As I have made my way through the study of the gospel of John these verses could not have come at a better time. The healing and peace that the Word of God brings is amazing! Chapter 14 of the book of John is filled with the words spoken by Jesus as he prepares his disciples for his death. The comfort he presents to his followers then, is filled with application for his followers now.
We have all experienced the trials that life holds...death of a loved one, loss of a job, strained relationships, the uncertainty of the future...they are just part of our existence on earth. But as Christians, we are not left without hope. We can experience these hardships in a unique way because we have the promises given to us by God himself. The first verse of chapter 14 gives us the most clear cut way to avoid letting the troubles of this world get to us. "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me." When we believe in God, and in the work of Jesus Christ, we are then presented with blessings that make the world a lot less troubling.
We have hope in the future...in verses 2 and 3 of chapter 14 Jesus gives us the ultimate promise that he is preparing a place for us to be with him. There is a place already in heaven for us and Jesus will someday take us to be with him. With this is mind, we don't have to live in the shadows of this world because we know this life is so insignificant compared to what awaits us...life is so short and our wonderful home in heaven is eternal.
We have the Holy Spirit living in us...in verses 16 and following, Jesus describes to us the power and strength that the Holy Spirit gives to us. He calms the disciples fear of being left without their leader by explaining to them that he will ask the Father to send a helper...the Holy Spirit...to live in us to comfort and counsel us. As a comforter, the Holy Spirit calms our hearts when we feel we cannot take another trial. As a counselor, the Holy Spirit brings the word of God to our mind and applies its truths to our broken spirit. The Holy Spirit is God living in us. The Holy Spirit is Jesus living through us. R. Kent Hughes explains it best in his commentary on John, "The same power that through Jesus brought regeneration and life to many flows through us. The same wisdom that brought healing to most fragmented relationships is operable in us. The same miraculous love that brought life to impossible situations resides in us, through the Holy Spirit"
Through these promises, we can have a peace that the world cannot give us and that the world will never understand. "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" John 14:27
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Cute Things My Kids Do
My favorite things to post about are my kids...and I really love sharing all the cute things they are doing.
Maleigha:
1. I love how she can't quite remember simple words so she just says what comes to her mind or she tries to describe it. For example, she was outside the other day helping me dig up weeds and she said, "Mommy, I need a...a...shelf". I tried not to laugh because she is a little sensitive about it when she messes up her words and just replied, "Here ya go. Here's the shovel."
2. She has started to really take notice of sunsets and her response is always, "Look, Jesus made the sky pink just for me...he knows its my favorite."
3. I admire the way she doesn't care at all what people think about the way she dresses...if she wants to wear a yo gabba gabba party hat to church, she will and not think anything about it.
4. I love to watch her sing at church. She closes her eyes and sings so passionately. She lifts her hands to the sky and dances like nobody is watching her. Oddly enough it makes me want to laugh and cry all at the same time....if only we could all worship like that
5. Although it has become somewhat of a problem...it is still so cute that she can't control her affection for her brother. She squeezes his chubby little arms and legs and kisses all over him.
Zane:
1. He started rolling over while we are on vacation last month and he mostly practices during the night. I put him to bed at one end and I find him turned on his side at the other end when I go to get him.
2. He already loves to sing. When we sing to him, he sings along with his gurggles and coos and a huge smile on his face. I am almost certain that he asked me to sing to him last week...he looked me straight in the eyes and started softly and melodically cooing.
3. He loves his sister...if she is in the room, his eyes are on her. She makes him laugh and he loves cuddling with her before they both go to bed.
4. When he gets really tired he gets a little out of control...he talks and laughs and wiggles. It is a little sad because I know he is extremely tired but it is so cute at the same time.
5. I think it is so adorable that he snuggles with a blankie to sleep.
Maleigha:
1. I love how she can't quite remember simple words so she just says what comes to her mind or she tries to describe it. For example, she was outside the other day helping me dig up weeds and she said, "Mommy, I need a...a...shelf". I tried not to laugh because she is a little sensitive about it when she messes up her words and just replied, "Here ya go. Here's the shovel."
2. She has started to really take notice of sunsets and her response is always, "Look, Jesus made the sky pink just for me...he knows its my favorite."
3. I admire the way she doesn't care at all what people think about the way she dresses...if she wants to wear a yo gabba gabba party hat to church, she will and not think anything about it.
4. I love to watch her sing at church. She closes her eyes and sings so passionately. She lifts her hands to the sky and dances like nobody is watching her. Oddly enough it makes me want to laugh and cry all at the same time....if only we could all worship like that
5. Although it has become somewhat of a problem...it is still so cute that she can't control her affection for her brother. She squeezes his chubby little arms and legs and kisses all over him.
Zane:
1. He started rolling over while we are on vacation last month and he mostly practices during the night. I put him to bed at one end and I find him turned on his side at the other end when I go to get him.
2. He already loves to sing. When we sing to him, he sings along with his gurggles and coos and a huge smile on his face. I am almost certain that he asked me to sing to him last week...he looked me straight in the eyes and started softly and melodically cooing.
3. He loves his sister...if she is in the room, his eyes are on her. She makes him laugh and he loves cuddling with her before they both go to bed.
4. When he gets really tired he gets a little out of control...he talks and laughs and wiggles. It is a little sad because I know he is extremely tired but it is so cute at the same time.
5. I think it is so adorable that he snuggles with a blankie to sleep.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
The Last 4 Months
It's been awhile since I posted...I've needed about 4 months to adjust to the arrival of our newest addition. Zane David Russell Dunham joined our family on February 27th and although he is one of the happiest babies I have ever encountered...it took us some time to get used to having a baby around again. After many Sundays of rushing in to church sweating, with arm loads of bags and blankets, feeling frustrated and exhausted, I have now mastered the art of getting two children ready and am now even able to arrive early. I think the secret is to gladly accept help from anyone who happens to be arriving at the same time as me.
And although it is somewhat more difficult than I thought it was going to be to have two little ones to take care of every day I have actually been able to accomplish more than I thought I would. I have read a few books, taken up a new hobby, continued to serve at the church and I've still been able to have somewhat of a social life.
David graduated in May from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary with a Masters of Divinity. We are excited to see what the Lord has in store for us while serving in our current location. God has given David many opportunities to learn and serve since he felt the call to be a pastor and I am confident that each step along the way has been to prepare us for what lies ahead. Please pray for us as we try our best to love like Jesus and to seek God's will for our lives.
Maleigha will be turning 3 on July 25th. I can't believe my baby girl is going to be 3!! Her current obsession is a sparkly pink tiara that she got for Christmas. She wore it every day last week. It started as an accessory to wear to our growth group picnic on Tuesday...she insisted that because it was a party she had to get fancy. So, when we also had a picnic on Wednesday, she had to wear it again. I had to talk her out of wearing it to bed on Thursday and by Saturday her ensemble for the Roe family 4th of July picnic included the tiara (of course), with the addition of a valentine's necklace, a "happy new year" necklace and a blinking, bright pink jack-o-lantern necklace. I'm pretty sure she is convinced that you can never be too fancy.
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