Shiloh Ross

Please be in prayer for my Lifelong friend and her husband....she delivered a very premature baby boy yesterday morning. He did not survive. My friend's health is in a very serious state, at this time, due to a rupture in her brain. Please pray for her health....physically and emotionally as she recovers and comes to experience the loss of another baby boy on the day of his birth!
They gave the baby the name....Shiloh Ross. She chose Shiloh because of the following scripture in The Bible....1 Samuel 1: 20-28....

20It came about in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked him of the LORD."
21Then the man Elkanah went up with all his household to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice and pay his vow.
22But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, "I will not go up until the child is weaned; then I will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD and stay there forever."
23Elkanah her husband said to her, "Do what seems best to you Remain until you have weaned him; only may the LORD confirm His word." So the woman remained and nursed her son until she weaned him.
24Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with a three-year-old bull and one ephah of flour and a jug of wine, and brought him to the house of the LORD in Shiloh, although the child was young.
25Then they slaughtered the bull, and brought the boy to Eli.
26She said, "Oh, my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the LORD.
27"For this boy I prayed, and the LORD has given me my petition which I asked of Him.
28"So I have also dedicated him to the LORD; as long as he lives he is dedicated to the LORD " And she worshiped the LORD there.

My friend longed for this baby as she longed for the last and will continue to long for them until she is reunited with them in Heaven....
Bryna asked me why I was so sad yesterday, and I explained that my friend was very sick and that her baby had died (our family had been praying for them, so the girls all knew things were very uncertain); and her immediate response was...."But mama, he's with Jesus now"; and I needed to hear that at that specific moment. She was and is so right about that....Shiloh is with Jesus! Things weren't uncertain after all!

NOT ME MONDAY...or sunday...if you wanna get technical!

NOT ME MONDAY....therapy designed just for each of us by MckMama, for more NOT ME fun...visit her blog by clicking on the MckMiracle button on the side of my blog.
Here is my therapy session for the week...
1.While sitting at the computer, I did not just notice a screwdriver sticking out of the gap between our backdoor and the wall....hmmmm....I am NOT wondering what that's all about.
2. I did not take my children to the park in 83 degree temps....only to wake in the middle of the night to not turn on my electric blanket and not wish I was wearing warmer pajamas, since it did not get down into the 30 degree temps during the night.
3. I am not frustrated, because I didn't get gas when it was $1.34 and now it's up to $1.47....I am not mumbling inappropriate things under my breath (really I'm not).
4. I am not having a hard time focusing on just about anything right now....I am not!
5. I did not take my Lifelong friend and her hubby some chocolate croissants & cream cheese croissants while she is in the hospital, and they (the croissants not my friend and her husband) were not covered with powdered sugar; and I did NOT eat one myself (again the croissants not my friend or her hubby).
6. I am not wishing my children could stay home a little longer and ditch this whole school thing.
7. I did not have to conceal my laughter when my 5 year old about knocked herself out in church this morning....she did not lean down to get something and completely misjudge the distance between pews and smack her head LOUDLY on the pew in front of her....I did not hear all of the people around us go....owwwww....when they heard her head hit the pew! She is NOT tough as nails, and she did NOT rub it and continue onto to retrieve whatever she had dropped. Help Me Henry!
Be back next week for another therapy session!

This Keeps Running Through My Mind....

We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. 3 As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(New Living Translation)

2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;
3 remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father;
(American Standard Version)

2 -5Every time we think of you, we thank God for you. Day and night you're in our prayers as we call to mind your work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope in following our Master, Jesus Christ, before God our Father. It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much but also has put his hand on you for something special.
(The Message)

1 Thessalonians 1: 2-3....my favorite Bible verse. I actually went through verse 5 in The Message translation, because I love how it's worded.

As I think of my Lifelong friend and her unborn baby, this continues to flood my thoughts. I would like to be bold enough to ask you to pray for my friend and her baby....if you have been, please continue to do so.

