Our Own God

Any other Spurgeon fans out there?
His "Morning and Evening" always seems to be perfectly relevant. Thought I would pass today's along...

"God, even our own God."—Psalm 67:6.

It is strange how little use we make of the spiritual blessings which God gives us, but it is stranger still how little use we make of God Himself. Though He is "our own God," we apply ourselves but little to Him, and ask but little of Him. How seldom do we ask counsel at the hands of the Lord! How often do we go about our business, without seeking His guidance! In our troubles how constantly do we strive to bear our burdens ourselves, instead of casting them upon the Lord, that He may sustain us! This is not because we may not, for the Lord seems to say, "I am thine, soul, come and make use of me as thou wilt; thou mayst freely come to my store, and the oftener the more welcome." It is our own fault if we make not free with the riches of our God. Then, since thou hast such a friend, and He invites thee, draw from Him daily. Never want whilst thou hast a God to go to; never fear or faint whilst thou hast God to help thee; go to thy treasure and take whatever thou needest—there is all that thou canst want. Learn the divine skill of making God all things to thee. He can supply thee with all, or, better still, He can be to thee instead of all. Let me urge thee, then, to make use of thy God. Make use of Him in prayer. Go to Him often, because He is thy God. O, wilt thou fail to use so great a privilege? Fly to Him, tell Him all thy wants. Use Him constantly by faith at all times. If some dark providence has beclouded thee, use thy God as a "sun;" if some strong enemy has beset thee, find in Jehovah a "shield," for He is a sun and shield to His people. If thou hast lost thy way in the mazes of life, use Him as a "guide," for He will direct thee. Whatever thou art, and wherever thou art, remember God is just what thou wantest, and just where thou wantest, and that He can do all thou wantest.

ups and downs

We were reminded over these past 2 weeks that you just don't know what a day (or a week) might hold.  

My mom came for the weekend a couple of weeks ago, and man, we had a great time. She got to run her first 10k and I got to run it alongside of her! Such a great time. And for your first 10k, the Cap10k here in Austin is hard to beat. She did great! We tried to set a steady pace and I think it worked pretty well- we would jog for 3 songs and then walk 1. This kept us from becoming a little too overly-ambitious! Another perk for me was no hamstring pain! Yes! That means more races in the future for me. I'm pretty stoked about that.

a cloudy cover- perfecto race day conditions!

Gigi celebrates the end of the race with her biggest fan!

post-run view!

Chick had a wonderful time with her Gigi! From eating kolaches in the backseat to having Gigi help her change out Minnie's outfits at least 100 times, she knew that Gigi was one special lady. Ever since my mom went back home, Chick keeps asking if Gigi will be wherever we might be going. Poor gal! I have to break the news to her time and time again that Gigi won't be showing up at the Techridge HEB this week ;)

bonding over a book...

The day after our big race we got (what we thought would be) some exciting news- Bart and I learned that we were expecting #2! And to have my mom there to share the news with was so special. Sadly, that week I started experiencing some pretty intense symptoms which were immediate red flags. As the symptoms escalated, we were able to confirm that we had miscarried. We've been here before; this was sadly a familiar place for us. 

Children are such a gift. No matter how long or brief they are with us. We are believing the truth that God creates all things for His glory, even those tiny lives that we may never meet here on earth. 

And God has been providing for us so, so richly. 

My dear friend, Meghan, stepped up and "made" me let her watch Chick for the day while I was bedridden. (She knows I have a hard time accepting help!) Thanks, Meg!
My (new!) sweet friend, Kierstyn, watched Chick for me another day while I was passed out in bed AND brought us a delicious dinner. We are so, so blessed. 

My dear friend, Elisia, sent me a Google Invite asking me to let her watch Chick while Bart and I have a date night on Saturday. That will be like streams in the desert. And this dear friend is the most faithful in sharing pertinent, timely scriptures. Don't you know that what she shared was exactly what my heart needed to hear and believe. 

