A small update

Here is a small update on our family.  Life has been really busy around our house since the beginning of February.  In February, Dennis, Jacob and I attended the Candidates Seminar weekend for the Salvation Army in New York.  That Friday night, we attended services at the temple in Manhattan.  It was an incredible evening.  It is amazing to see what God is doing in our oldest son's life.

Then in March, Dennis, Jacob and I attended the Soldiers Retreat for the Salvation Army at Camp Ladore.  Again, it was an incredible weekend.  Joseph was supposed to come up for the day on Saturday with some of our other Youth, but it didn't happen unfortunately.

Then on the last Saturday of March, Dennis, me, and a couple of other adults from our corps took some of our youth to a Divisional Youth Music festival on the outskirts of Philadelphia.  It was a really long day because we got up at 4:00 AM and didn't get back until 9:30 at night.  But it was incredible to see the talent in our division.  It also was great to get to see our Training College cadets at work that day.  They did a devotional time that was incredible.

Then at the beginning of this month, we took a group of youth (including all four of our children) to our Divisional Youth Council.  It was also an incredible time of worship, praise,  and decisions being made for Christ.  Our oldest son joined Dennis and I onstage during the call to officership.  What was incredible about this was our Corps officer along with those in attendance joined us on stage (the same went for all those who responded to the call from other corps) and there was a time of prayer for us.  It was truly incredible.

Now we are winding down the school year and working toward cleaning up and decluttering our home.  For one never knows when we might get our next orders to move.  We have some children who are experiencing growing pains and we have others who are growing incredible amounts but not having the pains.

Made to Crave - Intentional Sacrifices

So here we are at the last blog hop for the Proverbs 31 Ministries Online Bible Study for Made to Crave.  This week I want to talk about making good choices or in other words "Intentional Sacrifices".  Roughly 17 years ago, my husband and I made a decision that involved intentional sacrifices.  My husband joined the Army Reserves as a reservist.  In 2004, we made another decision that involved intentional sacrifices when we decided it was time to go into the military full-time as an Active Duty Army Reservists.  We knew this might involve sacrifices on our part of moving from our friends and family. For our first duty station, however, we were blessed to stay right where we were.

During this time, we changed from sending our children to public school to homeschooling.  It has been a tremendous blessing to our family through the years.  It has caused us to stretch and grow as a family.  

Then in 2008, we received orders that moved us from Eastern North Carolina to Western Pennsylvania.  We stayed there until 2012, when we received orders to move to Central Pennsylvania.  So we moved and received blessings from the move.  

Just like these major life changes, I have to seek God in my food choices as well.  I can make the intentional sacrifice of eating everything I see to eating what is good for me in God's eyes.  When I choose to eat right and exercise, I feel better and accomplish more.  It is a matter of not looking at things as being deprived of some things, but instead being excited and focused on all the good things I can have.  

I am blessed to truly like most vegetables and to enjoy salads and water.  However, I have to say, I also enjoy chocolate and other types of sweets.  I can intentionally sacrifice the junk for what is good and the physical benefits I achieve from it.  God is good and He provides for our every need - if we just seek after His will and purpose.

#MadetoCrave - Emotional Triggers

So we are in week 5 of our Proverbs 31 Ministries Online Bible Studies, and here we go with another blog hop.  I know I am made for more, but boy do my emotions get in my way!  If I am celebrating something, I want a treat!  If I am sad, I want the comfort of food and crave items I should not have.  I eat for tons of emotional reasons, and it is wrong.  

I need to go to God when I have those cravings.  I need to seek after His Word and pray to Him for guidance, direction and strength.  God promises He will never give us more than we can handle.  However, there is nothing in that promise that states we can do it alone.  We need to rely on God's strength and guidance to reach the other side.  When I spend time in prayer and in God's Word, things go smoother in my life.  When I try to rely only on myself, I get chaos.

Of course, it also helps when my husband and I are on the same page and praying for and reaching for the same goals that God wants for us.  I know that God only wants the best for us.  But sometimes, we need to stretch and grow, which causes me to focus on emotional eating.  But when I chose to put my trust, hope and faith in God, I avoid temptation and chose to dive into God's Word, prayer or spending time exercising.  After all, I am#madetocrave God!

Wow! What a couple of weeks

Wow what a couple of weeks we have had as far as weather has been concerned.  Two weeks ago when we went to New York, there was snow on Sunday the 9th when we came home.  The roads were something else.  Then on the 13th, we had roughly 10 inches of snow - so we had no activities at church that evening.  Then Saturday the 15th, we had an additional 3.5 inches.  Sunday we ended getting up some more snow.  Then yesterday morning, we got more snow - so no activities.  This morning, we had some snow, sleet, and freezing rain - so no school equals no activities this evening.  

At least we are not supposed to have snow for a couple of days.  However, tomorrow night into Friday we are supposed to warm up slightly, which could result in some flooding along with some ice jams possibly.  So life ought to be interesting around here.

