Back in the Swing of Things

I like to think that it's true. It really just means that I've been home for a few days now and am back into my regular chaos and chores rather than the surprise kind.

It's been a strange week for me. I know SOME would say that it's not out of the ordinary for me to be on an emotional roller coaster (jerk), but I've been on a wild one for a few days now. Since being home from Texas I feel like I hardly know who I am! Sometimes I feel almost normal... but never completely. There have been at least two days when I felt very, very... hhmmm. Can't seem to think of the right word. Heavy, sort of, but that's not it exactly. Listless and tired, then emotional, then edgy, then confused, --oh, over all just moody, I guess. I mostly just felt like crawling into a hole all alone and not seeing or talking to anybody--just being AWAY. That is soooooo against my normal nature and it really kind of freaked me out! I really, really don't like not knowing what to expect from my emotions and I'm not used to it at all. I greatly prefer the steady temperament that I'm more accustomed to. I have been strangely affected by my uncle's passing and in some ways I feel like I'm not sure I'll ever be the same again--though that sounds way too "drama queen"; something that I would roll my eyes at if somebody else said it. (Go ahead. Eye rolling is appropriate right now. I understand.) I am bothered by things that I never really paid much mind to before, and I'm strikingly aware of and thankful for things that I know I've taken for granted in the past. In any case, I know God really helped me in my devotions this morning and today has been a much better day. I'm hoping this means I'm starting to level out a little bit. I'm sure my family is anxious for that. They've had a hard time finding the Mom on those wanna-be-alone days. Ha!

Let's see if I can give a re-cap of our week. I know that I spent Monday working on the state paper. I had gotten a decent amount done in the van on the way home, so that helped a lot. Finished up on the paper on Tuesday. Wednesday we had some running around to do all over Hoover: Hobby Lobby, Home Depot, Salvation Army (donated some stuff--yea for decluttering!), Pottery Barn, Christmas Tree Shops, the library, something else I'm forgetting, then Olive Garden for lunch--it cost us $5. I just love those gift cards James gets! :-) That night was BTI service, but it turned into a prayer service. It was one of the really bad/emotional/just-want-to-crawl-into-a-hole kind of days for me and I was so, so, sooooo thankful for the opportunity to just PRAY. I'm pretty sure I wasn't the only one carrying a load that night. God knew just what we all needed. Thursday... I don't remember much about. I know we had Ladies' Prayer Meeting that night and it was good, as always.

Yesterday James and I finally installed the cabinet doors in the upstairs bathrooms. It wasn't nearly the nightmare we had anticipated, so that was a pleasant surprise. I had LOTS of paint touch-up to do, along with painting the blue tiles in Katie's bathroom. I painted them a shade of blue so slightly darker than the original that I could have left one tile unpainted and you probably wouldn't have noticed it. It was one of those jobs that was important to James. ;-) I also got the towel hooks hung in both bathrooms and a shelf and a few pictures in the boys' bathroom. James and I rehung the massive mirror in there, too, and finally got it straight and centered. Big improvement. :-) And James hung the light fixtures in both rooms. I think the only thing left to do up there is re-grout. That's an ugly, ugly job. I'm glad it's a man's job. Hint, hint, hint... ;-)

Today I was able to spend most of the morning studying and working on Ladies' Retreat stuff. James had the kids busy working on getting the basement all cleaned up, then removing sticks from the yard so he could mow. He gathered us all up around noon and took us to lunch, then the Post Office, followed by an unscheduled stop at a new thrift store (spent $24 on 10 or 12 items of clothing = score!), then Aldi and Wal-Mart--both of which were the expected day at the zoo they always are on Saturdays. We're having a pot luck tomorrow so I spent lots of time in the kitchen today. I made a double batch of hot rolls (even with all we've eaten today I think there are about 60 left for tomorrow), some fantastical Apple Cider Caramel Cookies (thank you, Pinterest!), a Spiced Chiffon Cake that really turned into more of a Super-Low & Dense-Spiced-Loaf sort of a thing due to the eggs refusal to "peak" (a technique I fear I will never master... or even accomplish once, for that matter) and an English Pea Salad. What makes it English anyway, Mom? I ran out of steam tonight, so in the morning I'll make the glaze for the Cake/Loaf thingie (caramely glaze has to be just as delicious on a loaf as it would have been on a cake, right?) and bake the Corn Casserole. I also managed to make a super fabulous deer stew for dinner tonight, with homemade cornbread on the side. Barley. I added barley to the stew and LOVED it. It just makes it seem so good and hearty and maybe even healthy--something we don't accomplish very often around here! Ha! The only bad thing about the whole deer is that we are now officially OUT of deer meat again. :-(