And to top it off, Bart's mom was able to come spend a few days with us. Her help was perfect. And Chick just loves, loves her Nana. They were able to make some memories together- drawing pictures (Nana drawing, Chick adding in her thoughtfully-placed scribbles), savoring some Amy's Ice Cream, and going on a hunt to spot some dogs around our complex. It was a win-win for everyone.

a stroll after Nana's birthday dinner!

Bart and Nana enjoy the Arboretum view

a coat? mmmm...thanks, but no thanks ;)

we never get tired of that Texas sky

To have friends and family checking in regularly and praying has just meant the world to us. 

Another point of healing for us has been to watch Chick. Oh we are so grateful for her. Watching her show off her great toddler, white-girl dance moves at the first notice of music...well that's enough to bring some joy to any rough day.

a little hike does a soul good

i see it too, Dad!

Loss just seems to be more and more a part of our lives over the past couple of years. But you know, maybe in some regards that is healthy. We are reminded that our home is not here, but with God in heaven. These seasons have kept me ever more dependent on God's grace and His comfort. My struggle and temptation has been to cave to turning bitter towards God. But I'm too much in need of Him to stay there for more than a moment. 

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 

Colossians 1:16

our trip to the sunshine state

Chick and I had an amazing week...

Family, a best friend, sand between our toes, amazing eats, shopping, R&R. Yup. Doesn't get much better than that!

Since my grandma and Chick hadn't had the chance to meet yet we decided to take a trek to see her at her home in the luxurious Naples, Florida. 

Chick took to Grandma right away. she was right at home in her lap!

shopping with Grandma? I'm in! let's "go, go, go"! (some of my tots favorite words)

Grandma got major brownie points for always offering yummy treats ;) this girl is a snacky-mc-snackerson!

 Another equally as compelling reason for traveling to Florida was to meet up with my VERY dear friend, Tamara! A friendship like this doesn't come along every day. Tamara and I met back when Bart and I lived in Auburn. And Bart actually knew her before he and I ever met! He thinks that it is so funny that we are such close friends now. Like worlds colliding for him, I guess! Anyway, Tamara and her precious family now live in the Bahamas and have an amazing guide company that they own and manage. OK- I've got to put in a plug here: if you are looking for a vacay of a lifetime, check out Out Island Explorers! Bart and I are just dying to experience it for ourselves one of these days. Hopefully sooner rather than later!! 

So since the Bahamas is relatively close to Florida, Tamara flew in for a long weekend and stayed with us. And I was so thankful that it worked out because I was in desperate need of some girl-time and definitely in need of some Tamara-time! Did my soul good. I so loved the days in Auburn when we had our girls' Bible study together (nothing like bonding over Scripture!), so this was just like old times in so many ways!

love this gal! if only we lived closer.

Now you don't go to Florida coast without going to the beach. That was one rule that we weren't about to break. 

chubby tot legs and feet in the sand. can't get enough of that!

Miss Tamara was the perfect beach guide. She's quite experienced, ya know. Chick trusted her wholeheartedly!

one brave little gal!

everyone had a chair of their own for perfect beach lounging!

playtime in the sand. she could have done this aaaallllll day.

Another wonderful perk was getting the chance to spend time with her Great Aunt Linda (my grandmother's sister). She is a kiddo magnet! Chick couldn't get enough of her! 

Chick and Aunt Linda read together in the backseat

Aunt Linda also had an amazing dog that quickly became Chick's bff. Here they are enjoying a little dance together.  

 The week went by too fast, just like we were afraid of. But we made so many wonderful memories! And we just can't wait to do it again...

times, they are a-changin'

Bart and I have been praying fervently over our past 5 years (has it really been that long since we've lived in Austin?!) that God would clearly direct us. Direct us in our careers, callings, relationships, community, etc. etc, all so the life of our family would bring glory to Him. In many ways He has made it very clear, but there have been some big aspects of our lives that have not been so apparent. Do we stay in Austin? Does Bart (and our family) make the move to full-time ministry? Do we stay in Austin  or move closer to family (because being away from family is so hard sometimes)?

