Sunday, April 19, 2015
Belated Birthday Celebration with Kattersons
Last week we had a fun family picnic at Lake Nokomis to celebrate Ben's and Josiah's birthday. There was lots of excitement with water and sand, swings and slides, and lots of cousins to play with!
To My Benjamin
Dear Benjamin,
Yesterday was 78 months together.
We are all kind of sick.
This morning you made pancakes with Victor, complete with butterscotch chips, sneezes, and sad, fussy baby.
This is the stuff of life together.
Thank you for bending to your load, for studying Greek vocab while you fold laundry and give Victor a neb treatment.
Thank you for sitting in the Lazyboy in Victor's room, working by the glow of your computer screen, while he goes to sleep.
Thank you for getting up in the chilly mornings, trying to avoid the squeaky boards, and seeking God while everyone else sleeps.
Thank you for coming home from a long day of class and work, and dropping your arms full of bags to pick up an armful of boys.
Thank you for taking the jogging stroller with you on runs, for delighting in the trees, the hills, the bumps, the eagles, the fresh morning air along with our sons.
Our life is full of Legos and laptops, crunched Cheerios, church meetings, doctor visits, interrupted sleep, boogers, baths, discipline and storybooks, papers and finals, snuggles, and giggles. It is a rich, full, exhausting, wonderful place to be.
Thank you for being there with me.
I love you.
Yesterday was 78 months together.
We are all kind of sick.
This morning you made pancakes with Victor, complete with butterscotch chips, sneezes, and sad, fussy baby.
This is the stuff of life together.
Thank you for bending to your load, for studying Greek vocab while you fold laundry and give Victor a neb treatment.
Thank you for sitting in the Lazyboy in Victor's room, working by the glow of your computer screen, while he goes to sleep.
Thank you for getting up in the chilly mornings, trying to avoid the squeaky boards, and seeking God while everyone else sleeps.
Thank you for coming home from a long day of class and work, and dropping your arms full of bags to pick up an armful of boys.
Thank you for taking the jogging stroller with you on runs, for delighting in the trees, the hills, the bumps, the eagles, the fresh morning air along with our sons.
Our life is full of Legos and laptops, crunched Cheerios, church meetings, doctor visits, interrupted sleep, boogers, baths, discipline and storybooks, papers and finals, snuggles, and giggles. It is a rich, full, exhausting, wonderful place to be.
Thank you for being there with me.
I love you.
Sunday, April 12, 2015
A Letter to Josiah
Dear Josiah,
My little one, you are growing and changing so much. It's always a thrill to see the first sure signs of understanding and responsiveness in a child, and we just love to watch as you absorb and engage with your world each day.
So many things show us that you are understanding huge amounts. You imitate so many sounds. Today you started saying, "I love you," when we said that to you. You make animal noises for lions, cows, goats, and monkeys. You say "wow" and "yay" and "yum" and "buzz."
When we ask if you'd like some more please or if you're all done, you will respond with the appropriate sign language... and how it delights my heart to see your little "please," even when I don't prompt it.
Responding in right ways is a life or death matter, my son. Responding in obedience and courtesy to your parents is one little step of grace, a step that we fervently pray will pave the way for your heart to respond in full, glad surrender to Jesus.
I've already written about the reasons why we chose your name to be Josiah. To summarize in a sentence, it is our prayer that you (like that young king in the Old Testament) will turn to the LORD with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might (2 Kings 23:25).
We live in a day where seeing God as our great Authority and King is quite out of style. It is fashionable to "be true to yourself," to "follow your dreams," to "never stop believing in yourself." I'll be frank, my son. These things are foolishness. To blindly follow the way of your heart will lead to disaster, dishonor, and destruction. Our hearts are sick, and Isaiah 64:6 says that even the good things we try to do are gross and dirty at the core.
My little one, you are still so young, but already the impulses of your heart lead you toward self-harm. You want what is forbidden... electrical outlets, sharp implements, choking hazards. At the deepest point, that impulse is not just a will set against Mommy and Daddy... it is a will opposed to God's ways. And it gains you--like your parents--a sentence of eternal judgment from a perfect and always-right God.
But O, what a wonderful God He is! He did not leave us to self-destruct in our own sin. No, He did the most astounding and amazing thing we could dream of. He gave us His own precious Son, God Himself in a little body like yours. And Jesus grew and did what no man has ever done. He was the perfect reflection of God's ways, the flawless keeper of God's Word.
And in shocking mercy, He lived perfectly... yet died on the cross to cover over the horrid sins of His rebellious people. He died, my Josiah, to purchase your pardon and make a way for you to come close again to our awesome Father in heaven.
And if you will give your heart to Him in simple, utter faith, He will give you a new heart and put His own beautiful Spirit in you. A heart that is completely His.
So this is my life verse, my prayer for you all your days, that you would be one that God looks to and moves mountains for, as 2 Chronicles 16:9 says:
We love you, sweet Josiah! May your heart be always in God's hands.