I'm on to teach Sunday School in the morning and was so relieved to find that the lesson is on Lazarus instead of the Great Tribulation or the Millennial Reign or something like that. This has been a tough quarter in the Junior class, let me tell you! I was SO THRILLED to see next quarter's theme: Building Godly Character. YES! That is right down my alley! I get to teach the kids about things like respecting other people's property and honoring those in authority instead of the mark of the beast or what the pale horse and the fourth vial represent in Revelation. I've been tempted to call in sick a few times in recent weeks, let me tell ya'! Ha! So I'm one happy teacher after having seen the upcoming lessons. ~whew~ What a relief.

I had some pictures of some of Sam's latest Lego creations to add, but I can't figure out the new Blogger. It's all wacky and wouldn't finish uploading everything. I hate change. I'm pretty sure somebody should be fired over this one. Or drug out to the street and shot. That's always my go-to remedy, you know. ;-)

Home from Texas

Actually not yet. We are on our way home from Texas now. It has been a long and difficult week, but I feel soooooo blessed to have been able to be with our hurting family during this time. We stayed a little longer than we had anticipated, but I'm so glad we did. It all felt like the RIGHT thing, and I pray that somehow it was a help. Please continue to pray for my aunt, my cousin, and my cousin's daughter. They will have a rough road ahead of them and will need to rely on the strength and grace of God to see them through.

We were able to visit with my Great-Uncle Hobert in the hospital in Abilene today. I'm sooooo glad we had that opportunity. He's always been my favorite and I was blessed by his faith and confidence in God and the "rest" I could feel in his soul. It's been a long week of heaviness--though God has certainly been good through it all--and it was just so refreshing to hear all of the good things he had to say. We stopped to visit and pray with him, but when we left I felt like I had been the one who was blessed and encouraged! Do pray for him. He's not a young man and is battling health issues.

So now we're on our way home. I'm thankful but I'm sad. I'm ready to be home, but it was very, very hard to leave today. God knows all things. He will work everything out for our good if we continue to be "the called" and obey Him.

I've been able to totally remove myself from thinking or worrying about all of the things to do back home while we've been away, but now that we're headed back I'm starting to feel the pressure. I was supposed to have done some transcribing for HQ this past week, so I'm already late on that. The deadline for the state paper was the 20th so I feel late on that, though I'm really not. Our goal is to have it finished, printed, mailed, and received by the 1st of the month and that's still very doable. I've actually worked on it for a few minutes at a time here and there over the past few days, so I'll have a little bit of a headstart when I get home. The biggest thing is the upcoming Ladies' Retreat. It's less than two weeks away and I feel sooooo unprepared. That's one of those things that I'm probably not supposed to admit publicly. Ha! Actually, I feel very much at peace over it--simply because I know that it's in God's hands. Even before this family situation arose I had been struggling to settle on some things with the Retreat and finally accepted the fact that God was going to do things a little bit differently this year and I probably wouldn't have all of the answers I wanted way ahead of time. I certainly expected to have them by now (!), but I know that God wasn't surprised or taken off guard by any of the things that have happened or by the timing. I will keep praying and trusting that God will bless and work His will in this Retreat in spite of it all. I would truly appreciate any additional prayers, however. The more the merrier. ;-)

We got a late start today and didn't make it far at all. We're in some suburb of Dallas, on the southeastern edge. We're hoping we're far enough out of town that we'll miss most of the morning traffic. According to Google we've got about 600 miles and 10 hours to go, so tomorrow won't be too bad. I think we figured that we will have spent 42+ hours in the van this past week by the time it's all said and done. In spite of the horrible reason for this trip, we have truly enjoyed the trip itself and seeing so many familiar things that are so sweet in our memories. We love West Texas and have nothing but fond memories of our years here. It's definitely been a hard and bitter trip, but God's been so good to sweeten it in so many ways. We are blessed beyond measure. No doubt about that.

