It all started with a simple vacation

Ok, I told you all I would blog what happened on our trip to Florida....... sorry it took me so long to get this far. The time spent relaxing and enjoying my family was amazing. Away from all obligations and responsibilities; just enjoying one another's company without the chaos was un-imaginably AWESOME! Being in temperatures consistently ABOVE 50 degrees in February was a welcome change as well. Swimming in the Ocean, collecting tons of shells, washing sand out of everyones britches, was loads of fun. There is just so much to tell so I will try to get it all in!
On to the important part....... the reunion went with John's daughter Sarah........ It was rather awkward and un-natural at first due to a bit of history that I will share. Many of you are not aware that when she met up with her birth mother it was a horrible, scary, manipulative, dangerous experience for Sarah and Matt (her fiancé, now husband). Sarah decided, after getting to know her BM, she desired a closer/deeper relationship with her. In an effort to accomplish this she accepted her BM invitation to come live with the BM and her family. While John and I were very surprised & scared about this decision we at least knew she wasn't 'leaving' her adoptive family to do this but was actually moving closer to them, since the BM and her adoptive parents live in the same town. She & Matt packed up her things and moved 4 hours away from Naples (where Matts family lives) to Gainesville. After some huge warning flags, deception and inconsistencies began rearing their ugly head, she and Matt moved out within 3 weeks. I will spare you the ugly details! We, at this time, lost contact with her since she was now at a loss of if we too were as unpredictable & crazy as her BM. She had to move several times within Gainesville in an effort to hide from her BM because her BM began to harass/stalk she & Matt. Finally after getting married they decided to move back to Naples where they knew they would be far enough away from the BM that she wouldn't bother them. We, unfortunately, heard all the scary details of what took place and it is by the grace of God and her adoptive parents wisdom, that kept them safe from harm.
SO meeting us she and Matt were understandably, a bit skeptical of what they would find. At first they were a bit reserved but after a day or 2 of hanging out she began to get more comfortable with us. I am sure the kids chatting her ear off and asking a bazillion questions put her at ease as well! Probably the biggest highlight of our trip for my kids was meeting their sister! Granted we spent a couple days at Disney world and a day at Seaworld but if you listen to what they talk about most, it is about their sister! We spent 4 days with Sarah. She came down to Orlando and met up with us at Seaworld and then we all drove back that evening to Naples. They pretty much spent all their waking hours with us. We saw all the sights and pretty beaches. On Sunday and Monday we took road trips where Sarah would jump into our car and we toured Miami/Hollywood. I think those are the times John and I will cherish most. When we were in the car it was like all the guards were off and they began to speak very frankly about their lives past and present. We got to hear about her childhood and how wonderful her adoptive parents are! This was such an amazing blessing to hear! She too got to hear about the timing of her birth, who John was back then and that he thanks God everyday that he didn't interfere with the adoption.
We visited the Calvary in Naples Florida. This was a very neat experience for several reasons! It was a small church body so this was neat & reminiscent of our intimate fellowship here in the Tri-cities, before we grew......... There probably only around 50 people there and we visited on the day when they had a special presentation. Potters field ministries from Troutdale, Montana was visiting and shared why, where & how God had molded and shaped their lives to get to the point on where they are now at in their ministry! If you have never seen them it is a very cool visual presentation of a potter at work with the clay. If you are a visual leraner your heart can't help but be moved! It was so neat to listen to all the work that the Lord had done in them in order for them to step out in their ministry! Some of their points that touched us the most I wanted to share with you all .
1. The clay never gets to tell the potter how to shape it or what to do. The clay is silent and pliable into whatever the Lord desires of it! Many times in our Christian walks we are still a freshly unmolded lump of clay. The reason this is so, is because we are so busy telling our Heavenly father how we should be shaped that there is no room to be molded. In doing this we stay stuck as that lump and our hearts can get hardened to the Lord's will for us. Since we are stuck we can't ever even begin to invision the finished product that God sees. HE doesn't look at us as we are right now, but instead he sees the amazingly beautiful finished product. The potter, in his minds eye, always knows what he will make before he begins to touch the clay. If we have our eyes on Jesus rather than ourselves or our situation, then we too begin to see glimpses of the finished product. Since we are no longer having our eyes on ourselves and they are focused on Jesus our hearts will not turn hard and brittle but will be ever molded & shaped into His image.
2. We are too comfortable/complacent! There are times in our lives that we get quite comfortable with where we are at. Comfortable with the friendships we have, comfortable with our worldly possessions, comfortable with our family size, comfortable with our home church, content in our job situations. Don't get me wrong, contentment is a great goal to strive for and it is what God calls us to on a daily basis. However, contentment in some ways, can also be a place of false security and complacency. For example, anyone who is not content with their job is more than willing for God to move them out of their discomfort/discontentment.......... In John and my life, despite our best efforts to acheive change, this has been the times when we are forced to stay right where we are at till God reaches our hearts and molds us into who He wants us to be in that situation. It is when we are content, that God can now challenge our walk and do a work in our heart by following His lead. Contentment can lead to a life that keeps us complacent in our walk with the Lord if we are relying our situation not changing. Nothing is really required in a life where our needs are clearly met. We do depend on God for the provision He gives to us, but when provision comes so easily and predictably I tend to rely on the predictability of that provision rather than the Lord who gave it to me! You see, there was no striving to trust that He would do so.
They talked a bit about Peter, when God called him out of the boat. His reaction was not to barder, argue or protest but to simply follow and let God take care of the rest. Again, the clay can't be shaped if it is telling God what to do or how to provide. A couple years ago, if John was called out of the boat (away fromt he jail) he would have signed his resignation papers the very same day. He was not content with his position there. Now that he is very content the Lord began to challenge him in this. What if I now told you to get out of the boat? Would you go WHEREVER I wanted to send you and not think twice about obeying me?
These 2 things really spoke to our hearts and so now we are praying about why they ministered so deeply! Please be praying for us as we are seeking the Lord for answers!!