My retreat

The retreat this weekend was pretty neat. Only 5 women went from our church and this was a nice time to become more acquainted with them! There were quite a few churches within the Miami area and other surrounding churches there and I think ours was the only one from the gulf side of the state. It was weird that this was my first retreat where no body knew who I was...... while sometimes this is a wonderful thing, it was also kind of sad since everone already had their own friends and stuck to them pretty tight. I now have an understanding of how the Pendleton church must have felt at our retreats. Maybe a little isolated and alone in a crowd.

The theme for our retreat was called "The Way of Wisdom" and our guest speaker was Debbi Bryson, from California! She was an excellent speaker and if you want to check out who she is here is her webpage! http://www.abidinginministries.com/
One of the most informative descriptions of how to do a quiet time was really neat so if you are struggling with this check out this resource from her website that helps us to dig deeper into the word and pull out what applies to us: http://www.abidinginministries.com//images/stories/bible%20bus/Developing_Quiet_Time--Bus_Manual%5B1%5D-2.pdf

There were a couple phrases she shared that are in bold print that go with each concept she wanted to nail home......
First one goes like this:
Growing old is inevidable,
growing in wisdom is optional!

Most of the retreat we camped out in the Proverbs 4 as it pertained to where wisdom begins, where it comes from, how to preserve it, guard it, the cost to live it out.

Wisdom defined was: Clear thinking, good judgement, tact, discretion, balance, unshakable foundation regardless of circumstance.

Fear of the Lord defined: Reverence/respect/aww for the Lord

The opposite of wisdom looks a lot like 2 Timothy 3:1-7

Hence the next phrase worth remembering:
Much of life's pain and suffering comes as a result of indulging in what we want NOW while sacrificing what we want/need MOST

Many times Satan wants to rob us from this wisdom.
*he uses our desire to seek out a friend rather than to the Lord.
*he keeps our focus inward ~ causing us to question the Lord and His provision which lead to discontentment
*he gets us alone where we are isolated and out of fellowship with other believers

For many it is a progression that leads to sin/destruction:
Listen with our ears ~ seeds are planted
Listen with our hearts ~ seeds are cultivated and rooted
Acted upon ~ Seeds are now shooting up into plants and fertilized

Unfortunately our sin and destruction not only stop at us but has a snowball effect!
Proverbs 29:12 states this: If a ruler pays attention to lies, All his servants become wicked.

90% of the Christian life is wanting, while only
10% is asking.

When we are seeking God and in a right relationship with Him, many of the desires for wisdom, spiritual gifts or _______ (fill in the blank) are from Him! Hence the verse below:
Luke 11:
9 “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 11 If a son asks for bread[d] from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

We have not because we do not seek to ask for it!

Hope you all are well! Love to you all!

This one is for Sharon!

John's old boss asked us to post a picture of John when he gets to wrestle and alligator and since he didn't get the fish and wildlife job, this is the closest he will get! Looks a bit more like he is lovingly laying on the beast but really there are just TONS of fake alligator statues EVERYWHERE you go. Parks, libraries, ect. The real gators are behind the netting! While this one is a pretty nice size replica of a real one......

Here is a pretty big boy! Yes he is a real one and I think they feed him so much that he doesn't move very much! This was at a place in Bonita Springs where they have a natural wild life preserve.

Here he is from another angle!

Here is a sea otter. They do live in the wild here around the canals but we were warned, while they look very fun and playful, thier idea of playing is biting you and running off! SO when we do get to see one we just watch from afar!

Not much going on here. I leave tomorrow for our womens conference in a hotel in Boca Raton. Sounds kinda snobby but I am sure God speaks there too! He He! God Bless and Hugs to all! I will post more about it when I get home!

Amazing story and video!

Frank Jenner: The Man from George Street
"Sir, are you saved? "If you would die tonight would you go to heaven. For years Mr. Jenner, an ordinary man as you and I witnessed to people on George Street, Sydney, Australia never seeing anyone coming to Christ but through his witnessing the lifes of thousands of people were changed and transformed for ever. If you are frustrated because no one seems to respond to the gospel then watch this amazing video and receive fresh fire for evangelism and don't forget YOU ARE a history maker. God is using You to influence persons and change their lifes and destinies.

This is an amazing video of one mans faithfulness to be bold and not knowing the seeds he had planted! PLEASE WATCH!
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=555e221b560fe5d5dd2a

Praise and prayer.....

