....We've got air!!!

Praise God for loving church members like Chad Wilson! He came out tonight after hours and fixed our air in a total of five minutes. I was so glad to find out that it was JUST a part that needed to be replaced and NOT the whole unit. It was amazing to see how quickly he could solve our problem, we are so thankful! My genius husband did know how to fix the unit after all, he called Chad! We were so excited to have air again we had to celebrate, and there's no better way to celebrate the end of a hot day than with a gigantic cherry slush from Sonic...slurp!!

SOOO...We have no air and IT'S HOT!!!

So what do ya know, we woke up this morning and our air conditioner was no longer running....dead! Not a good way to start off the HOT, HOT day. Matthew said he was going to come home tonight and try to see if he can figure out what is wrong with it. Good thing I can tolerate heat pretty well because right now our house is registering at 89 degrees! Want to come over??? It's nice and toasty!!! Keep your fingers crossed that my genius husband can figure out the problem.

I know I am kind of selfish to be frustrated when our air goes out because I do realize that there are many people around the world that live without air conditioning all the time. I need to be thankful for what I do have and not focus on what goes wrong. We have a house with ceiling fans which is more than many people could ever dream of having. We truly are blessed to have all that we have. Thank you Lord!

Too Hot To Trot!

I don't know what the temperature was today, but it was scorchin! I usually like to work-out in the mornings but for some reason today I thought I would wait and run in the late afternoon...not a good idea.

Every Monday afternoon I go to the prayer house at church, and back during the school year (when it was at least 10 degrees cooler) I would rush home, change clothes and run to the prayer house, stay for an hour, then run back home. Since I did not have any other plans today which would force me to work-out, shower, and be out the door early, I decided to go back to my old routine. I did not even think about the difference in the afternoon temperature from then until today when I set off on my run to the church. Everything started out good, but it wasn't long before exhaustion set in and the heat was overbearing. My head began to hurt and I was dehydrated. My run became more like a trot, then eventually my trot became a fast walk. I couldn't take the heat....I survived but I don't think I'll be going for another late afternoon run anytime soon.

Love These Girls!

We had a baby shower today for one of my good friends and this is the framed picture that she gave me for hosting the shower. I was so excited to get this picture because I am one of those people who loves pictures but I never remember to take them!

As I was looking at the picture, my heart was just filled with joy because these women are some of my favorite people. Each of these women have touched my life in a special way. We have a special bond because we are in a small group together...and our small group, well it ROCKS!!! I am so thankful to have such great women in my life. Thanks Brooke for the awesome picture! I just had to show off my new picture and my wonderful friends!

By the way...my flowers are doing great!! Believe it or not, I've actually had a lot of people ask about them...thanks for caring! :)

Busy, Busy, Busy!

So, I guess it has been a couple of days since I have updated this thing...I had one of those busy weeks where nothing too overly exciting happens, until today! Today I went to Commerce, GA with my mom, my sister-in-law, and her mom. We had a great day of shopping and fun. I found some really great deals. I am proud to say that my most expensive purchase was $13.86. Now that's bargain shopping! Matthew was glad for me to go also, that way he could have a quiet day at the house. Saturdays are usually his day to finish things up for Sunday and relax.

Since I have been home tonight he keeps talking about what a great time he had yesterday helping some friends get some baseboards and quarter-round cut and placed in their new home. I think that may have been the highlight of his week, you would never know it though, because when he is doing that kind of work, he is in his zone. I think he really enjoyed pulling his tools back out and doing some of his old work again. He still has that magic touch!
I was also able to do one of my favorite things yesterday....decorate! I love pulling a house together and figuring out colors, where to put everything, etc....even when it's not my house! We were both completely content, doing what we loved with people we love. Does it get any better than that? What a great ending to a hectic, meeting filled week!

Would you have built the ark?

Today was a great day! One thing I love about Sundays is our small group that meets on Sunday nights. Matthew and I look forward to that time every week. We are doing study of the book of Genesis. I have read that book of the Bible so many times, but it is amazing how God shows me something new every time I read it.

Tonight, we were talking about the flood in chapter 6. One thing that we were talking about was the faith that Noah must have had in order the follow God's leading in building the ark. God gave Noah very specific directions on how to build the ark and how to fill the ark. At this point in scripture, there had never been rain. What kind of faith must Noah have had to believe that God was going to bring a FLOOD to a land that had NEVER even experienced rain? Can you imagine what Noah must have been thinking??? He was probably so confused, but he was faithful anyway. I thought that was pretty interesting to think about. It also made me question my own faith....would I have done that? Much like Noah, we are called to be faithful even when things may not make sense....

Verse for today--John 20:29

Does My Thumb Look Green???