Again, please keep our family in your prayers. They will need lots and lots of prayer in the coming weeks and months. And do pray for Ladies' Retreat. God surely has something very special in store for us there this year. I'm so ready for it. :-)

Just a quick note.

My uncle in Texas passed away yesterday. We'll be leaving first thing in the morning to head down for the funeral and spend some time with the family. We're not sure when we'll be back. Please, please pray for the family there. This has been a really hard one and they really need God's help right now. Thank you.

Genuinely Busy

That's what's going on here. It's not laziness or "not in the mood to blog"-ativeness. It's just that I've been very, very busy. I love it that we're pretending that it's "fall," the time of the year when things "slow down." I wore a turtleneck a few days ago, not because it was cold enough (or even mildly cool) but because I wanted to. Maybe I even needed to. I don't know, but it was great for a few hours until I was just working way too hard to handle it and had to switch to a t-shirt. In any case, I'm in fall mode all the way--mentally. But only mentally.

I can't remember what all has been going on since we got home from the Assembly two weeks ago. I know the first few days were spent putting the state paper together. Then I had my VLB service on Wednesday, my ABM service on Friday, then taught Sunday School that Sunday, so prep-work pretty well consumed my days--as well as praying and begging God for some answers about our fast approaching Ladies' Retreat. (He's not telling, by the way. Please pray!) And getting the kids started on school, of course. The first week was spent doing worksheets and such, but as of this week all three kids are doing S.o.S... I can't use the real name on here because every time I do I get a comment from somebody who works there thanking me for using them and encouraging everybody else to do the same. :-) So I usually just say "computer school." It's Sam's first year and he's loving it so far. Actually all three kids are loving it. It's been four days and everybody still seems to be excited and having a blast. We've had years when there have been tears on the very first day, so I'm really enjoying the fact that they all LIKE school for now. The whole first week--it's a miracle! It can't last long. I think they're just happy to have something to DO and to be back to something somewhat normal. And to feel like they're accomplishing something. We all need that.

This week I managed to get all of the laundry and ironing caught up (no small miracle there--we're talking Assembly/vacation clothes ALL ironed! WOW!) and have been working on the new State Planning Guide. Ah, yes--I have a story that I'm sure you'll find amusing. Anyone would find this amusing. Except for James. But he has no sense of humor. ;-)

In last year's planning guide, I accidentally listed Kristal Hopkins (her maiden name) instead of Kristal Cox. I don't know why I did it. I never even really KNEW her when she was Kristal Hopkins. I like to blame Facebook since so many folks there have their maiden/married name listed as their identity so I regularly see "Kristal Hopkins Cox" and my brain somehow grabbed onto the Hopkins instead of the Cox. ANYWAY, I remembered that I had made that mistake last year. So this year when I started working on the new guide I thought, "Ah, yes--I had her name wrong last year. I'm going to fix it right away before I forget about it." And I did. Went to it and switched it from one name to another. Well..

After everything was all printed Katie looked at it and said, "Mom, you put 'Kristal Hopkins' again this year!" I told her to cut it out--I had changed it and she knew it. "No--really, Mom, you did! It's right here." I just rolled my eyes and ignored her, but she was so persistent that I finally went to look. Lo, and behold, she was right. I started racking my brain trying to figure out how in the world that happened since I KNEW that I'd just changed it. In fact, I had just said to James the day before, "Remember how I had Sister Kristal's name wrong last year? I remembered it all by myself and went and changed it--first thing." I was so proud of myself. But as I stared at the page saying "'Kristal Hopkins" I started to put the pieces together. After the blunder last year I must've opened the file and corrected it, changing it to Cox so I wouldn't forget about it and have the same mistake this year. Part of me may even vaguely remember that I did that... but I DIDN'T remember when I started working on the paper again. I remembered last year's mistake, but not that I'd already corrected it. So in my haste and excitement over the fact that I actually remembered something that was a miracle for me to remember, I opened the file and changed Kristal Cox back into Kristal Hopkins, thinking that I was "fixing" it. ~sigh~ Amazing. The harder I try... I tell ya'!