WOOO HOOO! WE have finally been here for 3 months and now have medical, dental & vision coverage! YIPEE! To some families this is not too big of a deal and maybe just something they can very well do without, but for our family it really is a necessity! Praise God that my last insurance allowed me to stock up on my prescriptions so I never had to pay any outrageous out of pocket expenses while we were not covered. Being that I take 3 pills a day and each pill retails for about $3 a piece, this is a huge savings and a neat way for God to provide for us!! We are still getting our bearings here and so the next order of business is to find doctors. It is funny because the term 'family doctor' is really not true to the meaning. I wanted to find a Dr that would at least be a primary for myself and the kids (John prefers the 'doc in the box' places where you don't have to have an appointment), however quickly learned by making some calls that due to the influx of elderly in the area you pretty much have no other choice but for me to find a woman Dr and the kids HAD to see a pediatrician. Family doctors only see teenagers and up and a majority of their clientel are elderly. Oh yes, the same goes for dentist and eye doctors as well. You pretty much have to call around to find ones that specialize in taking kids because when you call and ask if they take children you may get the response of "well I suppose we could see your kids too"........ My thought is NO THANK YOU, I prefer someone who actually likes kids!

Another thing that is weird here is the fact that, because John works for the jail, as an officer we automatically get gratuities from local businesses. Meaning, most businesses appreciate their law enforcement officers so much that they show it by giving a discount. I love to get 'discounts' but sometimes it is just odd. I took the dog to the vet and was chatting with a woman at the office; nice lady who is paid to visit with the customers, take pictures of their animals for their file and just be personable....... really ODD job description, but I think it is just the vets wife maybe? IDK? Well, in chatting she asked why we moved, where John worked, how many kids we had, ect...... After checking out and paying for the visit, this lady ran out to the car and asked why I didn't tell the ladies up front where my hubby worked? I explained to her I didn't think to mention it since I am not used to this kind of gesture as it is not normal where we come from. She just looked at me all cock eyed and said, "Well then we will just have to put a credit on your account to go towards your next visit". This side of the country is so odd, but this part makes me not want to mention where John works at all because then people fawn all over you and make a big deal about it...... I think it is a nice concept that people appreciate your service but just a bit uncomfortable?

A prayer request if I may...... The Lord has been laying some things on John's heart that he isn't exactly sure what to do with. It is one of those things that make you go "hum" and just keep seeking the Lord as you do not know what it all means. So if you could just pray for clarity that would be great....... Also, he is the only one that is in the group of people that were hired together, that hasn't gotten his schedule yet. He isn't sure why....... the Seargents basically bid for who they want to go where....... John is hoping it is because God is going to work a miracle and wants to put him on days after his training is through but also wondering if his supervisors just forgot about him? He wants to be where ever he will get the most opportunities to witness so I think God is doing some orchestration behind the scenes there! Prayers for a permanent schedule would be nice since this has made planning things pretty difficult past the end of November.

Also, there was a gentleman that came to church 2 Sundays ago. He had recently been through a detox program from alcoholism and you could tell it was taking a toll on his body. He went to detox because the lady who was renting him a room (she goes to our church) told him he had to go to detox or he would get kicked out of her home and not be welcomed back. He decided to go to detox at her ultimatum and was visibly going through withdrawls and shaking pretty bad during church. The Tuesday after the Sunday he came to church, he accepted the Lord as his savior and two days later, that Thursday he had a massive stroke and God took him home to be with him. He was only in his mid-50's but the pastor and John agreed that it was probably God's graciousness that ended his suffering and brought him home so that he would no longer be tempted to go back to his old lifestyle. If you could be praying for comfort to the lady who took him in and witnessed to him during this time in his life, and also for his unsaved family & friends. Not only for comfort, but that the people who don't know Jesus would also come to know the Lord through this!

HUGS!

Fall has arrived

It appears like 'fall' comes on Florida much like it comes into play in Wa. Warm one day and the next it only gets up to 65? Last night the weatherman was making a big deal about the fact that temperatures last night were only going to be in the low 40s and high 30's inland. This was a record low for the area I guess. Later on this week it is suppose to back into the 80's though so the temps are not really consistently cooler. Silly me, thought I had closed all the windows only to find that the one left open was in my room by my bed. Needless to say, I was awake at 4am freezing searching for where I put all my blankets!
This morning the kids woke up chilled a bit and asked me to put another blanket on their beds. Michaela was complaining yesterday that the high of 75 was COLD but yet still insisted on wearing shorts and a T-shirt? Today she is bundled up in sweats and not complaining one bit! Meanwhile I had all the windows and doors open and enjoying the nice cooler weather (with a sweatshirt & capri pants on) I think we have become acclimated a bit to the warmer temperatures. John is still wearing shorts and t-shirts claiming it is beautiful out even when the temp dips below 60. He thinks we are all just sissies! The rainy season is over so it is not wet on a daily basis anymore and it looks like hurricane season is also done too.