These "uncertainties" have made "walking by faith" very challenging at times over the past few years. I won't dive in to too many of the nitty gritty details here, but let me just say, over the past 2 months, it's felt like clouds parting for us. Piece after piece has been falling into place and a sense of spiritual clarity is being restored. It feels so good. It feels so good to have direction and to know that God has not forgotten us!

I'm excited to share how God has been ordering our steps!!

- Bart has recently accepted new job as a project manager for a subcontractor in Georgetown, TX, a small town just north of Austin. No more brutal commuting for my hubby!
- We will be taking part in a church plant that will begin early fall of this year. The plant just so happens to feel called to Round Rock/Georgetown and will be meeting in north Round Rock. Perfecto.
- We put an offer in on a house and it was accepted! A backyard for Chick to run to her heart's content...aaaahhhh. And foster kids... we've got space for you now too! Another bonus is that it's right down the street from Bart's work. After traveling back and forth via Mo-Pac and I-35 over the past several years, he is excited to just take a few turns on some country roads to get to and from work.

the sign in the yard reads, "PENDING"!

Georgetown will be a very-welcomed change in pace for us. Since my college days I declared myself a true city-lover. Maybe the kids in our lives have been the culprit of shifting that desire for me... but over the past year I've had this insatiable need for clean air, space, and nature. I came across this page in one of our picture books that Chick and I read recently. This page from The Little House sums me up pretty well these days:

looking forward to "quiet and peaceful" in our small, country neighborhood

It's almost as if God is giving me the desires of my own heart by moving us to Georgetown. I bet these desires were planted there by Him in the first place :)

This desire for everything country has been pretty funny... my radio stays on our local country station the majority of the time, I'm always scheming our next family camping trip, and I bought a shotgun. Her name is Miranda. Bart tells me I'm even hotter now that I own a shotgun ;)

I'm looking forward to sharing the ways that God is working in and around us on this new journey ahead.  Because it's going to be an exciting one.

"ceremonies of our home"

I thought this was a fitting quote to sum up my last post! Love me some Noelle Piper!

treasuring Christ this Christmas

Holidays seem to have brought on new meaning for us as a family. With kiddos in the mix, it's a great chance to sit down and reflect on "why" we celebrate what we do and "how" we celebrate as a family. When "two become one" there is a natural mixing of holiday traditions and creating of new ones; some are more planned and then some just seem to naturally evolve. For Bart and myself, this has certainly been the case. It seemed to be a given that we would have a Christmas tree and hang stockings and enjoy a meal with family on Christmas day. Now that we have our sweet baby girl (and J-man last year!), we want to be intentional with how we celebrate. 

This year I read Treasuring God in Our Traditions by Noelle Piper. An excellent read and very timely for me personally. Having such a young family I'm so glad to get to think about these things from the start and pray through and plan how to make our holidays meaningful and *fun* for years to come. Traditions become such an important part of a family's culture and the family's culture becomes such a deep part of who a person is. I count it a privilege to get to help lead our family in this regard! 

Deuteronomy 6:1-8 gives us parents the charge to speak truth regularly in the home, and the holidays are no exception: 

 1 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, ² so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life.³ Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. ⁵ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Lately, I've had a growing desire to help Chick understand God and help her grow in knowledge and truth. And since Christmas is a celebration of Christ's birth, this was a prime occasion to help her grow in her understanding of Christ. What does this look like in our home? And what will this look like? Well, here's a little overview! I'm sure that this will evolve as she grows and as our family grows, but it's a start! 

Traditions to Come

First, I'm working on putting together a nativity. The goal is to have it up and running next year! I want Chick to have a visual representation of spiritual truths. Children learn best through hearing, seeing, and doing- what better way to learn the Christmas story than through hearing it as she looks at and plays with her nativity set?

Also, I'm working on a homemade Advent calendar to tell the story of Jesus. This will be a similar idea to the nativity set- something tangible for the children to interact with that helps to build their understanding of the Christmas story. I like simple and this will be a fantastic, simple way to retell the Story. 

