rain-a little throwback

In honor of our never-ending rainy weather in the Cities...I give you "Rain Falls" on Sesame Street! I liked it when Bob visited the street. Enjoy (the second half).

my help and my deliverer

Psalm 40

1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
 he inclined to me and heard my cry.
 2 He drew me up from the pit of destruction, 
out of the miry bog, 
and set my feet upon a rock,
 making my steps secure.
 3 He put a new song in my mouth,
 a song of praise to our God.
 Many will see and fear,
 and put their trust in the Lord. 4 Blessed is the man who makes
 the Lord his trust… 5 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. 6 …you have given me an open ear. 8 I delight to do your will, O my God;
 your law is within my heart.” 10 …I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
 I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness. 11 As for you, O Lord, you will not restrain
 your mercy from me;
 your steadfast love and your faithfulness will
ever preserve me!
 16 But may all who seek you 
rejoice and be glad in you;
 may those who love your salvation
 say continually, “Great is the Lord!” 
17 …You are my help and my deliverer…!

rainy days with nieces & nephews

I got to spend a few days in Des Moines visiting my sister and my sister-in-law. It was a rainy couple of days so we did inside things. I got to spend time holding Isabella Marie Caven and playing with Elliott and Emma at the Science Center. Bridge and I hung out at night and made mac and cheese and snuggled in to watch Grey's. It was a relaxing and fun get-away. :-) I love to spend time with family!

And I got to meet the newest precious Caven kiddo-

Isabella Marie

cotton blankets

I finished making two baby blankets out of the softest 100% cotton
yarn ever. This process, with many delays took a year. But I love them!

Sent from alj's iPhone

wedding and whimsical walks in Chi-town

We got to celebrate Ruth and John's marriage with them! (My dear friend Anna's little sister). It was wonderful to see Anna and Paul again and hang out with the fam a little too.

Then Charlie and I had a small getaway together in the city. It was great to just "be" together. -no plans, to-do lists, phone calls, rushing, etc. I'm so in love with my Babe.

tear it up

The side of our house was a MESS with vines, weeds and out of control lilly of the valley's... those have to be among the most pesky (well, save creeping charlie weeds) spreading, root infesting plants to dig up. Just recovering that small space took forever. I've been reminded (again) of how much I dislike yard work- as visually rewarding as it might be (my perfectionism issues do not mix well with this project).

After several hours of manual labor, and one AMAZING neighbor (Cindy) coming to dig with me and share her plants/flowers.... (Cindy truly is great, just yesterday morning I sat down and looked out my deck window, and there were potted yellow daisies, and other plants ready for their new home, all from her. She's so thoughtful and caring).

And this was last weekend's projects, lights outside replaced.
Soon we'll be ready for the weather to change... it's been good to wrap these projects up.

completely. in all.

Note from the end before you get there: *this got really long, and I meant it to be a short, easy, helpful read. sorry.

My thoughts from The Prodigal God, by Timothy Keller about the parable in Luke 15:1-3; Luke 15:11-32

• Obey God to get God Himself. (not for the honor, satisfaction, self-pleasing results; although God may grant these things to me from time to time. Or "If you...then I... / If I...Then You... obeying to get).
• Am I avoiding Jesus as my SAVIOR by keeping all the moral laws, thinking "God owes me now"; trying to gain control through my works?
• My Father still beckons me to come to Him. God's love is not abstract in my life; it's unconditionally real.
• When I pray, are my prayers full of personal petitions? Or filled with spontaneous praise? This reveals where my heart is.

All change comes from deepening my understanding of the salvation of Christ and living out of the changes that understanding creates in my heart. Faith in the gospel restructures my motivations, my self understanding, my identity and my world view. Behavioral compliance to rules without a true heart change will be superficial and fleeting.

God wants my heart. Completely. In all.

This apocryphal (author is not known/outside of the biblical canon) story, recounted by Elisabeth Elliot, was incredibly eye opening to me. Especially with regard to Bennett's death. It keeps popping back into my head. "Do I treasure ____(insert your personal vice here-mine is: having a baby) more than I want trust/obey/love/desire to follow my God?" I want to get to a place where I follow Him not because of the blessings He can give me (so freely and undeserved) but ONLY because He asked me to "take up my cross and follow"; only because I love Him-because He called me. Luke 9:23. I know that Bennett having no life here on earth was not meant as a punishment because I did or didn't do something. But God has allowed this to be a very real and personal, treasured, good, special reminder that He alone is enough for me. -I want to say that HE IS- I also must say in the same breath that it's SO hard to let Him be that in my life. I'm a control freak. I plan, organize, think through and do- to gain control. I'm in tears as I write this. Please God pry my fingers open . Help me to 'follow' and 'carry' simply because you said to.

One day Jesus said to his disciples: "I'd like you to carry a stone for me." he didn't give any explanation. So the disciples looked around for a stone to carry, and Peter, being the practical sort, sought out the smallest stone he could possibly find. After all, Jesus didn't give any regulations for weight and size! So he put it in his pocket. Jesus then said: "follow me." He led them on a journey. About noontime Jesus had everyone sit down. He waved his hands and all the stones turned to bread. He said, "Now it's time for lunch." In a few seconds, Peter's lunch was over. When lunch was done Jesus told them to stand up. He said again, "I'd like you to carry a stone for me." This time Peter said, "Aha! Now I get it!" So he looked around and saw a small boulder. He hoisted it on his back and it was painful, it made him stagger, but he said, "I can't wait for supper." Jesus then said: "Follow me." He led them on a journey, with Peter barely being able to keep up. Around suppertime Jesus led them to the side of a river. He said, "Now everyone throw your stones into the water." They did. Then he said, "Follow me" and began to walk. Peter and the others looked at him dumbfounded. Jesus sighed and said, "Don't you remember what I asked you to do? Who were you carrying the stone for?"

Hugs.

*This got really long, and I meant it to be a short, easy, helpful read. sorry.