In the meantime, school continues for my children because we homeschool.  Other than adjustments to our activities in the evening, the weather has not been a problem with our schooling.  My youngest son asked me today if we could have a snow day since the public schools were off.

#peace Blog Hop Post for Week 3 of Made to Crave

Peace....oh how I love that word and long for it.  We are in week 3 of Proverbs 31 Online Bible Studies for the book "Made to Crave" by Lysa Terkeurst.   One of the definitions of the word peace according to the Merriam Webster dictionary is, "a state of tranquility or quiet" and I like that definition.  Tranquility brings to mind quiet times with no fuss, muss or bother.  It brings to mind a sense of satisfaction and that all is right in the world (or at least my part of it).  God will give us that sense of contentment and tranquility, if we will just ask Him for it.  Of course, we also have to accept His gift.


Now peace is not necessarily is not always something I associate with my weight or how I look.  Growing up, I never had a problem with my weight.  I even made it through college without any real problems.  Then I got married...dom dom dommmm (cue the loud creepy music)...and within 3 years had a weight problem.  I also wound up with a diagnosis of Chronic High Blood pressure...but with my family history of it, that was probably eventually going to happen anyhow.  

Well I married into a wonderful family, so the ladies of the family went to Weight Watchers together.  We ate together, weighed together, and supported one another.  I also had the support of my husband.  Lo and behold within a year, I was within 10 pounds of my goal weight.  I had peace...especially when I was told I could come off my blood pressure medicine and a month later (on October 31 no less) found out we were expecting our first child.  I was blessed with a fairly easy pregnancy...although within a few months, I had to go back on the blood pressure medicine.  After I delivered my son, I lost all but 10 pounds of what I gained.  For the next several years, I repeated the yo-yo effect of losing weight, getting pregnant and then trying to lose that weight.  Now 11 years after having our last daughter, I am nowhere near where I want to be weight wise, but I am working towards it with the support of my family, especially my husband.  I am also tremendously blessed with peace.  I don't feel judged or condemned by those closest to me....and especially my Heavenly Father.  

I won't say it is always easy and I won't say it is perfect all the time.  I want to lose the weight - not to try to measure up to what someone else here on Earth wants me to be, but because I know that God has made me for so much more.  I love my Proverbs Online Bible Study Sisters (and especially my Facebook Small Group).  We can support each other virtually across the miles.  I know I am one of over 43,000 women across the world who struggles with something, but recognizes that God truly has made me for so much more!

Permissible but not Beneficial

So this week I began another online Bible Study through Proverbs 31 ministries Online Bible Studies.  This time we are doing Lysa Terkeurst's book, "Made to Crave".  This is the first week of the study and our first blog hop.  This book is all about dealing with our need to crave God first and foremost.  Some things may be permissible, but they would not be beneficial to us.

For example, I may allow my children to eat certain food, but it certainly won't be beneficial to them.  This holds especially true for our oldest son who we found out is lactose-intolerant.  He can chose to eat certain foods that he knows he should not have, but it serves no benefit.

I can chose to eat chocolate cake - after all as Bill Cosby once described cake - it has all the basic ingredients of flour and eggs and such so it was given to children for their breakfast, but it does not hold the benefits of other better, healthier habits.  Sometimes we can chose to eat whatever is before us, but it actually may be healthier to make different choices.  I could chose to eat a piece of cake or I could chose to eat some veggies.  I could chose to sit inside and feel sorry for myself or I could chose to go to the gym with my husband.  It is all a matter of what is more beneficial.  

In the long run, I can chose to do what I want when I want how I want.  But those choices will not always be beneficial to me.  Or I could/should chose to spend time with God both in prayer and in His Word instead.  Only God can truly satisfy the longings of my soul.  But it isn't always easy to make those choices.  I want to crave God.  This study is helping to #empower me.

January 13 2014 update

Well it has been a while since I posted anything.  A lot has been going on with the holidays.  We helped with the Christmas activities at our corps.  Dennis completed his final course for his bachelor's degree, so now all we are waiting on is his diploma to come from Liberty University.  

We took a trip to North Carolina to see his family.  We thoroughly enjoyed our stay.  It was good to get to see the family and the children even got to walk in the sand a little bit.

We recently found out that Dennis, Jacob and myself were accepted to go to the Salvation Army's Candidates' Weekend in Suffren, New York.  So we will be making that trip in February.  We (Dennis and I) are going since we want to become officers in the Salvation Army.  Jacob is going because he wants to pursue going to Railton - the Salvation Army Eastern Territory Youth Pastor College.  So we will see what happens.

Next month we need to have another Corps Cadet Sunday, so we will be gearing up for that.  Jacob may be the one to give the sermon that day.  This month we will finish our first course for Corps Cadets.  Then in February we start the second course.  The cadets seem to be doing an excellent job.

Today is the first day back to our normal routine of activities.  The after school program resumes along with Music Company as well as Beginner Band.  This morning we woke up around 6 am so Dennis, Joseph and I could go to the YMCA.  Our goal is to get Nathan through the course he needs to take so he can go with us.

So there is  a little update on our family.