Our Traditions This Year

This year was certainly a memorable one for us! We celebrated here at home in Austin and had a nice morning just the 3 of us. 

a little sweet surprise appeared in our stockings Christmas morning! chick's first taste of peanut butter and chocolate (notice the fingers). she was in love. yes, she is her mother's daughter.  

another fun surprise, her own special cooking utensils! sous chef!

the tree was in her room this year! she didn't seem to mind ;)

One of our favorite traditions that I'm excited to continue  from year to year is how we plan to give our gifts to our children. Bart and I each plan to pray for a verse to "give". This will serve as a "theme verse" for the year and will be unique to the season of life that s/he is in. The gift that we give her will go along with the theme of the verse in one way or another. We will write our verses on cards and take turns reading them aloud. And then, of course, the gift opening will follow!

My verses for Chick this year were from Galatians 5:22-25:

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

I want Chick to begin to grow in these qualities as she is in the foundational stages of developing deep character. These verses just seemed fitting. To go along with these verses, we got her some pretend fruits and veggies and her own little shopping cart. When she plays with the toys throughout the years, I'm hoping for lots of chances to shares these verses and scriptural truths with her!

Bart chose the verse Luke 2:40. This verse was talking about Jesus when He was a boy. Bart is praying that Chick will also grow in wisdom and become strong! 

And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon Him. (Luke 2:40)

We didn't have a gift to go along with this one, but that's OK ;)

Bart shares his verse with Chick. She's a little distracted at the moment, however... gotta love a 14 month old's attention span!

After our gift opening we had a special time to sit down as a family and read the Christmas story from her Bible, The Jesus Storybook. The climax of our celebration! The day was also filled with lots of chances to sing some of our favorite Christmas hymns. We also listened to Andrew Peterson's, Behold the Lamb of God, cd over and over. One of my all-time FAVORITES!! 

 Our Post-Christmas Adventures

The day after Christmas, Chick and I had the chance to travel to Tennessee to continue the holiday celebration!

she thinks that she sees papaw and gigi from the plane window!

 Unfortunately we didn't get to have as much fun as we hoped to have. Chick and I both came down with the flu! Ugh! It lasted our entire trip. Such a bummer. We still managed to eek in some good times. 

chick enjoyed a house filled with animals! here she is with sweet bandit. they were fast friends.

my sister, cassie, and her men! always great to spend time with them!

 I wish I had more photos from our time there, but when you're sick, there just aren't too many photo opps!

Bart had a little get-away himself! He decided last minute to take become a pioneer man for the week and go on a solo camping trip! He braved the extremely low temps and tent-camped for almost a week in Arkansas and had a blast fly fishing. He had such a good time, in fact, that we are hoping to take a family camping trip there very soon! 

it's a beaut!

a brisk morning on the river. bart was *home* :) 

 And now we say good-bye to yet another year and look ahead to 2013. I am anxious to see all the God has in store for us... I am praying that it is more of Him. 

the past few months

I feel like I'm always reaching towards a week, day, moment when life will slow down. But...it doesn't ever seem to happen! That's OK. We've been having a blast together as a family. And even if times seem crazy, I'm so thankful that we've been able to have the time of our lives in the midst of the hustle and bustle.

The Happenings....

My birthday:

NUMBER 30! We celebrated just the way I dreamed: slept in, went to the gym, a hike through balcones, dinner with my sweet little family at Olive Garden (their "dinner for tonight and dinner tomorrow" deal: delish!), ate Graeter's ice cream. The highlight though was probably when Bart proved his commitment to me and deep love for me when he voluntarily climbed into the dumpster at our apartment to try to find some checks that I was afraid that I had thrown away. Now that is true love, folks. The checks were found! Not in the dumpster, just next to our couch. He got a big smooch for that one.

a family hike!

Thanksgiving:

The girl + Papa & Nana's farm + good food = a great week.

This was the first time that she was able to meet her Uncle Jonny and Aunt Mandy. They were fast friends. We sure do wish family was closer, because, man, they really had such a wonderful time together.

