More of our day in Lawrence

A day in Lawrence

I'm squeezing in several post to close out the month of October. Last Saturday we took a day trip to Lawrence with some friends. We stopped at a Pumpkin Patch just outside Lawrence--it was FREE and so much fun! We then headed down to Massachusetts Street in Downtown Lawrence. We had heard that Lawrence had a great downtown area--it's true. We are still fond of Downtown Columbia and nothing could I think replace that for us but we did enjoy the day of exploring a small little part of Lawrence.

beautiful song . . . the cry of my heart

MY SOUL IS WEAK my heart is numb
I cannot see
But still my hope is found in You
I’ll hold on tightlyYou will never let me go
For Jesus You will never fail
Jesus You will never fail

Simply to the cross I cling
Letting go of all earthly things
Clinging to the cross
Mercy’s found a way for me
Hope is here as I am free
Jesus You are all I need
Clinging to the cross

Even darkness is as light
To You my Lord
So light the way and lead me home
To that place where
Every tear is wiped away
For Jesus You will never fail
Jesus You will never fail

What a Saviour, what a story
You were crucified but now You are alive
So amazing, such a mystery
You were crucified but now You are alive

Tim Hughes and Martin Smith
Copyright © 2007 Thankyou Music & Curious?Music/Bucks Music Ltd

from the mouths of babes

I have been battling a migraine all evening. I took some medication that made me feel worse then I did prior to taking it . . . it was meant to take the edge off and instead it made me feel nauseated. As I lay in the dark for awhile with a cold cloth on my head I experienced only little relief.

I was saying good night to Lia and she asked if I wanted her to pray for me. She said,"I could talk to Jesus." I laid my head on her pillow and she offered a sweet and sincere prayer--"Jesus will you take away mommy's headache?" Then with wide eyes she looked at me and said, "He said Yes! He will give you some ibuprofen!"

I think . . . no, I know that God smiled and I was given some relief . . . the prayer and kiss on my head from my little girl and the miracle of a gracious Father in Heaven who hears when we call upon Him.

BELLA. A movie that must be seen. This movie is now on my top 5 list--perhaps at number 2.

Fall

Every season holds something beautiful. I'm grateful that I live in a part of the country where I can experience every season. This fall has been especially wonderful. The tree outside my window has slowly begun to wear it's fall colors--orange, yellow and a hint of red. The crisp air, the smell of Fall, the colors . . . it's fantastic--absolutely fantastic.

A friend of mine who lives in Arizona is missing the beauty of fall and asked if I could take pictures of trees to send her. Absolutely! Knowing that she is missing out on all of this beauty, I must give her the small gift of a few pictures--hopefully, I can capture a little of this season for her.

Zach has been off school the last two days. Although I haven't been feeling that well I thought we should get out and enjoy the beautiful blue skies and sunshine. I had recently seen an add for a pumpkin patch and corn maze so I thought we would take a little trip to Louisburg to check things out.

We had a great time despite the fact that the pumpkin patch and corn maze were disappointing--and the cost was outrageous. I will spare everyone the details--it's not worth going into. I did get some great pictures of the kids and we enjoyed being together--that's really all that matters.

Some notable quotes from our afternoon:

Lia--at the top of her lungs as we are passing a horrible waste lagoon near the corn maze--the smell was nauseating! "I am going to sing that smell away! Go away smell, go away smell, I am singing you away!"

Zach--as we were driving home he had taken off his shoes and socks in the car. He ask me why he has hair on his toes and also noticed that his legs seem to have more. I, in very simple terms, said that he was growing up. He smiled and then let out a shout, "I'm becoming a man!"

Today

Today. Today is a gorgeous day. The sky is clear, the air crisp, the trees beginning to wear their fall colors. I'm so grateful I live in a place where I can enjoy all four seasons. I can't imagine missing a day like this.

Lia and I met a friend this morning at our favorite little coffee shop. I really need to take a picture of it so that those of you who actually check out our little blog can see it. If I could have, I would have spent the entire day sitting on the patio-- gazing at the sky, sipping my tea, enjoying the way the leaves were blowing off the trees, reading a great book and pausing to give thanks to Jesus for His grace to me. But . . . Lia had to go potty and we had to leave . . . I still enjoyed our brief time on the patio and have been thankful all day for Today.

Today. I received an encouraging word from a friend. A friend who seems to always call or write just when I need to have my eyes turned back to all that is good, true, lovely and pure. I believe the Holy Spirit often prompts us in these ways--to be vessels of His grace and mercy to one another. It's as if He is saying, I am very aware of the quiet and restless places of your soul and mind and I am very much with you. I'm extremely grateful for my friends faithfulness to always follow through when led to pray for me. She sent me verses from Psalm 34. I have read the Psalm several times this afternoon. I would type out the entire Psalm but it's quite long. If you have a Bible I would encourage you to read it. Pause. Meditate.

Today.

extravagance

Last night Zach and I were watching Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel. "Bear" (that's the survival man's real name) had para glided into the jungles of Ecuador. I actually like these shows and the shows are fun to watch with Zach. Bear was making his way through very thick brush, even for this experienced survivalist he was struggling to push his way through all of the wildlife around him. There is a moment in this journey where he suddenly stops to point out a flower--yes, a flower. A beautiful pink flower. He smiles, pauses and shares what type of flower it is. He then says something that totally surprised me but was so beautiful. Bear then says, "you know sometimes when you are rushing around or even just trying to make it through something very difficult in life you just need to pause. These are moments where God shows His EXTRAVAGANCE. Here in the middle of the jungle a flower displays the extravagance of God." (part of that is paraphrased)

I agreed with Bear and then I started thinking about how many simple moments in my day God displays His extravagance and grace in my life. The very breath that I'm breathing in this moment, the leaves outside my window that are beginning to change colors, the smile and laugh of my children, the thought of a friend, the still small voice of God, beautiful words, . . . I can go on and on. God is extravagant in every way--in His creation, in the demonstration of His love towards us in the life and death of Christ and in the relationships He has given us to enjoy.

I want to pause more to celebrate these moments of God's extravagance in my life.