James was so distraught when he learned of this mistake that he just took the whole Planning Guide and dumped it in the trash and said we'd fix it and print again. Of course, this was just moments after he informed me that I had "fixed" the error on his Ministers' Convention program by creating a new error, dismissing the morning session at 1:10 and starting the afternoon session at 1:30. Oopsie. :-/ It must be really, really trying on a personality like James' to be married to a personality like mine. Of course, we all know that's a two-way street. Hahahahahaha! It's so important to him for things to be RIGHT, especially when you're doing stuff for the Church. He hates seeing things done sloppy or carelessly because it makes the Church look bad. (Thus the resigned trash-it-and-print-anew reponse.) As for my Hopkins/Cox blunder and being an hour off with the schedule for Convention, James just can't fathom people's brains working (or NOT working) like that. He used to always ask me, "Why did you DO that???" As if there was a suitable answer. Or if (read "when") I lost something, "Well, where did you PUT it???" Questions like that are as baffling to me as my blunders are to him. The only answers I can ever come up with are things like, "For the fun of it," which, by the way, is NOT the right answer. ;-) I do feel genuinely sorry when I blow it like that and I felt especially bad this time. I know James has had a whole lot on him and has felt lots of extra stress going into this Convention--just so much to do and so little time to do it in. I hate it that I added to the stress instead of relieving some of it! I've really, really been trying to balance my life better and wear all the different hats without failing or neglecting any of them. I tried so hard to put out a good paper, put my heart into VLB service, put together an effective ABM service, come up with something to say for a whole hour in Sunday School (I'm really struggling with that one; I'd be a lot better Sunday School teacher if class was 15 minutes instead--ha!), build a beautiful and accurate Planning Guide (I really did try), and help out with anything and everything else that James might need me for--while trying to just be a good wife and Mom and teacher without neglecting those--my FIRST and most important--responsibilities. I've stayed on top of the laundry and ironing and I've managed several good, home cooked meals--pork chops, clam chowder, meatloaf, deer steaks... I'm usually bad about not balancing things well and the house or the schooling or the meals get neglected--and I hate that! But I've tried so-o-o-o-o-o-o hard to give myself to ALL of the responsibilities instead of just a few at a time. I've felt pretty good about it until I discover the blunders I've been making! Mom isn't feeling very hopeful about the proof reading work I'll be doing on the Evening Light this weekend. Me either. So let me just say in advance, please overlook all of the errors in the upcoming edition and just plan on enjoying the pictures. ;-) The only consolation I have is found in all of this is the knowledge that I really and truly have been trying my best. My best just happens to have a lot of Smith blood in the works. It equals obliviousness, which equals blunders.

James, would you say I've made a PLETHORA of blunders this week???

"Oh, yes. You've made a plethora!!!"

:-)

James has been good to forgive me and even thank me for my work, riddled with errors as it may be. (I added that last part; it wasn't part of what he told me, though it's no doubt what he was thinking--ha!)

Let's see, what else??? We're preparing for a house full of company again this weekend, so that makes me very happy. I've been washing and changing lots of sheets and feeling all motel-maid-like again. I love it. :-) We did have one cancellation tonight. I hate that! We'll really miss those who can't make it, but we're looking forward to all who will.

Today we've done some baking and cleaning, but there is LOTS more to do tomorrow! I'm so thankful for Katie. That girl is SUCH a help around the house nowadays. She's WAY more help than I was at eleven years old, that's for sure! She made a double batch of sugar cookies all by herself today (she'd made some last week and they turned out GREAT) and got them all frosted. She takes care of lots of the dishes for me and is capable of doing just about any household chore I may need her assistance with. She's such a good girl and I'm blessed to have her. :-)

Okay, it's late and I need sleep. Please pray for a blessed Convention this weekend! (And please, please, PLEASE pray for Ladies' Retreat. We're three weeks away and I really, really need direction. We've got a theme and a guest speaker, both of which I feel great about, but there are still LOTS of things to finalize. I feel peaceful about it... but urgent! Is that possible?! Ha! Please pray for God to help me to know what to do. Thank you!)