Your momma
My little one, you are growing and changing so much. It's always a thrill to see the first sure signs of understanding and responsiveness in a child, and we just love to watch as you absorb and engage with your world each day.
So many things show us that you are understanding huge amounts. You imitate so many sounds. Today you started saying, "I love you," when we said that to you. You make animal noises for lions, cows, goats, and monkeys. You say "wow" and "yay" and "yum" and "buzz."
When we ask if you'd like some more please or if you're all done, you will respond with the appropriate sign language... and how it delights my heart to see your little "please," even when I don't prompt it.
Responding in right ways is a life or death matter, my son. Responding in obedience and courtesy to your parents is one little step of grace, a step that we fervently pray will pave the way for your heart to respond in full, glad surrender to Jesus.
I've already written about the reasons why we chose your name to be Josiah. To summarize in a sentence, it is our prayer that you (like that young king in the Old Testament) will turn to the LORD with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might (2 Kings 23:25).
We live in a day where seeing God as our great Authority and King is quite out of style. It is fashionable to "be true to yourself," to "follow your dreams," to "never stop believing in yourself." I'll be frank, my son. These things are foolishness. To blindly follow the way of your heart will lead to disaster, dishonor, and destruction. Our hearts are sick, and Isaiah 64:6 says that even the good things we try to do are gross and dirty at the core.
My little one, you are still so young, but already the impulses of your heart lead you toward self-harm. You want what is forbidden... electrical outlets, sharp implements, choking hazards. At the deepest point, that impulse is not just a will set against Mommy and Daddy... it is a will opposed to God's ways. And it gains you--like your parents--a sentence of eternal judgment from a perfect and always-right God.
But O, what a wonderful God He is! He did not leave us to self-destruct in our own sin. No, He did the most astounding and amazing thing we could dream of. He gave us His own precious Son, God Himself in a little body like yours. And Jesus grew and did what no man has ever done. He was the perfect reflection of God's ways, the flawless keeper of God's Word.
And in shocking mercy, He lived perfectly... yet died on the cross to cover over the horrid sins of His rebellious people. He died, my Josiah, to purchase your pardon and make a way for you to come close again to our awesome Father in heaven.
And if you will give your heart to Him in simple, utter faith, He will give you a new heart and put His own beautiful Spirit in you. A heart that is completely His.
So this is my life verse, my prayer for you all your days, that you would be one that God looks to and moves mountains for, as 2 Chronicles 16:9 says:
For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.Give your heart to Him, little one. He will pardon you, change you, and give you an eternal hope and joy that nothing can touch.
We love you, sweet Josiah! May your heart be always in God's hands.
Your momma
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Balm
These have been some long, sometimes stressful, days. Health issues and questions (Josiah threw up twice yesterday/today), trying to put our home back together after having floors refinished, working to free Daddy to do his schoolwork and other work, wrestling to find the right discipline battles to fight and which ones to let lie, feeling kinda mediocre-to-poor in the ability to do any of those things well.
Tonight at bedtime, I lay next to Victor for 3 minutes (as is our custom) and chatted about our plans for the morning (as is our custom) and prayed for peaceful sleep and no bad dreams and great trust in Jesus (as is our custom).
And then, when it was time for me to leave, Victor spontaneously wrapped his arms around me and said, "I love you!" and snuggled his head on my shoulder.
And for some reason, I couldn't think of anything so pressing to do that I should get up and miss that sweet hug. His little arm thrown across my shoulder, head resting on my chest. "I love you," he said again. We just snuggled for 10 minutes.
It was 10 minutes of balm to my heart. A reminder of my own Father's love, a little glimpse of grace at work in my little one's heart, a moment to be still and know that God is God, and He is doing good, even when my failures stare me in the face more than any victories.
A sweet gift.
Tonight at bedtime, I lay next to Victor for 3 minutes (as is our custom) and chatted about our plans for the morning (as is our custom) and prayed for peaceful sleep and no bad dreams and great trust in Jesus (as is our custom).
And then, when it was time for me to leave, Victor spontaneously wrapped his arms around me and said, "I love you!" and snuggled his head on my shoulder.
And for some reason, I couldn't think of anything so pressing to do that I should get up and miss that sweet hug. His little arm thrown across my shoulder, head resting on my chest. "I love you," he said again. We just snuggled for 10 minutes.
It was 10 minutes of balm to my heart. A reminder of my own Father's love, a little glimpse of grace at work in my little one's heart, a moment to be still and know that God is God, and He is doing good, even when my failures stare me in the face more than any victories.
A sweet gift.
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Last Few Weeks in Photos
Just a photo dump to remember all that's we encountered in the last few weeks. So many highlights. A few lowlights. Much to be thankful for.
Cousins holding hands for Bible stories
Helping Grandad fill the bird feeder.
Victor took his role very. seriously.
A beautiful shelf my Uncle Arlan crafted for us. In 2 days.
From a photo off of Etsy. Amazing.
Lil' birthday party for Josiah
Tears... but not so bad as it was earlier (when he was so terribly upset)
And charm...
Happy birthday to Daddy!
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