I met Arminda on my trip to Bolivia with the World Vision Blogger Team. Arminda has a mother, father, and four older brothers. She didn’t have the typical arrival to her family. You see Arminda was abandoned. Neighbors in this community had taked her from door to door trying to find someone to care for her.
This family didn’t ask themselves all of the questions they might have asked as they tried to talk themselves out of doing something “crazy” like taking in another child when they already had so little for themselves. They responded to her need. They gave her a home.
Continue Reading »
“Mommy! Mommeeeeeeeeee! I caught a frog!”
Walking through the field admiring the beauty of the giant pine trees and tall grass on our family camping trip revealed a hidden gem we almost never even noticed. Frogs. These were nothing like giant toads but were very tiny baby frogs that looked almost cute.
Without any advanced training or ability to research the proper frog catching technique, my sons jumped right into getting a hold of nature’s little surprise. They quickly learned frog catching requires keen eye observation waiting for just the right moment, a little bit of skill, and a lot of tenderness.
Continue Reading »
A faint glint of something blue caught my eye as I backed out of my driveway. Someone had put something in my mailbox and left it cracked open just a smidgen. My curiosity was piqued. Junk mail certainly does not sparkle.
Joy erupted in my heart when I discovered what the mystery glimmer was. Someone had put an earring I had lost inside my mailbox. And not just any earring. It was one of my favorites- delicate, dangly blue ones handmade by a dear friend. I had been heartbroken the day I lost one of them.
I smiled and thanked the Lord for returning it to me, for caring about even the smallest of details in my life.
Continue Reading »
Written on
September 4, 2011 by
Deb in
Blog
This morning as I was doing my time of Bible reading and prayer I repeated a daily request, “Father, please bless my day.”
However, this morning the question, “Why?” immediately popped into my head.
- Was I hoping my day would be enjoyable?
- Was I longing for an easy day without conflict or disappointments?
- Was I thinking about comfort, happiness, peace, etc.?
Sure! Probably that and more.
I don’t usually sign up for trials and challenges, and yet they come. Does that mean that God denied my prayer and refused His blessings?
Have you heard Laura Story’s song Blessings? Take a moment and listen: \”Blessings – Laura Story on YouTube\”
This song has touched my heart in huge ways.
Continue Reading »
“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Matthew 6:27 NIV
For the fifth time in an hour, I leaned over my newborn daughter’s bassinet and checked to make sure she was okay. Thoughts of SIDS and fears of her getting tangled in her blanket filled my head. I held my breath and watched her tiny chest rise and fall. Only after I was sure she was okay did I lie back down and try to get some sleep.
Those first few nights of motherhood—months, actually—were like that. When my daughter didn’t wake me up because she was hungry, I woke myself up to make sure she was okay.
Continue Reading »
A dream is a wish your heart makes
When you’re fast asleep
In dreams you lose your heartaches
Whatever you wish for, you keep
Have faith in your dreams and someday
Your rainbow will come smiling thru
No matter how your heart is grieving
If you keep on believing
the dream that you wish will come true.
When I was a child, I loved to make wishes. I made them while standing outside in the dark, standing on the grass in my bare feet, gazing upon the stars. I made them in pretty party dresses surrounded by friends and family as I puckered up and blew out the candles on the cake.
Continue Reading »
It’s not light yet. I see a glow from the almost full moon and rays of artificial street light from behind the trees. But it is dark. Everyone still sleeps, at least in my house.
The clock shines red numbers on the ceiling — a four and a three and a zero. He’s done it again. For the 4th or 5th time in a row. Awake at exactly 4:30am. Sometimes even a few minutes earlier. He wants me to have an hour with Him before I start my day.
On “sleep-in days”, He gets me up at 5:30.
Sometimes it’s a husband getting up to use the bathroom that wakes me.
Continue Reading »
This summer my family and I went on quite the adventurous excursion. In twelve days, we drove 4,000 miles to the Wild Wild West to visit Yellowstone National Park and back home. We made lots of stops along the way to see grandparents, sisters in two states and a newborn niece. We had an all nighter stomach bug, a stolen phone and it’s happy retrieval, as well as several other mishaps along the way. To say we were happy to sleep in our own bed when we finally got home is an understatement.
My kids are nine and eleven years old and it’s sad to say, but we had not spent that kind of time together since our last vacation.
Continue Reading »