Is it Time to Fall Back and Regroup Yet?

Surely it is! It's that time of the year again. The time when everybody I know works themselves to death in preparation for the General Assembly and all things surrounding it, looking forward to the Assembly itself, but also looking forward to when it's all over with and they have time to catch their breath. Is it time to catch our breath yet??? I'm so ready! It feels like we're still in the recovery stage at this point.

Wow, that was impressive. I blogged the above paragraph yesterday. That's as far as I got. Yesterday was a very productive day, just not in the realm of blogging. I accomplished things like... getting unpacked from our Assembly/family vacation trip. Hahahahahaha! Isn't that sad??? We'd been home for over a week before I finally unpacked. I'd gathered dirty clothes and ran some laundry the first day, but we've still been living out of the suitcase in our bedroom up until now. Pitiful.

Today was a productive day, too. Today, I decorated for fall. See?

~Aaaaahhhhhh~ It makes me happy to imagine that it's fall. It's not, of course. And it doesn't FEEL anything like fall. But if I stay in my house, crank the AC up, put on a sweatshirt, and look at my fall decor, I can almost pretend that it feels like fall. And that makes me happy. :-)

Well, let's back up and cover briefly (no, I really mean it this time... I think) the past few weeks. We'll start with Joe's new tooth. Remember when he broke his front tooth off about a year and a half ago? He had been struck in the teeth by a swing up in Pennsylvania and a HUGE chunk of tooth was lost. We were sick over it and really prayed (!) and God was merciful--even though such a large chunk had been broken off it didn't expose a nerve or anything and he's never experienced any pain. I'm sooooo thankful! Anyway, James decided that it was time to check into having it fixed, so the week before the Assembly Joe had his very first dentist appointment. It was a riot. :-) That kid is such a mess. He was pretty sure he'd never make it out alive so the entire drive to the dentist's office he was giving me instructions on what to do with his savings account once he's gone. The only part I remember is that Katie only gets $4 because whatever money she gets will be spent on Skittles and he doesn't want all of his money blown on candy. Ha!

They took a few x-rays, did a thorough cleaning (which was FANTASTIC--I think we ALL need that!), and then it was time for the big event. The dentist was a really, really nice black lady and she seemed to think Joe was the funniest kid ever. She wanted to give him laughing gas before she used the water drill (to "rough up" the surface of his tooth so the filling stuff would hold to it), but he looked at me with panicked eyes that were already beginning to tear up. He had told me ahead of time that no matter what, he didn't want to take any medicine. God has blessed our family sooooo much with good health all these years. When things have arisen, He's been so gracious and merciful and has always answered our prayers when we've been in need of healing. Joe's never had so much as a Tylenol and I know it's his desire to trust God alone. Most Church folks--even many of those who trust exclusively in divine healing--don't think anything about things like that, especially at the dentist's. Even A. J. Tomlinson (who spoke strongly enough on divine healing that most Church members nowadays would be shocked and offended if they really knew what all he said about the subject!) went to the dentist and considered it different than a regular doctor. I told Joe all of that and wanted to be very sure that he felt no pressure from me about this decision. But I know Joe. He's got a super tender conscience and I know that he would have really struggled and had great regrets if he would've taken the laughing gas. It only took him a moment to make up his mind. He decided that he would just pray and try to tough it out without the gas. All I can say is that God must have really and truly answered our prayers (I was praying hard, too, once he made that decision!) because Joe held out and did GREAT. I know it was God because Joe has very, very low pain tolerance. I was so, so, sooooo happy for him! It wasn't comfortable for him, but I'm so thankful for his sake that he chose this. I feel like maybe it was a learning experience for him and will serve to increase his faith later on.

I know I said I'd be brief and that story was NOT. But I really wrote all of that up for me, not for anyone else. This is my journal and I wanted record of my son's faith and determination. It's a blessing to me. I wanna be like him. :-)

Anyway, here are the before and after shots of the infamous tooth...

