Here's a question that I was wondering about in our small group....

What is the significance of the phrase "thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies" from the 23rd Psalm??

I asked this in our small group. I had thot about it before, and never came to a conclusion. The 23rd Psalm is so beautiful and it all seems to flow, but I get stuck on that part, cuz it makes no sense to me ;)

Here is a quote from Heaven by Randy Alcorn pg269

"If we would miss something from our old lives and the Old Earth, it would be available to us on the New Earth. Why? Because we will experience all God intends for us. He fashions us to want precisely what He will give us, so what he gives us will be exactly what we want"

O, ya, Tim and I finally got a date!!! YAY!!!

we had so much fun

I think that joy is a good thermometer of my spiritual life ....seeing some today, not full... there you go....really honest with you...cuz i am not living life(with God) to the full!


We are having 5 day club this week at our house...it is so fun! I was really dreading it (here's why.... it's in the middle of the day....i CAN'T go to the BEACH!!!) but it has been quite fun and I am getting a better chance to get to know my neighbors. It's great!

well, not much else is going on in life....so

later....

what in the world!! i can't get my letters to be small!!! That post refuses to be be edited....

see below

I realize that I was talking about not having joy in an earlier post.... and not having it, well, fyi...God has given it to me again. I do not take it for granted! Days without it make me realize how I depend on Him for it :) Which is fine ;)

Here's something fun....well, for me anyway...I found (she found me rather) a my best friend from gradeschool. We have been chatting online for a week or so now....She seems to still have a lot in common with me... I am very much enjoying the connection. I had looked for her for quite a while and not been able to find her....so that was cool that she found me! It's funny tho, cuz it takes me back to childhood like crazy...I felt like I was living in my memories for a couple days there :) Anyway, it's been fun....

Hi Mia! (if you end up reading this ;)

I forgot to give you all a pic of our fourth of July festivities....

Since it is my dad's bday, we usually go spend it with my family.... I love it! Fireworks bday Celebration....while i didn't get pics of the whole day, i took pics of the rocket launch...

Being made for Joy, as in my title...makes it hard when i don't have joy...

That's where i am today... i am still striving for it, but it is a harder day for that today! No particular reason...nothing particular going on, just one of 'those' days...

On the other hand, I have sooo much to be thankful for, A great husband and family, all my needs met, great friends and family, etc, etc....so that's where I will keep my mind for today ;)

You all have the rare privilege, (LOL hee heee...hahaa) if this link works that is, of viewing some of my favorite slideshows.... they are from family gatherings, youth activities and misc. things from my life :)

enjoy

http://photoshow.comcast.net/lisatatj/
favorites?sk=857d08af794e17dd9e1ea9a1e045e5a5



fyi, not sure that you may have to sign up for a free Photoshow account..... but it is worth it, as it is a valuable photo storage and photoshow maker....
let me know if you can't get it to work

Seems like we do this every year...i join them sometimes, but this time I just watched them ;)

This was several weeks ago, but it was a CRAAAZY summer rainstorm, where it's hot one minute and POURING Rain the next!

they had fun!

I JUST saw this interview with Ted Dekker on Youtube via CBN ......it is GREAT....if you don't like scary tho, there are previews of his new movie "House" .... hope it's as scary as it looks ;) :)




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keCP-k756o8

this interview is great! enjoy

Well not much going on....but a couple of things are exciting
opportunities to me right now....

I took Travy to a robotics class and as
 i was there the lady was telling
me about a great opportunity!!  we
constantly are thinking if we need to put the
boys in school or continue to homeschool....well
this seems like a great
compromise!

The galien school system is struggling,(if i understand correctly)
so they are partnering with the
homeschool group.... they get paid if we
dual enroll with them, soooo if we take
one galien class, we get to take some xtra classes
as well (all for free, cuz the government pays
the teachers and the school!!! ) So while i pay for this
robotics class for xtra, i can get them for free
in the fall....they have math,and science, computer,
art, band, etc...for the classes that we HAVE to take
and than they have  gym and swim and robotics and
karate and art as the xtra ones....i am
 sooo excited to be able to get them these
classes....i will have to
be careful to not overdo....but the art classes
look to be in buchanan, so they
could even walk to that ;) :)

but anyway, travy like his class alot...he
said when he first started to get
excited was when he saw the wiring
for the lego robot.... evidentally, he uses a
computer to control the robot and he
got to decorate it with extra lego..... the
teacher said they all did really well
and that she is moving them on to more
advanced stuff cuz this all was too easy
 for them.  He has 2 other girls in the
class with him.... the one girl
evidentally is soooo advanced that the teacher
told the mom she HAS to keep the
girl in this field. :)..... maybe travy will
catch on that good as well....i told
 him it combines 2 of his loves
(legos and computers)

also a mission opportunity that i will post about later ;)

I love nature...maybe that's why the beach is so fun to me ;)

Anyway, we went camping this weekend, with Tim's family and these are my boys and the cousins....boy did they have fun l!! They were always dirty! It was very relaxing and we all helped with meals, etc.

