Caedmon's Call

Anyone who knows me well at all knows that I love love LOVE Caedmon's Call. I love their musical style (particularly in the old days) and how their lyrics are deep, spiritual, emotional, and intellectual. All of their albums contain wonderful gems of truth and delight, but these two albums have always been my favorite...

• Caedmon's Call - This CD was the soundtrack to my high school years. I loved it. This album was the sound of me driving to youth group in my car, driving through the Grand Canyon, Zion, and Yellowstone National Parks, and summers spent babysitting the Engle boys.
• 40 Acres - This CD was the other soundtrack to my years in high school and starting college. It is also a fabulous road trip soundtrack (particularly on stretches of long Texas highways). I've played this album more than any music I've ever owned.

Here are a few (of many) songs that have been significant to me over the years...

• Where I Began, 40 Acres - I get something new and challenging nearly every time I listen to this song (and I've been listening to it  close to 15 years!). I always find it a poignant portrait of our relationship with God. I don't suppose I'll type the whole song, but every part gets to me. "But the one thing I can't get over now is the force of your will, Here I am again back where I began, and try as I may, I can't get away from you."
• Coming Home, Caedmon's Call - this is another song that has just spoken to me time and time again throughout the years. God's call for us to present ourselves as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1) is tough. The lyrics (not to mention the powerful vocals) paint such a vivid picture of what this struggle is like. "You say you want a living sacrifice, well I am a burnt offering, crawling off the altar and back into the fire; and with my smoke filled lungs I cry out for freedom, but I keep chaining myself to my rotting desires; and I hate the stench, but I've swallowed the key, and with it stuck in my throat, can you hear me? I'm coming home, I'm coming home!"
• Faith My Eyes, 40 Acres - This was sort of my theme song during the six months I spent in New Zealand. After dreaming of traveling the world, and finally realizing that dream, I realized how hard it can be to be away from family and good friends. I faced doubts I'd never faced before and feelings that I'd never anticipated. This song encouraged me so much during those six months and pushed  me to pursue God in a way I never had before. "Keep on coming, these lines on the road, and keep me responsible, be it a light or heavy load, and keep me guessing, are these blessings in disguise? And I'll walk with grace my feet, and faith my eyes..."
• Mistake of my Life, Long  Line of Leavers - In high school and the first semester of college, I dated a guy from school/church and we were serious. After a year and a half though, I began to sense that God had something different for me. It happened to be my 19th birthday when I knew I had to break up with him. He brought me a gift when I went to see him -- Caedmon's Call's new album Long Line of Leavers -- and it played in the background of my car throughout the evening as we talked. It was tough, but the moment I pulled out of the parking lot and drove away, Mistake of my Life began to play... "I'm in love, never been so sure of anything, but then again, it could be a tumor in my brain, to beckon me into thinking that we were meant to be, either way, I'm about to shock my family and my hometown again, cause this time I'm leaving. Once I'm gone, I will not look back. I've got to trust this is right..." There have been few moments in my life where I've had such clarity. I knew I had done the right thing.
• Sacred, Overdressed - Fast forward a number of years, and I'm a wife and a mom to two little kids. This song resonated with me in a deep way. It encapsulated perfectly all of the emotions that come with being a mom. Being a mom is so much more significant that I've given it credit for, and it also reminded me to appreciate these dear years with my children. "The children are sleeping but they're running through my mind; the sun makes them happy and the music makes them unwind; my cup runneth over, I worry about the stain... teach me to run to You like they run to me for every little thing... every thing is sacred..."

What songs have played a significant role in your life? Do certain "eras" of your life have a soundtrack?

Christmas Tree 2012

Now that our kids are bigger, it seems like Christmas is starting to be even more fun. They're quick to remind us of all the "traditions" we have to keep up (like having egg nog while we decorate the Christmas tree). My mom decided to stay in town an extra night, so we decided we'd move our tree decorating up to tonight. We turned on the Christmas music and had a great time (except for when I pulled out my camera, of course)!

Date Day

On Mondays, while the kids are at school, Aaron and I always have a "date day". We sit around and drink coffee, have lunch, drive around... whatever sounds good. Well yesterday, Ammie came and picked up the kids from school so we could have an extended date day (someone had given us a movie tickets and we could only use them in the evening), and we had so much fun! The day started out with sleeping in a bit, coffee, and The Amazing Race. Then we did a bit of shopping (a new jack for car repairs)... Then lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, P.F. Chang's. We then decided to go home and change clothes and go for a hike at the State Park by our house. We'd never hiked back to the canyon at Government Canyon, and I told Aaron it was probably only a mile or two back... so (tired and sore as he was from Men's Retreat) he agreed it'd be fun. And it was. But we ended up hiking over seven miles, all told. Oops. So I'm not a good judge of distance. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful, refreshing hike.

