keep gettting bothered by a couple of my patients and realized I need to chill out and change my attitude. (Sometimes I wonder if they plot against me and gang up on me at the same time. ) So, since I needed to change my attitude, I looked back at some of my recent devotions. Last week I was reading Deuteronomy 31 and 32. And it blessed me then, and God is blessing me now by remembering it. So, Moses is about to die and God tells him that when they go into the promise land that they're going to rebel against him. What God chooses to do next amazes me; he decides to have Moses teach them a song so they will remember him. God knows what they're going to do, but makes a way so it will be easy for them and their children to remember him and hopefully go back to him. God is so merciful, he doesn't just give up on his horrible people. SO, I need to get over my slump, (is that a word?) And remember who my God is, and how he didn't forget about me or give up on me, but is involved with me every min. of the day. It sort of reminds me of that verse in 1 Corinthians, where it says God is faithful, and won't let you be tempted more than what you can handle. But provides a way to escape.
Well, other than my rough week, we have the church youth group tonight. Luke leads the music for that, however, we're praying for someone to take that over for him. The pastor as well, has been looking for someone because he knows how busy Luke is. So please pray that someone will come soon, then Luke can spend more time on other things a little bit more. Also, I got an email from my mom that our cousin has started to get weaker. Our family is planning a big party so we can all get together. Please pray that Luke and I can find someone to cover for him for church so we can plan to go. It's going to be a little bit more difficult to get away for weekends now with his responsibilitys at church, but we're hoping to make it. The hardest part about moving to Oregon is being out of touch with family and not being around to spend time with them. So, it would be wonderful to be able to go with Luke. Well, that's about it.
God bless

first Sunday service

2008-02-18T12:22:00.000-08:00

So, this past weekend was the first for the new church. This past week we've been helping get everything ready, with painting and cleaning. Luke spent all Saturday there helping out. But it went very well, we had a little over 50 people for our first Sunday. Luke was nervous about the music, but he did wonderful. I got to man the overhead, which is not as easy as it looks. :) James talked out of Acts about the church in Antich, mostly verse 22 and about staying close to Christ. But it was very good, and I heard a lot of people were blessed by it. We also had a night service, that a couple of the same people came to. So, overall, it was a very good day.
Other than that, notmuch has been going on with us. My parents are getting a new dog, so I'm excited about that. But not as much as my mom is. Luke and I are seriously considering getting internet soon, but who knows when.
We're going to a couple's conference this weekend. The speakers are Don and Jen Mcclure, I really don't know anything about them, but we're looking foward to it. It's something that Coastline is doing. Also, Luke's brother and his wife are expecting a baby, so we're hoping to hear any day that they had her! We're wanting to take a trip to Bend sometime after she is born to see them. Well, I think that's pretty much all the new news, God bless,

His mercies are new EVERY morning

2008-02-11T12:44:00.000-08:00

Well, I had a couple min. to write something. I do have internet on my computer at work, so during my lunch break I can get online. I'm excited today because Luke and I actually have nothing to do today. This will be the first day in maybe three weeks that we didn't have something going on.
A verse I watned to share- Lamentations 3:22-24
"The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 'The LORD is my portion,' says my soul, 'therefore I will h ope in him.' "
We used to sing this in a song all the time at church, but what a promise to have! His mercies are new EVERY morning. We can wake up each day and know that God is merciful. What an amazing God we serve.

Well, God bless

going back home

2008-02-10T10:21:00.000-08:00

So, Luke and I are going back home today. I thought I would put one more blog, or whatever these are called, on. (Thank you Jenaya for setting this up for me.) We had such a good time while we were here, and I was really encouraged to get to spend time with friends and family. God is good, all the time. Even when I'm homesick for Washington.
But next weekend is the first Sunday of the church plant in Long Beach. It's very exciting to be a part of this right from the start! The bible study has been going on for almost a year, and the first Sunday will be almost one year to the day. It is so amazing to watch God at work. So, please pray for us, and the pastor James, and for Luke who will be leading the music. Please pray that we will learn to depend on God, and not think that we have everything figured out. Because it's never easy when God reminds you that you don't. But most of all, that Christ will shine in that town through this ministry. We know that he will guide us and take care of us, and that he is in control. Praise God that he's the one running things! It reminds me of a verse from my devotions a while ago in Numbers 23:19. The context is about the deal with Balaam and Balak, but it's "God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?" I'm blessed by this verse because our God is not fickle, like us. God is in control, and what a relief that is.
Luke and I are excited to see the Lord's course in our lives, and hope that we can pay attention to his leading. Well, God bless,

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

Hello vast world of the internet!

2008-02-09T21:08:00.000-08:00

Wow! My own blog! So, I got this because I felt left out from my friends. And now I can find out what's going on with my friends in Washington. So, I don't have internet, so I may never check it, but it's the idea of it that I like.

Well, God bless,

Rachel