a "bunny" moment :)

today in my time with my daddy,

 i read a devotion by Oswald Chambers

and a portion of it jumped off the page...

 

"We must continually remind ourselves of the purpose of life. 

We are not destined to happiness, nor to health, but to holiness. 

Today we have far too many desires and interests,

and our lives are being consumed and wasted by them."

i was giving it alot of thought this morning
and pleading with the Lord to show me what He would have me do...
when Stephen and Gracie came running into my room
and said "Mom come quick, we have to show you something!"

for some of you, those might be favorable words
but for me... NOT SO MUCH :)
so i followed them apprehensively out to the pool,
and here is what i found...
 

 



a baby bunny!

(our pool has had all kinds of interesting visitors

this year.)

 

Scott pulled it out of the skimmer...

it was scared and shaking.

and although he had pulled it to safety,

and the kids were trying to help it...

it just squealed and jumped.

 

the thing i found to be most interesting is...

 although it fought,

they just patiently cared for it...

never getting frustrated or tired.

 

instead of putting it to the wayside to

go back to their play...

to accomplish what they had set out to do...

they nurtured it and spoke kind words over it,

warmed it, and fretted about it's health.

 

and in that moment as i watched my kids,

God answered my plea...

not with what i had hoped for,

but with exactly what i needed to hear...

 

it kinda went something like this...

 

"LeAnn...

 your children are a gift to be cherished,

nurtured and loved. 

its time to simplify your calendar,

rid of the things that are good but not God's best...

so that you would not be so irritated and frustrated

when you accomplish little more in a day than loving me

and loving them and others. 

my purpose for you is what is to prevail!"

 

my "bunny moment"

came at the perfect time  

so that when it was time to

sit and skype with the girls...

i had allowed the Lord to put my day into perspective :)

 

 

 

 

Love Him... then Others...

all the other stuff can WAIT! 

 



My MBA degree

just for the record...

i am a glass half full kinda girl...

 

so with that said... let me share...

 

i'm not sure exactly what i thought 

that adding two boys to the already chaotic mix would look like...

but the reality is... it is hard! 

GODS PERFECT PLAN but hard!

 

and as i struggled through another day on wednesday...

(testy, whiny, frustrated... must i say more)...

my God who has such a sense of humor...

and who loves me and you so much,

decided it was time for this little

spoiled girl to get an "object lesson"

concerning her attitude :)

 

i don't know about your life...

but in my life... these are always painful...

PERFECT but painful!

 

so the kids and i had gone to a food distribution center to work,

to bag food, pack food, distribute food... (you get it)

and that's exactly what we were doing,

when God who knows my heart

decided i had some work to be done!

 

i had walked to find a shopping cart

when i noticed coming out of the bottom of a trash can...

beginning to cover the concrete floor...

orange thick liquid... ugggggggg...

cracked gallons of sunny d!

 

i stepped over it... and walked onward...

to complete what i was working on,

when God spoke quietly to my

ridiculously selfish spirit...

and the words were clear.... 

change your attitude... GET A MOP!

 

let's be transparent...

here is the childish thought i had...

"now wait a minute...

i came to distribute food,

and if i get in that mess... i can't!

i'll be covered..."

and i heard it again... 

change your attitude... GET A MOP!

 

so i began the process of finding a mop...

finding a bucket...

running some water...

and mopping the floor!

 

 

and during that exercise of humility...

(for a very stubborn girl)...

God in His sweetness

gave me a hard, gentle reminder as i heard His voice again...

speaking quietly...

 

"learn from me, LeAnn...

a heart of love and humility

is what i am teaching you...

in humility, love does what is needed!"

 

awwwwwwwwww! 

i hate being reminded i have

fallen into selfishness yet again!

 

see in all that is happening in our home...

i lost perspective...

i began looking at the obstacles of each day...

instead of the God i serve...

i become focused on the things that needed to be done,

instead of the people i was to love!

 

i had gotten lost in the grind of the days...

and had forgotten to gird myself with a towel

and wash anothers feet...

 

this is the love i know from my Savior,

and the call i have as His disciple. 

 

so He lovingly reminded me as i mopped

of my agreeing to a

*MBA degree

(mop bucket attitude - degree)

when i willingly chose to follow Him!

 

*MBA degree

i did not coin this phrase... i just use it alot...

if you have not heard of this before here is

where it comes from...

 

Dave Thomas, the founder of Wendy’s Hamburgers,

once appeared on the cover of the companies’ corporate annual report. 

He was dressed in a knee-length work apron

with a mop in one hand and a bucket in the other. 

When asked to describe the picture, here is what he said…

“I got my M.B.A. long before I got my G.E.D. 