Dinosaur tracks in the creek bed!

After the seven mile hike, we fought the urge to sit on the couch and not move for the rest of the night, all the while complaining about how sore we were. But we got dressed and went to see Argo at the movie theater. It was a great movie, and we enjoyed the rare treat of going out to the movies and eating excessively buttery popcorn. I'm so thankful for my husband and for the fact that after nearly ten years together, we're still having a blast. I want to always remember days like yesterday -- the laughter and fun, and even the comfortable silence between us sometimes. I couldn't ask for a better partner and friend for this life.

Ordained

Sunday was a very special occasion. Aaron (and Jason) received their ordination from the Missionary church (and now carries the title of "Reverend"). River City honored them and said their goodbyes in a special service Sunday night, and it was really cool. Several hundred people showed up to show their love and support, and it was a great night! It was also very cool for Aaron and Jason to be able to go through this together. Many of the people at River City have known these brothers for a long time, and have had front row seats to the journey these two have walked over the years. (I think there was even a parallel drawn between the two of them and James and John -- brothers referred to as the"sons of thunder"!) God has done a lot in and through these guys over the years, and I can't wait to see what more God will do.

Garner Camping Trip

Last weekend we had a three day weekend -- a Sunday "off" and all -- and took off for the hills. It's been a bit of a crazy season around here and we (more specifically I) were itching to get away for a bit. So we loaded up the kids and the camper and went out to Garner State Park for a few days. Fall camping is the best, as far as I'm concerned, and we had a great time! There was tons of hiking, fishing, geocaching, exploring and sitting around the campfire. The dog came with us this year, and she enjoyed it too -- until her encounter with a skunk, that is. Yes, Bella got sprayed by a skunk. Thankfully, we got her washed up real good, and all was well. (Big sigh of relief.) Here are a few of the many pictures we have.

Family Recipes

I've been wanting to get all of my recipes organized for years. I tried the 3 ring binder... and the recipe box... and finally, the cabinet stuffed with magazine clippings and printouts. None worked. So I'm trying another means of gathering my recipes in the form of a blog. I've always wanted to be able to sort my recipes not only by breakfast, lunch, dinner, but also by quick or cheap or Italian... or whatever. This week I started a new blog dedicated solely to family recipes, and I've begun adding some of our favorites. And, though I have many many more to add, I'm excited! I'd also love to hear what your favorite family recipes are. We're always looking for new ones!

Carson [10/12/12]

I can't believe this guy is getting so big. Where did my baby go? Okay, I'll quit being that mom, but I will take a quick second to tell you what's going on with Carson these days...

• He loves our cat "Snuggles"
• He loves his stuffed animals and typically has them all perfectly arranged in his bed.
• He's super excited about playing baseball later this year!
• He's doing incredibly well at school. He's reading ahead of his level and his teacher told me he's a great kid with wonderful manners.
• He's always willing to lend a hand.
• He loves riding his bike and scooter.
• He finally quit sucking his thumb ;P
• He still has "blankie".
• He's now developing his own style. He's gotta wear jeans and Converse shoes to look "cool".
• He's lost his two top front teeth. Very cute.
• He's a great artist and comes home with some pretty cute drawings!

Big Change

Well, it's official now, so I can finally share some big stuff that's been in the works for the past several months. I guess I'll start with the news itself, and then give a little of the backstory...

This past Sunday, it was announced at all three campuses of River City Community Church that both the New Braunfels and Northwest campuses will both become their own independent congregations instead of multi-sites, with Aaron being the lead pastor at Northwest and Jason being the lead pastor in New Braunfels. We will of course still be maintaining a great relationship with River City, but we'll be on our own (with the Lord's help, of course).

Now let's back up a little. Where did this decision come from? Well, it's a long story, but here are the highlights... Things at the Northwest campus have been going quite well this year. We have an awesome (really, absolutely incredible) team whom we serve alongside, and our congregation has reached about 100 (sometimes more, sometimes less). God has been moving and we've definitely seen fruit since our launch. However, one thing we kept hearing consistently from guests and from members who brought friends was that a lot of people found it hard to connect with the video method of teaching. The teaching was great, of course, but they were missing the connection. And we had a lot of people not come back.

Going back even farther, about a year ago, Aaron came home from Leadership Summit feeling like God was telling him to begin preparing for "the next thing" (see photo above). We had no idea what this next thing looked like. Another place? Another role? We began praying then, but we spent the next number of months not knowing. Summer rolled around and the feeling became stronger. We still didn't know what God had in store, but began praying more fervently. Then one day in July, Sean called Aaron into his office and asked him if he'd consider "planting" the Northwest campus and being its lead pastor.

We (and especially I) have always said we never had any interest in planting a church or being lead pastors.