Sunday Sermon Summary

Today's sermon was about....well actually I can't remember what the sermon was titled; so I'll paraphrase....Diversity. We have a "new" pastor....who has been part of our church since this past summer. His outreach is to the spanish speaking community in areas surrounding our church....which obviously means he speaks spanish, and he does....very well I might add. His name is Armando, and I am blessed by him every time I speak to him. He is very intentional in the way he speaks to you....looking you in the eye, taking your hand in his, always saying something positive; and it's truly inspirational. Armando gave the sermon today....entitled???? or paraphrased (by me) as Diversity and the opportunities that arise. Since Armando has joined our church staff, he has been teaching ESL to the spanish speaking folks in our community, he has orchestrated and lead Las Pasados at Christmas (that was a ton of fun by the way), and he has done a ton of outreach in our local schools (including the elementary my children attend) and neighborhoods. Our church is focusing on something this year called the Ministry Mile (or M&M's as it has been nicknamed). This will be reaching out to people who live within a mile or so of our church and inviting them in....not just to worship, but to help them, feed them, clothe them, educate them, etc. Our church is very active in missions....worldwide, but it was decided that there are people right in arms reach who need ministering to or reaching out to....a kind heart and a loving hand. There are many things that are being started in 2009 at church....a spanish speaking worship service, weekend food (groceries bags of food sent home with children from school who otherwise would not eat all weekend), a free dinner provided once a month, and many more. I am so excited by this, because it gives my family a chance to serve....since we can't travel all over the world just yet. We also live less than a mile from our church, so my children go to school with many of these children and their families who will be served. Some think this could be embarassing for the children being served which may be true for the older children, but I think the younger children will be more likely to interact with other children they already know.
Now I'll give you some background about the area we live in....my house is a historical house (100 years old) and is in a very nice but old neighborhood. Our neighborhood is slowly but surely being completely revamped by the historical society of our city....which is good and bad (that requires another post), but there are areas that are designated as transitional housing (right across the street and right down the street from where we live). This is housing that our local....relief or goodwill....provides for people who need financial assistance due to some unforseen circumstance. It just happens to be that many of these people are hispanic, so since they live right across the street this means that these children go to school with my children. In our city, there are 2 elementary schools which are considered very low income schools....they are about 50/50 populated with hispanic children and white children. My elementary age children attend one of these schools, and they were the minority until this school year when some of the hispanic children were sent to another school (which is right down the street from us as well). The remainder of the elementary schools in our district are predominantly white and some of them are very high income or "wealthy" schools while some of them are middle class. I have heard the wealthy schools be referred to as "The Schools in the Bubble" for various reasons. At the elementary that my children attend, there have been many parents who embraced the diversity of our school....from the lower income families to the lack of volunteers for school events(simply because the parents work a lot or don't speak English). On the flip side of that, there have been many parents who were insistent in trying to transfer their children to "The Schools in the Bubble" or have been very outspoken about their dislike of the bilingual classrooms and blatant enough to say they disliked having so many hispanic children in the school. NPayne and I have been very happy with the elementary school our children attend, and our children are very happy there as well. I feel we have been blessed. I want my children to experience diversity, to know that we are all created in God's image and loved by Him....no matter what language we speak or how much money we have. I want my children to be kind and accepting, and I want them to know that some people have less money than we do and do without a lot more than we do. I want them to want to serve and help others with the love of God in their hearts and on their tongues....
Matthew 25:35 (Whole Chapter) For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.
Everytime you eat or see an M&M, say a prayer for our ministry mile and the people it is serving. The funny thing is I think the people who are doing the serving might receive as big of a blessing as the people who are being served.

Who Would Have Thought....