John has been working in the downtown jail for about 2 weeks now. They have him in with the violent high profile offenders right now, which is rather exhausting. Nothing he can't handle can't exactly let your guard down for a minute. The kinds of crimes that are committed here are much more frequent and haneous than back home just because people are sinful (no big surprise on that one) and the population is larger. He was told that this part of the jail was really 'hopping' and every day he would experience one kind of physical altercation or another but he doesn't seem to have that experience. The inmates seem to feel at ease with him so this makes his job much easier.

We are getting more traffic and the streets are now more congested with snowbirds that live here in the winter. This is good for the stuggling economy here so we don't mind the extra congestion if it means more jobs become available to those that are struggling. Our Costco is no longer a ghost town that it once was.

John got to go to a men's conference not too long ago. God encouraged him in many ways to stay on task and stay open to whatever the Lord has for us to do here. We are praying about permenancy; if God is calling us to stay in the area where we currently reside or somewhere else in Lee county or closer to Naples to be closer to his daughter? We would like to know where before we begin looking at buying, especially since there are A LOT of good deals out there. For those of you who know me, sometimes I can be swayed in the pursuit of a good deal that may seem too good to pass up. It is a good thing sometimes but it can easily become a 'flesh thing' as well. I just don't want to do this in my flesh and get stuck with the fact that I lost sight of God's plan of where HE wants us to be....... So if you could please pray for us to get confirmation on the WHERE question that would be wonderful! It appears that housing prices are not going up anytime soon and people are still giving up their homes to the bank........ It is really sad! Some of the great deals on forclosed homes come with thier own set of problems from the fact that the previous owners that were not too happy about having to give their houses back to the bank. There are yard sales going on constantly of people selling the entire contents of their homes, fixtures, appliances and all to get back at the bank for taking their home. This is why discernement on these great deals is so important! We have been told that eventhough we have till July till our lease is up we should begin looking now since sometimes the bank can take up to a year to decide to sell the home that is in forclosure. Chances are, this is a home we would be able to afford so I am sure God has just the right place out there for us!

Anyways, that is what is going on here in Florida! Hope you are all doing well!

Wisdom and Knowledge

I didn't write this but since not much right now that is going on is blog-worthy I figured I would share this nugget of knowledge written by someone much smarter than me!

The Money Meltdown: A Need for Wisdom, Not Just Knowledge
Steve Diggs

As you may know, I'm the fellow who teaches the No Debt No Sweat! Christian Money Management Seminar. Over the years I've shared this message at more than 320 congregations, colleges, and conferences nationwide. So, maybe you will understand when I tell you that these are very frustrating days for me. I'm getting questions from Christians all over America about the current economic crisis -- but, I've been benched! Due to a bleeding vocal cord, the doctor has me on total voice rest. So, to re-phrase an old truism, let's see if the pen can be mightier than the tongue.
The questions tend to fall into three broad categories:
1. What has happened?
2. Who's at fault?
3. What does this mean for my family's future?

While there's plenty of blame to go around, it probably started with politicians who tried to buy votes by establishing the Community Reinvestment Act. The CRA (goaded on by neighborhood activist groups) pushed banks into lending mortgage money to people who shouldn't have borrowed money. Then those banks dumped the bad paper on Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. While hiding the true nature of these loans (aided and abetted by rating agencies who pretended that all was well), Mac and Mae re-packaged the junk mortgages into respectable-looking bonds. Then they sold those bonds to every imaginable investment firm--some of whom were showing them at 100%+ of value on their books--and also leveraging those amounts by as much as 30/1 (i.e. Lehman Brothers). Then, insurance companies like AIG insured these bonds--without having enough money to cover their guarantees. When home prices began to sink--the handwriting was on the wall.

But at the heart of it all was the belief that God was wrong -- that, in fact, the borrower is not the slave of the lender. (Proverbs 22) As we embraced this kind of thinking, we began to believe that by digging an ever deepening hole we could eventually build a mountain of wealth.
We are a culture that is saturated with "stuffaholism." (I think Jesus referred to this as "loving the things of this world.") And, we have fallen for the lie from the pit that says: Stuff, sex, money = Happiness. If that were true, it would stand to reason that the happiest families would all be in Hollywood!

Sadly, many Christians (who are called to be the "salt of the earth") have lost our savor. Many of us are in the same mess. Even Christians normally critical of those who abuse drugs and alcohol think nothing of anesthetizing the pain they feel when the credit card bill arrives -- by going back to the mall.