The big trip. Where do I start?! We traveled with Brandon & Kimmi to IYC, James riding with Brother Brandon, Sister Kimmi riding with me. It was so great to have time to just hang out with her--she is so great! :-) We had learned that Brother Brandon had never been to Fields of the Wood before, so we looked at the map and discovered it would add very little to our trip to change routes and go by there. James couldn't handle having a young minister with him who had never been there, you know. Ha! We all climbed Prayer Mountain and otherwise explored the park, but pretty quickly since we were short on time. We were only there for about an hour, but I'm so glad we were able to go. Here are the guys next to what's left of the Witness Tree. And lest there be any questions, they did not knock any chunks of to bring home with them. Though it was discussed. ;-)
Brother Brandon and Sister Kimmi in front of 10 Commandment Mountain.
James and the kids in front of one of the White Angel Fleet planes. So neat!
And... That is where my pictures end. I don't know how it's possible (I used to be such a faithful photographer!), but I didn't take a single picture all throughout IYC or the Assembly!!! And I don't have programs handy for either event. Pictures and programs are what I refer to when I need to kick my brain into gear and remember where I've been and what I've been doing. I also didn't take any notes. What a failure! Is it wrong to be to two such glorious events and then simply blog, "They were great!" Ha! Surely I can remember SOMETHING...

IYC was fantastic, as always. Strangely enough, the first thing that came to my mind as I sat here and tried to remember what happened there was, "Oh, yeah, that's when Brother Dustin kicked Sister Campbell in the head!" Do I have to explain that, or can I just leave the statement alone without explanation. It's my blog. I don't have to explain anything. :-)

She's okay though. In case anybody was worried. And her eye didn't get nearly as black as she was hoping it would. She would've loved to have been black and blue so she'd be able to harass Brother Dustin about it all the more. Maybe next time. Ha!

I tried to participate in the IYC auction again this year. A few years ago I bought a pair of gloves and a "muffler" (I would call it a scarf) because the auctioneer (who happened to be James) was explaining to the ladies how dapper their husband would look if she purchased these items for him. I just kept on bidding, much to James' dismay, and kept signaling for Mom to up the bid a little higher so I'd have to pay yet more for them. Ha! It was great. This year I had no intention of participated (it could've had something to do with the "look" I got from the auctioneer), but then they went auctioning off a free tuition to South Dakota's Family Camp next year. Who wouldn't want to go to South Dakota?! For Family Camp??? I did my best to bid, but seemed to be overlooked no matter what I tried. I really think it's time to hire a new auctioneer.

Surely I can think of something worthwhile to say about IYC instead of just the dumb stuff. But not now apparently. I remember throwing Ashley Werkheiser to the floor in Musical Chairs (she should've known better) and I remember Dustin Hays eating a doughnut off the floor and my Mom with her face full of whipped cream. I remember Brian O'Dell, Donnie Estep, and Dustin Hays all hoola-hooping with giant pipe. I remember somebody else totally losing a game when the guy next to him asked if he wanted to snuggle.

I was blessed there, too.

HA! No, it really was great--for all sorts of spiritual reasons. As was the General Assembly, but I'm probably not going to recall much more about that event! The Assembly was wonderful as always. I'm going to really try to see if I can remember something of value.

I remember that Brother Bock preached an OUTSTANDING message the first night on the topic, "Is Your All on the Altar." I really, really, really like Brother Bock. What a neat man and what a beautiful spirit he has! I'm always so blessed by him, as well as his wife. I'm anxious for the Assembly DVDs so I can listen to that message again and let it really sink in.

Brother Clarkson preached a powerful message during the CPMA program, following a presentation Dad gave about trying to obtain the right to restore the marker at Mount Hittin in Israel--and after being greeted via Skype by Brother Byers himself. It was a GREAT session.

Rumor has it that the Annual Address this year was one of the best ever, but it sounds weird coming from me since it probably sounds biased. Actually, the guy who said that is James--and it's simply because Dad preached just about every scripture in the whole Bible on The Church of God and that makes James very, very happy. :-) It really was an excellent message.

Brother Forbes preached a fantastic message, "Together in Unity" that I'm also looking forward to hearing again one of these days. He's another man that I'm blessed by each and every time. He always has such good, sound, solid stuff to share--and challenging. I love that.