When I started my blog, just a short few months ago, I never imagined that people would actually read it (except maybe my mom). Call me cooky, but I honestly had no idea how this whole thing worked. After a few posts, I received my first comment....when I read the e-mail that said I had a comment to moderate (which means I can decide to publish for readers to read or reject it), I was really nervous. I thought....who is commenting? I hope it's a nice comment. What if it's not? I was hesitant, but I read it; and surprisingly it was the beginning of a blogging friendship. I have received several comments since that day, and none of them have ever been rude or unkind.....thank goodness; but I still get nervous when I see a comment from someone I don't recognize. I was reading a few different blogs, over the last week, and I was completely surprised to see that there were some really rude comments left. Now I know if you leave your blog open for comments, you get what you get...and you don't throw a fit; BUT I don't think the originators of these blogs really had any idea that there would be such rude and hurtful comments. I mean....really attacks on the writers....about their character and choices they have made. I'm sort of confused now. Isn't YOUR blog suppose to be about YOU and YOUR life....goals, family, beliefs, choices, likes, dislikes, etc.? Shouldn't you feel comfortable blogging about those things on YOUR blog without being attacked? None of the writers, that I am referring to, have said or done anything but talk about their lives, their struggles, their joys, their beliefs. I guess if readers don't agree, they definitely have a right to say so in their comments; but for pity sake....can't we just be nice about it? If I ever receive a hurtful or rude comment, I'm not quite sure how I'll handle that....the blogs that I'm referring to (that received the hateful comments) published them for the readers to read; and you know what I find the most amazing? The readers who left the rude comments, all sign them as anonymous, which leads me to believe that they aren't comfortable with the fact that they are blatantly attacking someone else's character or choices. What do you think? And please.....let's just all be nice!

A Day at the Spa!!!

My birthday was last week, the day after Christmas as a matter of fact, and part of my birthday gift was a complimentary day at the spa....I mean total treatment! I received a back massage, leg massage, hand massage, and yes even a foot massage (it was all in the name of love), a complete makeover including hair and makeup....it was blissful! I was treated to the most comfortable chair, and a great big COKE which I love to drink but try to limit! This was a gift from my 3 oldest daughters, and it was quite a treat. Did I mention that they were the technicians as well? Well they were....

Here we are in our living room, me sitting in my favorite chair we inherited from NPayne's granny, all slip covered by my Lifelong friend Leslie. Addi is on hands and back and helping with the styling of the hair. Drew is on legs and feet (I had to give in, because she was so wanting to give me a foot massage); although I'm very anti-anyone touching my feet. Bryna Mae was on hair combing. There's my big ole' COKE between my legs.

And.....the finished product....Lookin' good, don't ya think? My girls definitely know how to treat a lady. If you are interested in a Day at the Spa via The Payne ladies, let us know; and we will see what we can work out.

Me and My Mom

My dad passed away 3 years ago in November. I am an only child, so it is just me and my mom. My mom is disabled....she has an Auto Immune disease and has no use of her legs and limited use of her hands. In other words, she can't walk or stand alone; but she can grab onto something to help her get from chair to scooter, etc. She is very independent and wants to live alone....no assisted living or retirement place for her. We planned on adding on to our house, for her to live with us but in her own space, but that didn't work out with our city council; since our house is historical. She really doesn't want to live IN our house with us, because she likes having her own space; plus she is a smoker which won't jive in our abode. So she lives alone about 15 minutes from me and my family....and although that is closer than she did live up until this past summer....I wish she was closer. I am not able to do as much for her as I wish I could be doing, and I have rarely had time to go over and just visit. When I do run over to her house, it's usually to take her something she needs or to help her because she has fallen. My children love their grandmother....they call her Moo, and she adores them. She loves for them to come over and see her and even spend the night. She loves NPayne and I with all her heart too. I know my mom would really like to go to church, and I would really like to take her; but it's just not feasable. We go to church at 9:00 and then to Sunday School at 10:10 and then back to church for children's time at 11:15....we would have to go pick her up about 8:00 (to get her dressed and into the car and to church and out of the car), and she wouldn't get home until about 12:15 which is too long for her to sit in her wheelchair and too long to not be able to use a bathroom. I know my mom worships on her own in her home, but I am a firm believer in being part of a body of Christ....a church or community or group of people or whatever whom help each other, support each other and encourage each other to grow in Christ. With that being said..... I am really excited about this brilliant idea that Npayne had, one that we are definitely going to have to check into....there are some government houses, which are reserved for elderly people with lower incomes and whom need assistance, and the best part is they are right next door to our church. And did I mention that our church is literally less than a mile from our house? I mean we could and have walked to church. I think the wait list is fairly long for one of these quaint homes, and it may be longer for a handicapped accessible house; but I am going to get her on that list. We went Christmas carolling at these homes, and I have delivered some plants there previously; and they are great little houses. There's a small office type of house at the front of the subdivision, and Rev. Rick, one of our associate pastors, goes over on Fridays and sings songs (he plays guitar and sings brilliantly)and plays games with the folks who live there as well. If my mom lived there, not only would she be able to attend church, because she could take her electric scooter and go and come whenever she was ready; but also we could literally walk to her house if we wanted to. It would allow so much more freedom for her and time for us. I think this is the perfect plan.....now I just have to get into action and see about making it work. My children, NPayne and I would be thrilled if this worked out....and I think my mom would too.

