a tiny taste of heaven

hay! ok, just close your eyes- just kidding, sorry, you gotta read with them- and imagine the following scene.
It's a clear summer evening, not humid and not hot. the breeze is blowing your loose strands of hair in front of your face. you are getting a little excercise, running by a vegetable garden with tomatoes and okra ready to be picked. then some bright yellow and orange flowers are in a patch surrounding a water spicket and a bird house. then you jog on beside the barbed wire fence, marking the outline of a pasture of cows, a horse, and a sheep. it smells of freshly cut grass and freedom, and as you jog around the corner you witness a beautiful arrangement of clouds, a setting sun, and various shades of blues, purples, and oranges. a hawk soars from one of the big, tall trees and settles in another across the field. then, some quick movement beside the gravel road up ahead draws your attention. to a family of beautiful white tailed deer, a baby, mama, and daddy deer. you freeze, the mama and baby prance off, but the daddy also freezes and stares back at you. no words are spoken between you and the deer, just silence and stillness. finally you both turn and head your separate ways, back to the love and commitment of your families. on the way back though, the crickets start to sing, and then the frogs join in, and soon the chorus is overwhelmingly loud, sweeter than any CD. then they slowly begin to fade out, only to rise once more. the a chicken puts his two cents in for the nite. a few fireflies flash their lights. the painting of the sky becoming more creative and lovely with every passing moment. you see no cars, no buildings, no electronic flashing lights. only the homemade chicken coop you helped you dad build when you were little, the garden where you enjoyed getting a dirty as you weeded or picked the food that would be so delicious, and your home. the place where you are never a stranger. the place where you will always find love, will always give love, and will always treasure forever. there are no visible neighbors, just you and the ones who love you more than anybody else in the whole wide world. and you breathe deeply. you smile really big. you put up your hands and you spin around. who cares, no one sees you, its just you and God at this moment. then He speaks, and you respond.
then, when the house is dark and quiet, after your family has said goodnite and given a few hugs and kisses, you eat freshly made rice krispie treats with chocolate icing and colorful sprinkles on top! then you go to sleep :)

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." -John 10:10 - Jesus Christ

goodnite, <><

1-1!!!!!!!!

Yay! Kyle's team beat the Commerce tigers 14-3!!! My grandparents rode to the game with us, and we met my uncle Wesley, and his dauter Heidi and her husband, and his son Travis who is leaving for a year in China this Friday. Uncle Wesley is my dad's brother who served 11 years in Honduras as a medical missionary. Their sister Aunt Beth and her new husband Hue also joined us! The game was so exciting! Dustin Davis had a few incredible punts, and he got our first touchdown. Kyle threw it to him and he dodged and juked his way to the inzone. At half time the coach told the team they were gonna half to sacrifice. So Kyle pushed aside his ankle pain and told the coach he could run. I don't remember the last time i saw Kyle get so many great rushing runs. Also, we put in Jay Moon, a freshman (my little sister's age) and he ran all over Commerce. He scored our second touchdown. He is so tiny and quick! Man, I love friday nites of franklin county football! oh, and guess what, Wendy's now lets you put M&M's in the frosties. It's really good, especially after a win! So, as of today, our non-region record is 1-1! Get prepared for the championship!

and just a side note- Kristen can still beat me in tennis very soundly
recommended book- When God Writes Your Love Story by Eric and Leslie Ludy
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wow quotes and another picture of junior

"I have spent months laboring to push doors open that only God could release, and I am still learning that far more is accomplished by persevering in prayer than in taking charge of things myself." - Jim Cymbala

"I want to be totally yielded to God, don't you? I don't want to live half full; I want to experiece what it means to be full of the Holy Spirit in the way God intended. He promised that through the gospel and the Spirit's anointing, our lives could be used just like Svea Flodd's to bring blessing and hope to multitudes. The thought of that means far more to me than any worldly honor or achievement. I don't want a title; I don't want to be rich. I just want God to clothe me with His Spirit so I can affect people for Christ.
May God help us to live for something far greater than ourselves...'the world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever' (1 John 2:17)" -Jim Cymbala

(I recommend reading Fresh Power by Jim Cymbala)

Why are we so selfish sometimes? Why don't we say more what Paul said "To live is Christ, and to die is gain."? Why does "rejoice in your sufferings" seem so ridiculous?

The more we search, the more we serve, and the more we love, the more we see God, the more we become in awe of His power, and the more we experience His intimate and everlasting arms.

So many times i catch my self running out of breath trying to keep up with the pace of life when God just wants us to hush and listen, bow before Him is reverent submission, and "know that He is God"

I've been learning this summer that a jealous God is not contradictory at all to a loving God. God knows when we acknowledge Him as He is (in the total center of everything), we will experiece that "life to the fullest" that He promises. Haven't your most joyful moments been those moments, not where you have been glorified, but where you have submitted your life, your love, and your will to Christ and seen Him be glorified?

1 John 4:16
"God is Love"

on the left is Grace and Junior is on the right

hay, this is a picture from the wednesday nite recognition service. this is Dakota. He didn't want to let go that evening. I miss him a lot. Im his fake mama and fake girlfriend. But he said he does have a mama, but she is in jail, but that he loves her and he will always love her. Awesome kid.

back home, my real home

hay, i just recently got back to my royston home, i'm fixin to work on unpacking. its kinda wierd and not all sittin good in my head yet, but you know, there is time for this. This past week has been real crazy. Even the last few days God was giving me opportunities to talk with a few girls on a deeper level than i had before with them. I was reminded that its never over till its over. the service sunday went real well, better that we had imagined. and the service they did for us last night was very special. The kids started school today, so i got to hang out at the bus stop with them this morning. Bridget and i ran yesterday at 6:30. she came knocking on my window at 6:10 and scared me half to death (i had a slower start because my alarm was set for 6 pm. oops. it was good to run together though, and last night she came over to play guitar together one more time. She gave me her "favoritest" white t-shirt (it wasn't white anymore) and she prayed with me and for me. She is a special girl and has grown so much this summer. Even if her life was the only one God changed, it was worth it. But He did so much more too. And He did a lot in my life as well. To me, He is the God who does more than we can ever ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20and21). Yesterday morning, some people verbalized about how we were gonna be leaving but for the most part, the kids were extra clingy. I was doing good to have a breathe hole sometimes :). It was great though. Sometimes we just need to know that we are loved and appreciated. They wanted tons of hugs, especially Dakota. Hugs are cool, because when someone asks you for a hug and you give them one, they think they are getting the blessing, but really, the one giving the hug gets a huge blessing. i like how love so often works in two directions simultaneously. A job description to love is not so much work, but a gift. Thanks for all your prayers. A couple of kids just got here this week, so im sure they have overload, new home and new school. also, Javian, the little cooper nixon boy, was ruled to go live with his dad, so please pray that that is a good thing. Also, some of the kids are pretty tore up that we left, so please pray with me that they will be able to focus on their school, their relationship with God and the people they are still with, and that being upset will not be a negative thing, but they cant think of us and the summer and somehow be encouraged in their life and faith. thanks tons.
this is so wierd being here. Grace and I are glad that we dont have to say bye till next week, God doesn't give us more than we can bear. So please just pray for me too as i handle all that the next few weeks will hold. love you,
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