Uncle Colin preached a truly great message on "The Prayer of Faith" just before the Healing Line. It was so, so, so good. He had preached that message (basically) here in Bessemer back in February and I have always intended to ask Brother Ridlespurge for a copy of it but just never got around to it. The key point he dwelt on wasn't as much "have faith" as it was the follow up, "and DOUBT NOT." Again, challenging. I'll be listening to that again, too.

Sister Bishop's program is ALWAYS a blessing. The Lord really blessed as the choir sang "Come Unto Me," and then Sister Bishop spoke from John 4 about the woman at the well and the fields being white unto harvest. Good stuff.

The VLB Program. I have to say that the VLB Program was probably my favorite part of the Assembly this year--or at least the part that touched my heart the deepest. I turned 35 in July, so this is my very last year to march. For years now I've been ready to turn 36 and be done with the whole VLB thing. Ha! I just figured I was a married lady who was busy raising and homeschooling three kids and I just didn't feel like a "young person" anymore--certainly not part of "the youth group" crowd. And while there is a part of me that still feels that way, I must confess that another part of me is actually struggling with it just a little bit! There is just a ZEAL and an EXCITEMENT about the Victory Leaders Band right now--like I don't think I've seen in my lifetime, or at least for the past 18 or 20 years. I've seen more red and black vests in the past few Assemblies than EVER and you can just sense that the young people are feeling some camaraderie and focus and it's sooooo exciting! It almost makes me want to keep on being a part of it! But I'm sure it'll be great to cheer them on from the other side, so I'm okay with the whole thing. ;-)

Anyway, the march was great and I was so proud of how good our Bessemer VLBs looked in their schnazzy new uniforms and holding their great shields. ~gasp!~ I don't have a picture of them with their shields! I had Sister Kristal take a picture of all of us together, but forgot to ask her for it. Gotta remember that. But here's a shot of the Alabama bunch before the March.

The part of the Program that really touched me was, believe it or not, Brother Dustin's message. ;-) It felt like he had really and truly found the mind of God for our young people and presented such a clear challenge to them/us to step up and be all that God has planned for us to be--instead of waiting around for some other generation to see the Church perfected. In a nutshell... ;-) What really hit home with me was when he had Brother Dupre come forward and carry the Church flag around the stage, symbolizing his own generation--those leaders of The Church of God who saw us through the split 20 years ago and are still leading the way today. When he had Brother Dupre leave the stage, symbolizing the time when he and the others will pass off the scene, my heart just broke. I could feel the urgency in my spirit crying out, "What in the world are we going to do without Brother Dupre??? Who could possibly take his place?" I know it wasn't all about Brother Dupre--he was only representing that entire generation. But my mind flashed back to 20 years ago, when I first met him. I was 15 years old and the Church was in turmoil. I was old enough to understand it and be heartbroken over it and to pray and fast with the others and witness God bring deliverance--though I know I didn't bear the burden of it like those men did. Brother Dupre was always SUCH a blessing and inspiration to me, especially in those years when I was so young and observing all of the spirits, good and bad, at work within the Church. The two words that I always thought described him best from the very first time I met him were gentle and wise--and I admired both qualities so very much. I remember traveling all over the state of Colorado for about 10 days with him and my Dad during that time--and sitting in the back seat and listening for hours on end as they--the two men I considered to be the very wisest men in the Church--discussed all of the happenings in the Church. Brother Dupre will just never know what a big role he played and how God used him in my life during those years when I really and truly WAS a young person and developing and learning and growing so much.

