to love mercy

This morning I read Lysa Terkeurst's blog post about showing God's mercy to those we love and live with in our homes...you can find it here. I posted the following comment in response to what she wrote. I thought I would share it with all of you...because I know you have been wondering about what I have been thinking!

"Our home now has a 22 year old daughter who chose to shave all of her hair off early New Year's day.

Mercy, Lord!

I, too, had a choice to either show mercy to her or to react in fear over what she had done. You see she was doing it in response to a covenant she was making with the Lord. I had to decide if I was going to freak out over her new hairstyle or be praying for her as she seeks God's will for her life.

I do have to admit that I did freak out a little at first (okay, so maybe it was more than just a little)...but the Holy Spirit took over and I can now say that when I look at her I see the beauty of who she is as a woman of God...not as some bald headed creature now inhabiting our home.

I love her...she is more important to me for who she is than for what she looks like.

Mercy...is a beautiful gift to give!"

confident expectancy

a year of hope

what will it

look like when it arrives?

and

will hope kick in the front door at the stroke of midnight

while hopelessness sneaks out the back?

confident expectancy

a welcomed guest

"Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires." Romans 8:5 (NIV)

Lord,

please

teach me

to set my mind

on what

YOU

desire.

In the Waiting Room

I am so excited to let you know that I have just started a website called In the Waiting Room...you can find it here.

It is my desire to help encourage women who are facing difficult life circumstances and mothers who are caring for children with special needs and chronic illnesses.

This site will be a work in progress...so please check back often as I continue to update it.

Apples to apple pie

tonight

Courtland
and
McIntosh
apples
will meet their match...

Alyssa
is
baking
a pie!

"Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory..." 1Peter1:8

Football season is made for snacking!

Welcome to all of you BooMama DipTacular football snacking fans! Glad to have you join us!
Please use the link above to see all of the other delicious dip ideas over at BooMama's DipTacular event.

We are Green Bay Packer fans here at our house...and we love to eat while watching them play!

Here is a FANTASTIC hot dip that combines delicious Wisconsin food products we all love in one tasty snack...cheese, sausage and a wide variety of dairy products...cream cheese included!!!

Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Go, Pack, Go!

Cheesy Sausage and Spinach Dip

8 oz bulk sweet or hot Italian sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 - 8 oz pkg cream cheese - softened
1 1/2 cups finely shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 cups chopped fresh spinach leaves
1/3 cup mild banana pepper rings, drained and chopped

In a large skillet, cook sausage, onion, sweet pepper, and garlic until sausage is brown, stirring often. Drain off fat. Set sausage mixture aside to cool.

In a large bowl, stir together cream cheese, Parmesan or Romano cheese, milk, mayonnaise, and sour cream. Add sausage mixture, spinach, and banana peppers; gently stir to combine. Spread mixture into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate.

Bake in 350-degree oven about 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Serve with Fritos, crostini, bagel chips, blue corn tortilla chips or sliced baguette-style French bread, or your choice of dippers.

it's the simple things

it's the simple things, isn't it?

after dinner
put on a sweatshirt
light a fire outside
pull up a few chairs
and just sit and talk

we did that tonight
and I LOVED it

Thank you, Lord
for the simple things!

ahhhhhh...books! part 1

Facebook has been a great way for me to reconnect with childhood friends...I found two sisters who were our neighbors when I was young!

I have also been able to reconnect with some other childhood 'friends' just this past week. It was through a Facebook survey a friend sent me...and I was asked to list 15 of the most influential books I have ever read.

This got me thinking about books I had read and loved as a young girl. Well, my heart started beating with happiness as I remembered the joy I had experienced when I read these books. I have listed a few here...and I will most likely remember more as time goes on and then will add to this list...but here goes!

1. Here Comes the Bus
(first book I ever checked out of the library!)
2. Katie John
3. Emil and the Detectives
4. Nancy Drew and the Secret of the Old Clock and ALL of the rest of the series
5. Little Women
6. The Little Princess
7. The Secret Garden
8. Cherry Ames, Student Nurse (and rest of series)
9. Little House on the Praire series
10. Trixie Belden series
11. The Bobbsey Twins series
12. My Friend Flicka

Okay, I have to stop...and I will list my young adult and adult favorites in a later post...but for now the memories are so special to me. These books were my friends and I 'lived' in them so many times.

How about you? I would love to hear about your favorite childhood 'friends'...maybe I will get to reconnect with them myself.

Hey, y'all!

I just came back from an awesome week at SheSpeaks. The Lord gave me the privilege of sitting under some amazing teaching! The Proverbs 31 team shared so many insights into God's Word and useful ideas for ministry with me. These women included my small group evaluation leader, Amy Carroll, Renee Swope, Micca Campbell, and of course, Lysa TerKeurst.

These women love Jesus and know how to speak His Word with love, authority and the power of the Holy Spirit...and they are southern girls...and therefore they have a southern accent.

Thus, the reason I am writing today.

Since I have come home I have found that all of the thoughts running through my brain now have a southern twang to them...and I am fighting the urge to use the word y'all when I speak! I am a midwestern girl...I don't have an accent!

Is this normal? Has anyone else experienced this after coming back from SheSpeaks?

I don't think this is a bad thing, of course. The Lord worked mightily in my life at SheSpeaks, and He too has left a great impression on my heart and mind...His Word is now running right alongside all of those new ideas I have gleaned from these awesome women of God...except now they've got me thinking the Lord is a southerner, too! Of course, this would not be a bad thing!

To the Proverbs 31 ministry team I just want to say "Thank you for sharing God's Word and His love with me. He has answered your many prayers on my behalf. Thanks, y'all!"

Welcome to my new SheSpeaks friends!

Just wanted to say hi to my new SheSpeaks friends...especially to all of my ndebele sisters! It was so great to meet you and I am so thankful God brought us together...hope you had a safe trip home!

God is so good!
Let me know how you are doing...okay?

three days!

In just three days I will be leaving for a very special trip to SheSpeaks, a women's conference in North Carolina! I am excited, scared, nervous, unprepared, and overwhelmed all at the same time.

What does the Lord have planned? Will I be ready to bless others...I don't want to just be all about me and my preparations and forget Jesus and all of the other women attending. There are reasons I am going and I don't want to miss them.

Wow...what has the Lord gotten me into? Can't wait to find out!!!