International Church Service

Sunday, I was humbled to be a part of the 1st International Church Service at the POA. The service was translated into 4 languages with around 120 in attendance! I posted about dreams in my last post and this is one of those dreams that I have had. All barriers, racism, and stereotypes broken, just people worshiping the one true God. This makes my heart smile!

Here is just a small glimpse into our service yesterday!

The kids socializing before church!

The baby looks so much like Kaitlyn did when she was little! I just have to smile every time I see that sweet little face!

Waiting for church to start!

Two amazing women singing in French!

Our amazing Praise and Worship team!!!!! They sang so beautifully and worked so hard to make this service a success. They learned all the songs in other languages! It was truly amazing!!!!!

The Multicultural Choir

Our family plus some!

Toby asked for our kids to come to the front so he could introduce our family.
Some of the children misunderstood and they came too!

It was so funny!

Our already semi-large family was growing in front of every one's eyes!

Fine with me, but I think I will need help until I can get used to so many! :)

Some of the children that were baptized last night!

God is truly amazing, and I am so glad to be apart of it all!!!!!!

Dreaming Big

Last Sunday, in Spanish Service the analogy of God closing doors and opening windows was discussed. I have always just assumed that when God closes a door, He will fling a window wide open that you can easily walk through. Somehow the analogy stuck with me this week and I have done a lot of thinking about doors and windows.

I have never walked up to a door or window that was just open in my spiritual life. I always seem to have to open the door or window. In Matt 7:7-8 it says, "Ask, and you will be given what you ask for. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks, receives. Anyone who seeks finds. If only you will knock, the door will open.”(TLB) Jesus was not telling us to go about our daily lives and everything we want to see accomplished in the spirit will always be right there in plain sight! We have to act on our faith! Ask, seek, and knock are all action verbs that show that we are to be actively looking for what God wants in our lives.

Sometime last year I was standing at my kitchen sink praying and I felt the Lord impress on me that “You are standing at the threshold of miracles.” Whoa, was my first thought! A threshold? That is not where I want to be, I want to be in the middle of miracles! Yet, that was all He seemed to say, so I tucked it away in the back of my mind for a later date.

Since that time, I have felt bombarded by life with all sorts of emotions! Yes, my health is better, but still not where it really needs to be! Pretty much the rest of life has rocked along without seeing anything out of the ordinary in the miracle department. I am firm believer that every day that we have here on Earth is a miracle in itself, but you know nothing super God like! Actually I have been somewhat down concerning several areas of life, feeling quite left out, and almost stir crazy. Toby calls me a visionary that can see what I want and will go for the gold if I can possibly find a way. I really haven’t felt I have even had a mission lately to work toward!

This week, in conversation Toby has said several times, “Wow, this is bigger than all of us!” or “What God is doing is bigger than any one person!” In the past my dreams have been big, but through a set of closed doors, and not seeing any windows, I have become almost dreamless! Spiritually depressed, lack of vision, or without a purpose you might say! In the past, I have felt that I have dreamed dreams that were too big to ever see fulfilled. “Oh really,” God seemed to say to me this week, “You are on the threshold of something larger than yourself, dream big!”

Today the Scripture, “Jer 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”(TLB) almost jumped off the page at me! Plans for me…..standing on the threshold of miracles …….the window yet unopened, all seemed to make sense. He has definitely shut a huge door in my life at the present, but today I see a window. I have to be willing to open that window, climb through, and see the miracles that God has promised. Eph 3:20 says, “Now glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of-infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes.”(TLB) must become my motto once more. I am standing at that threshold!

In the next few months I know that God will reveal even more of His plan! So, today, I am standing, watching, knocking, seeking, asking, and anticipating……..want to join me?

It is time to DREAM BIG!!!!!!!!

The Big, Big Sale and Other Happenings

The Big, Big Sale on Friday and Saturday was a huge success! I have never seen toys go quite so fast! We have just a few boxes of things left and I am planning to have another sale in October!

Friday was a very hot day, so the kids decided to sale lemonade on Saturday for the weary customers. They did pretty good, but Kensli seemed to sale the most! She didn't mind asking people if they wanted to buy some lemonade. She was so cute behind the table that I wanted to get a good picture of her business venture!

She really didn't seem to think she needed her picture taken!

Then she gives me this! Hope this is not what the customers were getting. If so, no wonder they were buying from the poor, pitiful little girl!


Another pose! Wow, look what the lemonade makes her do!

Kensli's cute, impish grin she gives me when she is up to something!

Saturday evening, after the yard sale, we went to Broken Arrow Ranch for a church connect group social. There was four wheeler rides, pony rides, a jumper, fellowship, and lots of good food! The kids do not get to ride horses like Toby and I did when we were kids. We don't live in the country, and both sets of Grandparents got rid of their horses long ago. So, the pony ride was a big hit with my three youngest! Ricky considered himself to old for ponies, but he did enjoy the four wheelers.

Yeehaw, cow girl!

I told Kensli she was a cow girl, and V., Andrea's daughter from The Perpetual Renovators Blog , was quick to correct me! V. told me that Kensli was a horse girl not a cow girl! Makes sense, she was riding a horse and not a cow!

Kensli patiently waiting on her turn on the horse again! Boy, we really came prepared for riding horses! Maybe we should call her a "flip-flop horse girl!"

Nic's horse riding adventure giggling all the way!

Kaitlyn riding off into the sunset!

"Happy Trails to You!"

How We're Related

Ricky: "Mom, explain to me how we are family if we are not blood related. Your adopted and we're adopted, so just how do you explain that we are REALLY family!"

Kaitlyn: "That's easy, Silly! We're family, because we are HEART RELATED!"

That makes my HEART SMILE!!!!!!

WE ARE HAVING...............

One of Kaitlyn's fliers.

We are having a yard sale this Saturday! I knew that yard sales were a lot of work, but maybe not to this degree! I have been through 11 years of toys and clothes the last few days! UGH! I wish I could get back the amount of money spent on all this "stuff"!!!!! I have kept everything that can be labeled educational and it is still more than we really need!

Oh, and I am really not a pack rat! Well, could I really be one in hiding? I think not, more like, out of sight out of mind! I tend to forget that I have things and go buy more! Guess, I really need to GET ORGANIZED!!!!! I am trying and hopefully by the time we start back to school for the year, I will be one organized MOMMA! I know that life will not remain that way in my little world, but I can always enjoy it for a month.......or a week........or a day........or probably an hour!

Now, if I can just remember where I put everything that I have to get organized!

Two of Life's Great Mysteries

# 1. Why do people, with or without children, always think they know how you are supposed to talk to, treat, and discipline your children?

# 2. Why do your children realize this, and really act pitiful around these "helpful" people?

Two of the GREAT MYSTERIES of LIFE!!!!!!!

Our Newest Waterbug

What a difference three weeks can make!!!!!

I am so shocked and happy, all at the same time, with the progress that Kensli has made with her swimming lately. Three weeks ago she wouldn't even get her face wet and now this.......................