Jump back now to the VLB Program. When he walked off the stage and my heart sunk, I was also struck with the weight of the challenge (which was the whole point of the message)--who is going to step up and take these men's place when they are gone? And not just do what they've done for the Lord, but even more? To step up higher and become more and more Christlike and closer to perfection, perhaps even attain it? I could feel the burden and weight of being the future leaders of God's Church. It's strange, really. James was appointed as an Overseer when we were so, so young. He's been doing this for 8 years already. And now there are other young guys doing the same thing--Brother Clarkson and Brother Estep. Most of the time I still think of all of us as young folk. Yes, I know--I just said a few paragraphs ago that I don't feel like a "young person," but in contrast with feeling like an "old" person or a "mature" person or certainly like any of us are "Church leaders," I feel very, very, very young! I feel like we so don't fit into that category of being the "leaders of the Church." And yet--without even really realizing it--here we are, several of us "youngun's" finding ourselves in these sorts of positions. I've never really thought much of it. I believe wholeheartedly in the "one body" and "members one of another" and how not any member is any more important than another, regardless of what place or position you find yourself serving in. So somehow it struck me very unexpectedly to think of us (at least our husbands--the wives are only helpmeets to the men who hold the appointments, of course) as those who would be "leading" the Church. --And I don't mean only those holding an appointment, I just mean our whole generation. Here we are though, auxiliary leaders, pastors, overseers, leading the Church. Are we capable?! Are we really everything we need to be in order for God to use us the way He wants to??? Can we really take up the burden and be for The Church of God what those amazing men like Brother Dupre have been??? It makes you feel pretty little and inadequate when you think of it like that! You can feel the desperate need for more of God in your life, more prayer, more Bible study, more power--to "walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called." I'm so, so, sooooo thankful for Brother Dupre and my Dad and all of THAT generation--and that so many of them are still here with us, allowing God to use them to lead and be such a blessing to His Church. We have so much yet to learn from all of them! I guess the whole program served to instill in me an urgency to not take those men for granted, to learn from them a-a-a-a-a-a-all we can possibly learn while we still have them here with us, and to realize that the responsibility of filling their shoes will one day lie upon us, OUR generation--and we'd better take it seriously and be ready to be all God desires and requires of us.

To be clear, I'm not saying ANY of those guys are knocking on death's door. I trust and pray that they'll still be here for a good many years! :-)

That wasn't brief either. Sorry.

Before I conclude my Assembly memories (I did find a program--in case you were wondering) I can't fail to mentione Sister Leist's message on sanctification. It was one of the very best messages I've EVER heard on the subject and we'll always remember the analogy of the pet pig--how it can be bathed and cleaned up and have a bow tied on it's little curly tail, but if you take it outside it's going to look for a mud puddle. That will forever be in my mind when I think of the adamic nature. :-)

~whew~ I'm fading fast now.

After the Assembly we went on vacation again this year. We had a FANTASTIC cabin in Pigeon Forge with plenty of room for our family, the Hays family, Mom & Dad, and Jon & Em's family. It was soooooo fun! However... I didn't take notes and I don't have many pictures. Most of them look the same as the pictures I took last year, only different people occassionally doing the same things! A lot of my pictures turned out blurry for some reason, too. This isn't the greatest shot, but I had to add it because I just LOVED IT that my Dad played "I Dropped My Dolly in the Dirt" on the giant piano. That's the only thing he knows how to play--and I remember him singing it to me when I was a very, very little girl. :-)

We went out the first day and played very, very hard. It was so great. After that we just hung out at the cabin and cooked (well, Mom did most of the cooking!) and ate and played games, lots and lots of games. The kids all had a ball together, though there were some minor incidents here and there--mostly due to kids having been away from home, traveling for days and then living on the late night/early morning Assembly schedule, and just being generally wiped out. There were game tables--and even a big Pac Man maching--downstairs at the cabin and the kids made good use of all of it.

Wow. It's sad that I can't really remember anything else specific about such a great vacation!

When we left the cabin on Thursday we all drove back to Cleveland--and were able to meet with Papa Jerry and some of the family for dinner that night! It was so, so nice. It's been way too long and I can't begin to express how thankful I was to be able to see them--and how hopeful I am that God is at work in our family and in all of our lives individually. How loving and merciful God is.

Papa wanted his picture taken with Katie before we left. :-) I'm so thankful--for my kids' sakes--that they were able to see him!

Our vacation was supposed to end that night, but we found ourselves extending it another two days--and I'm soooooo glad!!! It was just so, so nice and so relaxing and felt like exactly what we needed. When your time is so limited with friends and family you really, really, REALLY appreciate it when you have a chance to be together.

That's all for this time. Sorry about the "brief" lie. I really thought I could do it this time. ;-)