Now onto another part of this post....I'm extremely happy that Moo wants to attend church with our family....as a child,my parents and I rarely attended church together. My mother is a free spirit, unreserved and strongly opinionated. She grew up in a very small town, where everyone literally knew everyone, and my grandparents were very well known and respected folks. She told me once that she and my uncle....maybe my aunt....stopped attending their parents' church (when they were old enough to have a say), because they felt condemned and used as "bad" examples in some of the sermons. I can't imagine how humiliating that must have been for them and for my grandparents.....using them as a "bad example" in a sermon and pointing it out in such a way that the congregation knew exactly to whom the preacher was referring. The church, that they belonged to, didn't believe in a lot of things that my mom (and probably her siblings) thought were perfectly acceptable.....one of those things being dancing. My mom loved to dance when she was able, and she loved to dance with my dad (also not supported by their church.....dancing too close to someone of the opposite sex). As a matter of fact....dancing was outlawed in their small town....I am 100% serious. You know the movie Footloose (if you don't, find it and watch it), it's based on the town where my parents grew up....again 100% serious! Being the independent and strong willed young woman that she was....she danced anyway! After she was used as a "bad"example in her church, she got a really bad taste in her mouth and just stopped going plus she just didn't agree with a lot of their teachings. I think she and my dad didn't know where to look for a "new" church home once they were married....they both worked a lot and honestly it just wasn't a priority to them. It wasn't that they didn't believe in and love Jesus, they just didn't pursue a community to worship Him and worship Him with other believers. Just to clarify.....this is my perception....from growing up with them and from things mom told me. I also think (again my perception) that my mom was a little afraid that her parents would rather be lead to believe that she and my dad were attending the type of church she grew up attending than them knowing that my parents may attend an altogether different type of church. Was that confusing? Anyhoo I remember my mother being so worried about what my grandmother would think when she came here for Christmas, and we attended the church that NPayne and I belonged to which is quite different than the church my grandmother attended. My mom was so worried that my grandmother wouldn't go or would be so very upset, but she did go; and she enjoyed it. It wasn't her church of choice, but I believe that she was praising God that we were regularly attending church and pursuing a relationship with Jesus. A church home is vital, in my opinion, but there is no perfect church....there's just not! I think you find a place where you can grow your relationships with Christ and praise Him. When NPayne and I started attending church regulary, I remember one Christmas my mom asking me if I was going to take Addi to see Santa. I told her probably not, there just wasn't time to do it. I so vividly remember her comment as being...."You spend too much time at church". I paused to try to think of a response, and then I told her that God came first in our family; and that we wanted our children to know that and know that Christmas isn't about Santa. Shortly thereafter, by invitation....she and my dad started coming to our church, on holidays and when one of our children was singing or reading scripture or whatever; and I think (my perception here) that they started to feel what it was like to worship....in a love Jesus, accept His grace & love & mercy, have eternal life kinda way. They really enjoyed coming to church, and I know if my dad was still alive; they would be coming much more often. I think about what my mom would say now if she asked me if I was taking the children to see Santa, and I told her NO I wasn't....and I'm fairly certain that her response would be very different; and she too is putting God first.