There are three lessons that might turn this very difficult experience into a fruitful learning and growing opportunity for God's kids:
1. James, put a high premium on wisdom. (see James 1:5) Today, there seems to be confusion between wisdom and knowledge. They both have their place, but they are not synonymous. Knowledge is what tells one that tomatoes are a fruit. Wisdom is what tells us not to put a tomato into a fruit salad. Today's world has plenty of knowledge, but a dearth of wisdom. The smart people of today's financial world have had their turn at things, and we are in trouble. Maybe it's time to re-think the fundamental tenets of our beliefs. Wisdom speaks to this. Wisdom says whenever one gets something for nothing, there will eventually be a disproportionate price to be paid.
2. King David's number one son was fond of saying, "There is nothing new under the sun." It seems to me that there is nothing "new" about this present predicament. But you say, "Oh, this is different than anything before -- including the Great Depression." While I would agree that the names and players are different, the root cause is the same. It pivots on the three things that John warned the early Christians to be on guard against, "Do not love the world, nor the things of the world...For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world." (1 John 2:15,16)
3. We would serve ourselves well to remember that the best financial teaching is in the Bible itself. I call it "Money 101." It comes from a man who knew how to live with prosperity and without. Paul told his protégé, Timothy, the secret to dealing with money in 1 Timothy 6:17-19:
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share." Note the three things Paul tells rich Christians to do. (By the way, if you have a bath tub in your home--you're a rich Christian.)

First, he tells us not to be prideful and arrogant. Wealth doesn't make one person better than another.
Second, the Apostle tells Christians not to trust in their 401(k) plans. Yes, plan for your future but always be ready for things to change. As we've all seen, dollars in the bank do not guarantee anything.
Third, the wealthy are encouraged to enjoy their wealth -- but be ready to share at the drop of a hat. Too simple for our complex world? I don't think so. It gets back to appreciating the difference between knowing a lot about wealth, and actually having the wisdom to use our wealth properly.
I would submit that what we are experiencing may not necessarily be a bad thing. Most humans (Christians, too) only look up when they have been sucker-punched, and are lying on the floor looking up. That's when we tend to see the eternal through the temporal.
Will we as a nation get through this? I suspect we will. Over the last one hundred years, stocks have gained value in every ten year period--including during the Great Depression. Will there be pain in the meantime. I suspect there will be. The question laid squarely at our feet is How will we respond to this tempest in the teapot of eternity? What if this caused Christians to again become salt? What if we led by example? What if we bought fewer "extras?" What if we paid off our credit cards and bought cars we could afford -- and saved more than we spent? What if we always had money to give to others -- and were truly ready unto every good deed?

Steve Diggs presents the No Debt No Sweat! Christian Money Management Seminar at churches and other venues nationwide. Visit Steve on the Web at http://www.crosswalkmail.com/czhdghbpf_wpedqgqcfc.html or call 615-834-3063.
The author of several books, today Steve serves as a minister for the Antioch Church of Christ in Nashville. For 25 years he was President of the Franklin Group, Inc. Steve and Bonnie have four children whom they have home schooled. The family lives in Brentwood, Tennessee.
A complete financial compendium, 19 chapters• What you can do today to get out of debt and kill the Debt Monster• A,B,C's of handling your money God's way• How to save, invest, and retire wisely• How mutual funds work• How to stop fighting over money• What to teach your kids about money• Learn how home & car buying, college financing and insurance work.• How to develop a budget that works -- forever!• Features simple charts, graphs, and easy-to-use forms.
Click here to learn more or to order.

Some pics as promised

Here is a picture Michalea drew for her friends back home! As you can tell she was a bit homesick and missing her friends!

This was our science lesson today. On the back lania above the screen there were 4 chrysallis formations waiting to be butterflies. We have tons of them fluttering around our house so I knew that if we looked hard enough we would figure out where they were resting. By later than afternoon only 2 were left! There were around 5 others around the house so the kids and I are going to watch them to see if/when they disappear. We got some oranges to slice up for them as well so they can eat & stick around for a bit! I am so wishing I had my butterfly garden in place for them!

Here is a butterfly that was kind enough to let me get close enough to him to get a picture!

There were quite a few fuzzy catepillars roaming around the house too so we will watch them to see when they form their chrysallis as well!

I know I know, whats with all the pictures of bugs. Well I have never seen bugs like this. This one is a dragonfly. They are also roaming everwhere and buzzing about but rarely do they sit still long enough for me to take a picture.

OK I have seen a bug like this before but it was at a zoo! This one was on my neighbors house and it was so cool I had to share!

Here is a cute little frog that came in from out of the rain to rest on the front of my house!

As promised, I said I would share a picture of the bald man himself. After my last post John's boss wrote back to us stating that he must have shaved his head to prevent him from pulling it all out! After being given the nickname Uncle Hester from the Adams family from the guys at work, I think he may have decided to keep the flat top when it grows back out!

Here are some pictures of the kiddos at a sprinkler park we found in Fort Myers. Kind of a neat idea as they have a main pool that the water drains into and where it is chlorinated and re-distributed......

This is a gorgeous park that rents paddleboats, canoes and all sorts of fun things to do as a family! They also have a historical train depot that the kids can climb in and tour for free!