Sunday morning I just sat at the campfire and marveled at God and His nature! I am very glad that He gave us nature to enjoy ;) In heaven, there won't be bugs and scary frogs tho....I didn't see any frogs, but we had some bugs --they seemed to like being in the showers....o well, better than frogs in the shower ;)

GOD IS GREAT!


GOD IS GREAT!!!!

God is GREEAT!!!!!

GOD is great!!!!!

God is great!!!!

this is me shouting God is great....becuz i love his salvation ;)

see previous post ;)

God is GREAT!!!!!!


Psalm 70:4
"But may all who searach for you be filled with joy and gladness, may those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, 'God is great!'"

excerpt from Heaven by Randy Alcorn ;)

"In Heaven, the barriers between redeemed human beings and God will forever be gone. To look into God's eyes will be to see what we've always longed to see: the person who made us for his own good pleasure. Seeing God will be like seeing everything else for the first time. Why? Because not only will we see God, he will be the lens through which we see everything else--people, ourselves, and the events of this life."




Seems to me that this is joy in this life too.... when I am processing things and people and myself as God would (this is sooo imperfect and nearly impossible to do ) that is joy! -- not sure that makes sense or I get it, but that is a foretaste of heaven and seeing God here on earth to me ;)

I just have a really random thot.... I keep seeing that when I fix my eyes on Jesus....he seems to take care of all the details....that doesn't mean that my life automatically becomes easy....I mean come on...i have 3 boys ;) ....but i do see that He seems to make things fall into place and i don't get so stressed! But i know it is Him doing it, cuz i usually am a pile of stress....The reason for this post is basically a reminder to me ;)

I also included some pics of this weekend... we went to Warren Woods and picnic-ed....Travis didn't wanted to be photographed....so that blurry one above is him...I didn't want to leave him out ;)

This is a daily devotional that comes to my email everyday....so helpful to me to day!



"Tuesday, April 17, 2007
YOU HAVE COME . . . TO THE SPRINKLED BLOOD THAT SPEAKS A BETTER WORD THAN THE BLOOD OF ABEL.Hebrews 12:22, 24 Reader, have you come to "the sprinkled blood"? The question is not whether you have come to a knowledge of doctrine or an observance of ceremonies or to a certain form of experience, but have you come to the blood of Jesus? The blood of Jesus is the life of all vital godliness. If you have truly come to Jesus, we know how you came--the Holy Spirit kindly brought you there. You came to the sprinkled blood with no merits of your own. Guilty, lost, and helpless, you came to take that blood, and that blood alone, as your everlasting hope. You came to the cross of Christ with a trembling and an aching heart; and what a precious sound it was to you to hear the voice of the blood of Jesus! The dropping of His blood is as the music of heaven to the penitents of earth. We are full of sin, but the Savior bids us lift our eyes to Him; and as we gaze upon His streaming wounds, each drop of blood, as it falls, cries, "It is finished; I have made an end of sin; I have brought in everlasting righteousness." Sweet language of the precious blood of Jesus! If you have come to that blood once, you will come to it constantly. Your life will be "looking to Jesus." Your whole conduct will be epitomized in this--"to whom coming." Not to whom I have come, but to whom I am always coming. If you have ever come to the sprinkled blood, you will feel your need of coming to it every day. He who does not desire to wash in it every day has never washed in it at all. Believers constantly feel it to be their joy and privilege that there is still a fountain opened. Past experiences are doubtful food for Christians; a present coming to Christ alone can give us joy and comfort. This morning let us sprinkle our doorpost fresh with blood, and then feast upon the Lamb, assured that the destroying angel must pass us by. "



Please note: Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright (c) 2003, Good News Publishers and used by Truth for Life with written permission. Scripture quotations are taken from Holy Bible: English Standard Version, copyright (c) 2001, Good News Publishers.
Truth For Life's agreement with Good News Publishers prevents the ministry from allowing a printer-friendly version of the devotional material. We are sorry for any inconvenience.

Need this reminder all around.... :) all the time, all the days, all the minutes, all the seconds, all the months, all the years, all the decades, all the weeks, all the milliseconds......


Mar 12:29 Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord,
Mar 12:30 and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.'
Mar 12:31 The second is this: 'You must love your neighbor as yourself.' No other commandment is greater than these."



ps.... :) :)---can't think of any other time measurements.....

Check out the http://www.girltalk.blogs.com/ March 16,2007 friday funnies
Hilarious