I Am My Mother or Father After All

As I was at the hospital with my Lifelong friend and 2 of my other Lifelong friends tonight, we were talking about our parents and our lives as teenagers. Remember we have all known each other a loooooong time....hence the name Lifelong friends. Anyhoo we were discussing some things we did as teenagers, that although weren't horrible (stupid...yes), we certainly didn't want our children doing them. We talked about how we did stupid things, and we never even contemplated a consequence....teaching each other how to drive a stick shift down a very busy road in the middle of the night, piling 10 girls into one car, not wearing seatbelts (it wasn't a law then). One of my friends made the comment that God was really watching out for us, and He was. I remember as a teenager, my dad always said "What is there to do past midnight? There is nothing you girls need to be doing past midnight". And although we didn't get into trouble and didn't really do much of anything, there really was nothing we needed to be doing out past midnight. I remember my mom waiting up for me and when I would call her to ask about staying out later or seeing a midnight movie, she would usually agree but would want me to wake her when I got home. I knew that she just wanted to make sure I was home safely, but I remember wondering why in the world she would want to be awakened (after all I would be fine) and what would happen if she awoke in the morning only to realize I hadn't awakened her. Now I know that she probably was asleep with one eye open until I did awaken her, and she knew I had arrived safely. Some of us had very strict parents, some of us had sort of strict parents, and some of us had very lenient parents; but we all agreed that our parents knew what they were talking about. It's fabulous how my Lifelong friends and I have grown up together....in much more than the obvious physical, getting older kinda way. We all are growing our relationships with each other, with our children, with our spouses, with our families, and with our Lord! I feel so blessed to have grown so much with these women in more ways than one.

Prayers

I spent the morning and evening with my Lifelong friend and her unborn child. Her husband was there this morning, but he headed home to care for some things at their house and to lead their Thursday night Bible Study. If you read the "Prayer Requests" post, you know that my friend has been hospitalized due to some serious concerns with her pregnancy....so far no change. What I found to be amazing when I was there this morning was the way that she and her husband had been sharing their faith with anyone and everyone who would listen. I think (and so do they) that God is using them.... during this time of uncertainty.... to witness, minister, or just listen to others. They ended up talking to one of the nurses for over an hour and a half last night and are now currently praying for her husband. We even discussed tonight....how there are always people who have something worse to deal with than we do. I mean....think about this....this is a woman and her husband who have already experienced the loss of one child and are now in the hospital with some serious concerns for the baby they are expecting, and they are openly and lovingly and genuinely sharing their faith and their true need and desire for Jesus in their lives. I am praying for the amniotic fluid to increase. I am praying for the health of the baby. I am praying that she can carry the baby longer. I am praying for peace and comfort. Yes I am diligently and unceasingly praying for these things, but I think God has already answered a prayer of mine....let not their faith and love waver. Thank you God....now if you would ever so kindly answer the other prayers....that would be just dandy! I know, I know in your time....not mine!
AMEN!

RING IT IN .....Happy 2009!

I am always grateful for a New Year....that means I survived the "old" year, but honestly I am always sad at how fast the previous year passed....I wish life would slow down a little.
New Years Resolutions.....anyone? anyone? I use to make them, and I rarely kept them; so I stopped making a new resolution each year. I started making a resolution that I try to live by every single day (not just because it's a new year)....slow down, stop and smell the roses, let my children daudle a little while walking to the car (unless of course it's in the middle of a busy parking lot or something)....just enjoy your surroundings and don't be in such a rush! That's it.....basically that's my resolution for the last 3 years now, but I don't necessarily make it on New Years Day; I try to make it every day.

God Bless You All and Happy New Year! Don't rush through this year.....stop and take it all in!