Trip highlights:

- Bart got a chance to preach at the church he grew up in! He shared a great message, as always. 

best looking preacher I know.

Chick leads her cousin Rylee Grace around the church grounds. 

- Jonny and Mandy watched her for a few hours while Bart and I ran some errands. She had already been going hard all morning: running around the yard, bossing the dogs around. After we passed her off to Jonny and Mandy she continued playing, playing, playing outside. Mandy brought her in for a little break to have a snack and rehydrate. After the last blueberry, Chick was pointing outside, ready for more fresh farm air. Well, the fun finally caught up with her. She waddled up to the porch steps, climbed up to the porch, walked over to the door and started scratching at the door. Jonny scooped her up, encouraged her to keep playing outside (the weather was gorgeous!). She meandered back up the stairs picked up where she left off: scratch, scratch, scratch. Exhausted! Chick was ready for some R&R inside! Nana said that she had many a-animals scratch at her door over the years begging to come inside, but a granddaughter, now that was a first!

it was great to see Jonny and Mandy and also get the chance to remember their sweet baby boy, Ben, with them. 

- The beach! After growing up going to the beach regularly, Bart was eager to share this part of his life with his daughter. The waves and sand is always a little intimidating to little ones at first, but with a little help from Aunt Mandy, she was digging in the sand in no time. Then we treated ourselves to a little seafood from a nearby restaurant. That ocean sure does have some yummy things in it!
(I'll have to steal some pictures off of Bart's phone for this...)

- The animals were a big hit! She couldn't get enough of the dogs running every which way and cats zig zagging back and forth. Papa even set up Thunderhoof for her for a photo opp. Now Thunderhoof was a bit too much, but she sure did like him from a safe distance.

cowgirl in the making

just keep a safe distance from that horse though...

feeding herself a satsuma from the tree and feeding the dogs their food from their bowl. teamwork.

Chick gets the chance to help Papa feed the goat and the horse! all in a day's work on the farm. 

It was hard to leave family and go back to suburbian life. We know that this is where God has called us to for now, but one day, just one day, maybe we can live a calmer, simpler life. And being closer to family would be a wonderful bonus!

an amish wagon that sits in the Lipscombs' barn

Mrs. Rhonda's Model A, handed down to her from her dad

the view of the pasture from their back porch. the porch where Bart spent many days practicing his basketball skills.

Chick. right at home. 

The Chick:

This little gal continues to be a "girl on the go"! Our love grows for her by the day! A few fun little "Chick Facts":

- She is a "signing" machine! She is eager to communicate with us by using her budding verbal skills as well as her signing skills. "More" has, of course, become a fast favorite. "More" peas, "more" Sesame Street", "more" doggies, "more" Christmas tree. "Book" is also a favorite sign. I could not be more proud ;)

- Chick has some new "friends" in her life these days. Lately she's become a little more bonded with Minnie Mouse and Bunny, who make great napping/sleeping partners. When we give them to her, as if by reflex, she happily takes them, draws them in close, and snuggles her face into them. Ahhhh...life is goooood.

- Santa: no go. We went to a fun Delta Gamma Holiday Tea a couple of weeks ago and got to meet SANTA for the first time! As with most kiddos her age, she made it VERY clear that she did not want to get remotely near him. Our two pictures with Santa consist of her trying desperately to escape my arms to get away. Oh well! Other than that, we had a wonderful time together. I love getting to share special parts of my life with her. Delta Gamma is definitely near and dear to my heart!

- Chick is a bee-bopping fool! Wherever we are, if she hears music, she can't help but start moving and grooving to the beat. At the end of a song: "more", "more". We've got to get this girl into some Heartsong classes STAT!

J-man:

The big news in J's life is he is now a big brother! I had the chance to visit little bro and mom in the hospital right after he was born. My oh my. He looked so much like J when he was a baby. Brought back so many memories!

I just texted with mom and it looks like I get to watch J this Saturday! I just can't wait!