But we told Sean we'd pray about it. And we did.

In a moment of complete honesty, I have to admit that this was an incredibly difficult decision. Everything in me resisted. There were tears. There were many long talks. There were lots of prayers.

Once I calmed myself, I realized that I couldn't imagine it any other way. God was doing amazing things at our campus. Not only that, but we have a great team and support system around us. This was not going to be your ordinary church plant. We already had 100 people! Really, all that would change for us is that Aaron would now be speaking weekly and the church would be on it's own financially.

Please keep us in your prayers as we transition into this new phase of life (for our family and for our congregation). It scares us to death that anyone might be looking to us for leadership, guidance, and answers to life's questions. But God has been reminding me over and over again to lean on His strength, both now as we step into this new role, and every day going forward.


Proverbs 3:19-26 

19By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations,
by understanding he set the heavens in place;
20by his knowledge the deeps were divided,
and the clouds let drop the dew.
21My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment,
do not let them out of your sight;
22they will be life for you,
an ornament to grace your neck.
23Then you will go on your way in safety,
and your foot will not stumble;
24when you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,
26for the Lord will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being snared. 

I am also encouraged to know that we're taking this step of faith with Jason and Natalie (though we'll be an hour apart). For their story, visit Natalie's blog (Part 1 & Part 2 of their journey)!

Jerah's 5th Birthday

This weekend the four of us made the trip to College Station for my niece's 5th birthday. We spent the day celebrating Jerah and enjoying seeing the rest of the family (who we don't see nearly enough). It was such a fun day for us all!

Though there were many great moments, our favorite was when it was time to go, everyone was standing on the front porch waving goodbye, and Andre shouted, "Love you! You come back!" in his sweet little two year old voice. Priceless. I love my family!
 

Jerah, the birthday girl!

 

Of course, we had to get a cousins picture! (Left to Right: Amorette, Benjamin, Abby, Jerah, Carson, Andre)

Catching Up (9/26/12)

Lately, I have not blogged much, so here's the highlights and a few pics...

- We've been silly.

- We've played with friends.
- I'm taking part in the Ladies' Bible Study at church, and the kids just started AWANAS at another church on Wednesdays.

- I've been reading a lot. (My recent fav is These Is My Words. Loved it.)
- Enjoying the downtime before wedding season starts this Saturday.
- I have grown to love and appreciate my husband even more. He's so amazing.

- We've taken time to just be.

- We're eating healthier. AND exercising! Are you impressed? I am!
- Carson lost his two front teeth. Cute!
- Our Monday Date Days have resumed now that the kids are back to school, and we LOVE IT!
- And we've spent a lot of time praying and preparing for the journey ahead...

I'm excited for all God has in store!

Back to School

Our fun summer has come to an end and the kids started back to school last week. Abby and Carson were thrilled to be back and are still enjoying it the second week in! Abby started third grade and her teacher is Mrs. Cepeda, and Carson is a first grader and has a wonderful teacher, Mrs. Chamberlain. We've all settled nicely back into the routine of the school year and are looking forward to all that this year holds!

Word of God

Sometimes you read or hear something and you just know it's for you. I looked down at my Bible yesterday and Proverbs 3:19-26 all but physically jumped out at me. I'm thankful that the Lord speaks to us.

Down Time

Lately, I've been enjoying a very un-busy August. And it's splendid. There's still work to do, but it's not urgent. There's nowhere I have to be. I don't allow myself to think anymore about the fact that it's a month where my business brings in almost no money. (I remind myself, "Remember, it's like this every year in January, February, July, and August -- at least. And you prepared for this. It's all good!") Pushing all that aside that fear (that all who are self employed can relate to) gives me time to not only work on "big picture" projects (which I enjoy), but also gives me time to just enjoy being. More housework gets done. I spend more time with the kids. I've read three -- almost four -- books in the past week. It's so nice. I'm doing my very best to enjoy it before the busy season arrives -- where nearly every weekend is spoken for from late September to mid-November. As I get older, I'm learning to accept (even enjoy) the ebb and flow of life, to take the seasons as they come...

Ecclesiastes 3 

 1   There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

²     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot, 
³     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

⁹ What do workers gain from their toil? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. ¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. ¹² I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.¹³ That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.

Abby's Baptism

Sunday was a very happy day. Abby made the decision several months ago (though she's really been talking about it for a lot longer than that) to give her life to God, and this week she was baptized! Not only was it a very cool event on it's own, but Aaron was the one who got to baptize her, and it was so special and meaningful.

After church, the grandparents came over and we celebrated with cupcakes! We were so glad they all got to be a part of Abby's special day.

Abby reverted to her one year old self and dug into her cake! Ha ha!

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 

2 Corinthians 5:17