friend kidly

One of the friendkidly shop partners Linsey, along with her husband and two young sons, have been evacuated from their home due to this weekend’s fires in Yorba Linda, CA. They vacated around noon on Saturday and as of Sunday evening have yet to receive the go ahead to return. Because the not knowing was too much to bare Linsey’s husband parked as close as possible to their house, trekked across a dry riverbed and walked a few miles to ensure that their abode was still standing. Thank the Lord, their entire community was unscathed minus a burnt children’s play structure. They happen to live in one of the major hot spots so this was/is quite a blessing. The fires are not completely contained but we hope and pray that they are in the clear. Please join us in those prayers…thank you.

…Charlotte was baptized! We will observe this anniversary by lighting the same candle used for her baptism in remembrance of that very special event. It’s hard for me to believe that a year has gone by already let alone how much she has grown.

Also, check out the cool art Charlotte’s godfather gave her as a baptismal anniversary gift…cute, huh?

God bless you my little girl.

It might be due to Easter being early this year but Lent seemed to really fly by up until Holy Week where things slowed down to a nice reflective pace. J and I became a Godparents to little Henry David on Easter Even which was a beautiful experience. I’m really excited to be a Godmother and hope and pray that I live up to the title. Our Easter celebration started off wonderfully with the Easter Even service/baptism then off to Easter service the next morning followed by a nice gathering with the family. As usual I neglected my camera and have very little photos of the day. I don’t even have a picture that really shows off Charlotte’s cute little Easter dress…I might have to put it on her again and take some

My Grandparents and Aunt are coming in from Missouri this Tuesday so we look forward to a pretty busy week. That being said, I hope all had a great Easter celebration and continue it through this Easter week.

P.S. God wiling, my friend Andrea has a chance to visit Israel this May and is currently raising funds for the trip. She has started a line of natural aromatherapy products and is selling them on Etsy. So, if you’re interested in helping a fellow believer see Israel and purchasing something nice at the same time please visit her shop.

Here’s a link to a petition which requests the depublishing of the court case mentioned in my previous post.  Please sign if you feel that families should have the right to home school their children in CA regardless of the instructors credentials.

Also, no matter what feelings you have towards our current Governor, you might be pleased to know that has vowed to terminate this court ruling…no pun intended.  Read more here.

So, turns out that a recent court decision has ruled it illegal to home school your children in the state of California unless the instructor has a degree and is credentialed in the grades being taught.  This basically leaves us with the following options:  A. Get a teaching degree and credentials for both primary and secondary grades, B. Somehow come up with tuition for private school, or C. send our kids off to CA’s great public school system that isn’t suffering in the least.  Obviously, this court decision is being appealed but unless it’s over ruled who knows what will happen to home school kids and their parents all over this state.

Seems to me that the state has figured out how much money they’re missing out on due to the rising number of home schooled children and has decided to get a piece of that pie.  All of this at the expense of a parent’s basic right to educate and rear their children in the manner they see fit.  I bet that test results of home schooled children are  are much higher than those in the public school system yet that doesn’t seem to matter much to our state’s supreme court.  Anyway, here’s a an article the LA Times published on this decision in case you want “detailed” info.

All we can do is be vigilant, protest peacefully and continue to pray for those in power in our government to rule according to His will.

My mother recently gave me a copy of this book which contains prayers and scripture to supplement morning and evening prayer for each day of Advent. It’s so far a good little book with sweet illustrations done by the author Sarah Hornsby who, come to find out, has written a number of books of which I would be interested in reading. One good thing about not having a lot of money is it keeps you from getting caught up in the commercialism of Christmas that we face in this nation. I feel blessed to spend this Advent close with the Lord in prayer and meditation which will really allow my heart to “prepare Him room”.

So, how about that weather? I’ve truly enjoyed the recent cold evenings which have made little Charlotte sleep extra close to me to keep warm. I really cherish these days and know that there will come a time when she sleeps away from me but until then I’ll hold her close. Charlotte will be spending a few hours with Grandma this next we as Justin and I attend his work’s Christmas party. I don’t know how she’ll do but I guess there’s only one way to find out. Thankfully we won’t be too far away and I can jet home if need be. Not much else going on around here other than Charlotte now gives her teddy bear kisses and our search begins for our next place to live. Our current lease is almost up so we find ourselves once again searching craigslist and the like for a decently priced abode. That’s it for now so till next time…

Our church was blessed this past Wednesday with a visit from Bishop Garang of Southern Sudan. After a lovely choral evensong service the bishop briefed us on some of the spiritual and political happenings of his country.

Bishop Garang was one of the “lost boys” from the 1980’s, a group of young men who were misplaced during the 2nd civil war in Sudan. He was one of the fortunate ones finding his way back to his country and family; most “lost boys” never made it back home. But, God had plans for him as he converted to Christianity and eventually was ordained in the ACC. Since his conversion and against all odds, the bishop has seen the church grow in Sudan. But there’s still quite a bit of work to be done.  Southern Sudan is sorely lacking any type of infrastructure.  They are in dire need of hospitals and schools…and in light of the recent flooding clean water, employment opportunities and food.

Unfortunately, the Islamic north is very willing to provide for Southern Sudan but with this aid comes the indoctrination of their faith and an intolerance for any other, especially Christianity.  Despite multiple civil wars, the Islamic north will not let go of the south because that’s where all of the oil is.

I am in no way an expert on what’s going on in So. Sudan but feel the need to share what little info I picked up from the other night.  In short, we need to pray!  We need to ask for the continual growth of the church and for it’s safety.  We need to pray for the rampant violent murders, the abundance of demon possession, and the hold that Islam has on that area.  We need to also support relief efforts and missions to the Sudan…remember, the Muslims are willing to step up and build schools and churches if we’re not.  God is good and if His church can grow there then we must support it.  Thanks in advance for your prayers…

Did you know that George Washington kept a prayer journal? It’s intimidatingly eloquent but still inspiring.

I’ve been looking at different virtual journals out there but so far have found that pen to paper works best for me. One of my ongoing prayers is that the Lord will guide me on how best to remember the many petitions for prayer that come my way. Hopefully a journal will be a step in the right direction. I am looking forward to testing out various ways of documenting requests as well as outcomes. I’m also open to suggestions by those who keep a prayer journal or have ideas on how to make it interesting and as least chore like as possible.