At Wendy’s, M.B.A. does not stand for

“Masters of Business Administration”,

 instead it means “Mop Bucket Attitude”. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

bath day :)



my life looks just like yours...

FULL...

full of...

doctor's appts, dentist appts, orthodontist appts,

athletic practices... language tutoring...

school supply shopping... dog patrol...

house work... laundry duty...

and on and on and on...

in these FULL days i often times

get so busy with my TO DO LIST,

 that i forget, that above all else...

 i am to SHINE THE LIGHT OF CHRIST...

beginning in my home!

this was certainly the case on saturday...

as my patience began to seep away!

between the shout outs...

"pick up your clothes!",

"don't feed that to the dog!",

"what is that and how long has it been in your room?"

"cheese curls are not a breakfast food!"

"the floor is not a pool!"

"i am not air conditioning the outdoors!"

"no! sugar is not a necessary food group!"
"don't hit your brother!"
"yes twisting in a pretzel is considered wrestling!"

enough, right?!...

i was discussing my waining disposition with the Lord...

when i decided that for therapy i would wash the puppies

(yes i have considered professional counseling) :))

and during that TIME OUT for mommy,

God showed up!!

not in the way i had hoped...

to bring discipline to those rowdy kids,

instead He in His sovereignty
brought discipline to a momma...

that needed some perspective!

see as i placed Marlee in the sink,

she shook and whined and moved...

when all i was trying to do was help her.

she was dirty and stinky,

but she wanted no part of the cleaning!

as i tried to speak soothing words over her

she couldn't hear them for trying so hard to remove

herself from the bathing area!

even though somewhat uncomfortable for her,
what i was trying to do was for her good...

but she was fighting against it...

making what should have been easy

so much harder!

as i held her tight in the towel,

lovingly reminding her...

how much i love her and

only want to care for her...

i heard God CLEAR!!

ugggggggggggggggggh!!

WHEN WILL I GET IT!

i am Marlee,

shaking, whining and moving...

when i know that

God allows what i need for my best!!

to be my best for HIS GLORY!!

it's not about me and my comforts,

it is about HIM and HIS KINGDOM!!

as i pray for the "Fruits of the Spirit"...

love, joy, peace,

patience, kindness, goodness,

faithfulness, gentleness and

self-control...

God is bathing me with opportunities to

exercise them...

every second of every day,

beginning in my home!

and if i will see the things that happen

as opportunities to shine HIS LIGHT,

then maybe i won't wiggle so hard...

to get around them!

because here is what i know...

at the end of the bathing experience...

if i will allow His Glory to be revealed...

if i keep things in perspective...

if i allow Him to flow through me...

IT IS ALL WORTH IT!!

every golden chance i am given to

exercise His grace

has been afforded me by Him!

so i will face my bathing today

as what it is...

an opportunity to SHINE HIS LIGHT!

accepting with praise, what i don't understand!

God continues to turn my world upside down...

and nothing about it feels good,

yet i will choose to PRAISE HIM!

Skyler and i were scheduled to leave for Africa

tomorrow with a team to do vbs with a group of orphans...

but the plan changed...

because...

 we bought tickets to leave tomorrow for Brazil

to pick up Chloe and Emily...

but the plan changed...

all because... God said so!!

i don't understand anything at the moment...
my heart is breaking and aching...
my flesh longs to make sense of it all..
but my Spirit knows He's got it...

so i will simply sit again in the wait...
trusting and praising Him.

blessed!

i am so overwhelmed with God's graciousness and provisions...

AND

thankful for you the hands He used to work through!

i have to be honest that when

my sweet friend Angela asked about organizing a mini-drive

entitled "blessings for Brazil"...

my mind thought... a couple of walmart bags full of groceries

and some perfectly good hand me downs out of houses around here...

I HAD NO IDEA!!

please know that EVERYTHING each of you has done

matters immensely!

i may never get the chance to sit across

from each of you that have sacrificially given

to our family...

(buying groceries for us to take...

washing twin sheets to deliver ready to pack...

cleaning out suitcases so we could have them

or buying ones so we would have enough...

shopping all over for household items we need...

i could keep going...

this pic does not do it justice)

but know that we have been greatly impacted!

WE ARE SO GRATEFUL

THAT GOD MOVED ON YOUR HEARTS

TO BLESS US, 

THANK YOU!

update for today is...

we are still waiting on alot of pieces to fall into place

before we can travel... so we are back in the wait!

please continue to pray Chloe and Emily
as we wait on God's timing :)

Erik is adjusting well...

and we've now officially begun Stephen's process.

thanks for hanging with us through

all the turns and detours,

we need you our prayer warriors!