You will never guess what I did today! I planted some flowers....that IS a big deal because I do not like any kind of yard work. I especially do not like planting flowers because I can never keep them alive. Yes, I finally put some REAL flowers back in my window baskets! I took some pictures so you could see what a good job I did. Matthew about had a heart attack when he came home and saw what I had done because he knows that it is not my thing. Anyway, I say all this to say, I actually kind of enjoyed it....but we'll see if they are still alive in a few weeks. I have planted them in the sun like the flower description said & I plan to water them everyday, do you think they'll grow???

Here's the verse for today--1Cor.3:6-8
Everyday we plant or water seeds as witnesses for Christ. This is all He has asked us to do, He will take care of the rest!

Building Blocks

I am finally beginning to feel like myself again. I have slept a lot since I've been home....makes me so thankful for summer vacation. I felt bad for those who had to return the work 3-4 hours after we got home, yuck! I was looking at some pictures from our trip today and that's where I came up with the title of today's entry.
We built a church of cinder blocks and mortar, it was tough work but a lot of fun. We did not complete the church since we were only there for a week, but we really got a lot accomplished. My first job was a "leveler," I made sure each block was level before moving to the next. After being a "leveler" I was fired then somehow promoted to a "crack filler." As the "crack filler" I made sure the the cracks between each block were filled with mortar so the building would be stable and the walls would be strong.
As a was thinking about this today, I kind of chuckled to myself because we all came up with names for our jobs. I thought "crack filler" was a pretty funny name. Then the more I thought about it, I thought isn't that what God does for us? He fills all of the cracks that we have in our lives to keep us strong and stable. He can also keep us level if you look to Him for guidance. Pretty cool, huh!
Don't know why I thought of this and I didn't have any earth shattering news to share today so I thought I'd give you some insight on how my mind works.
Here's my verse for today--1Cor.3:10-11

Prayer Works!

Just wanted to say thank you to all of you who have been praying about Matthew's cheek/gum. For those who don't know, he went to the dentist before we left for Honduras and they did some cancer screening. They referred him to an oral surgeon for a biopsy and to see what should be done next....

He went to the oral surgeon this morning and he said he didn't think it was anything to worry about. Matthew said he seemed much more calm than the dentist did. He said it was one of two things (which I cannot spell), but he did not think it was cancer. Matthew will go back in two weeks for the actual biopsy to pinpoint exactly what it is. He assured Matthew that there was no reason to worry.
Praise God!!!

Mighty to Save

"Savior, he can move the mountains, my God is mighty to save, He is mighty to save..." I have been singing that song for days. It begins by saying that everyone needs forgiveness, a love that's never failing, & compassion... God placed that song on my heart and I sang it everyday while we worked in Honduras. What a blessing!

Our trip was AWESOME to say the least! We got home at 4:00 am today. I was not ready to come home AT ALL. I don't think I have laughed so much in a very long time! It was a much needed get away. The what seemed to be mission impossible after 24 hours of travel on a route that would normally take 6 hours tops turned out great. When we arrived we realized that our luggage carrying truck was pulled over in the airport parking lot with the gas tank on the sidewalk in a town that was 7 hours away from where we were staying. I could go on and on! Satan was right there trying to make our trip impossible or at least miserable. He failed tremendously! We arrived at the hotel 7 hours later with no luggage and quite stinky, but we had the time of our lives getting there!

I can't share everything right now, but I will share a defining moment from our journey....

One day, I went out to make some visits to some people in their homes and to share with them about Jesus. I had been praying for God to speak to me about my witness. After going to several houses and seeing many people accept Jesus into their hearts, we came to this woman who was home alone. I asked if I could share with her about Jesus, and of course she said "yes." After sharing and her accepting Jesus into her heart, she said this to me with tears in her eyes in Spanish, "thank you for sharing this good news with me today, I did not go looking for it, but you brought it to me. I am so grateful." I immediately felt overcome with emotion and God spoke to me and reminded me of Romans 10:14-15. I was reminded of His willingness to use me as one of his servants, what an honor!

Thank you for all of your prayers while we were away!

Preparing the Way

Well, we are leaving at 2:00 am for our mission trip to Honduras. We are more than excited to be on our way! God has a way of making all things possible and I truly believe that when He gives you a mission, He will also make a way. He shows me his faithfulness and His provision every single day.

When we began to discuss this summer's mission, I knew Honduras was where my heart was. Matthew and I both committed to go and knew that God would make it possible. The finances were there and so was the calling/desire.....so what could get in the way? ....Filing your taxes! After realizing we owed _,_ _ _._ _ in taxes this year, I thought there was no way for both of us to go. By God's grace and through the Holy Spirit speaking into the lives of some very special people, my trip was paid in full and we are both able to go!

The Lord is truly amazing and His plans are so much better than mine (I have to tell myself that everyday). I cannot wait to see His plan unfold this week and thank Him in advance for making this mission, as well as so many others in my life possible!