Don't Have Love - Holly Starr - Lyrics

Mandisa - Stronger w/ lyrics

Good Morning- Mandisa Feat. TobyMac (with lyrics)

Being Content – Realizing That God Made Me Fearfully & Wonderfully Made

(Life has been so full this past 9 months.  I didn't mean to take a sabbatical from the blog world.  I am hoping to return & record our family fun experiences for our records & to update family & friends on our life.)

I am learning to be content in whatever situation I am in.  Bottom line, put my focus on my Lord.

Today I am thanking God for making me the way He made me.  Psalms. 139:14 “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”

I have struggled with this area through out my life.  God blessed me with natural curly hair.  After about 16 years of despising my curly locks, I learned to love them.  I dreamed of having long beautiful straight hair... hair that I could run my fingers through… all the stunning hair styles throughout the years that I would never be able to have.  My mom had straight hair & did not know how do fix my hair.  Needless to say, I had an afro for many years.  I hated it!  You may think that hate is to strong, but I tell you, I would cry so many times of how my hair looked so bushy.  I didn’t like looking at myself in the mirror or in pictures. 

When I was 12, God brought a girl into my life, Andrea.  She had beautiful perfect curls.  She was a few years older than I was & took me under her wing.  She very kindly asked me if I wanted to have a spa day.  Oh yea!  I asked her if she thought I could have hair as pretty as hers…her response “oh, I hope your hair won’t look like mine, girl. Your hair is so much prettier than mine.”  The transformation began.  She told me that I had to let my hair air dry & use lots of mousse & gel. 

I was so much happier with my hair.  Even after I got tons of complements over the years & people telling me that they would do anything to have hair like mine, I was still desiring to have straight hair. 

Fast forward 24 years.  The wonderful invention of a professional flat iron.  Whoo Hoo!  I have perfectly straight hair.  My dream of so many years finally came true.  But their was a catch.  It took 1 hour or longer to make this dream happen.  I can’t do it during the deep - south summer days… the humidity frizzes it up.  If it rains, I get all “girly” and cover my head, because the water will curl it back up & not in a pretty way.

My curls..  (with Pam Tebow)

So yes, after so many years of dreaming, wishing & praying, I realize that God made my hair “fearfully and wonderfully made”.  I don’t like spending lots of time getting ready & I surely don’t like worrying about my hair through out the day.  It takes me about 5 minutes do to my hair.  On occasion, I will straighten my hair, but prefer the no- fuss way.  God knew, even before I was born my personality & that I needed hair that would take only minutes. to fix.

Thank you Lord for my bouncy curls, for a quick & easy hair style, even though I didn't realize it at first. Your plans are the best. 

Subtraction with Borrowing

Subtraction with regrouping

The Potter Knows the Clay - Perrys

The Martins- The Promise

Unicorns in the Bible

Faith was so excited to find out that there were unicorns in the Bible.  It opened up for a great Bible study.  I came across this article from Answers in Genesis.  We really enjoyed reading it & wanted to save it on our family records.


Some people claim the Bible is a book of fairy tales because it mentions unicorns. However, the biblical unicorn was a real animal, not an imaginary creature. The Bible refers to the unicorn in the context of familiar animals, such as peacocks, lambs, lions, bullocks, goats, donkeys, horses, dogs, eagles, and calves (Job 39:9–12.¹) In Job 38–41, God reminded Job of the characteristics of a variety of impressive animals He had created, showing Job that God was far above man in power and strength.²
Job had to be familiar with the animals on God’s list for the illustration to be effective. God points out in Job 39:9–12 that the unicorn, “whose strength is great,” is useless for agricultural work, refusing to serve man or “harrow (plow) the valley.” This visual aid gave Job a glimpse of God’s greatness. An imaginary fantasy animal would have defeated the purpose of God’s illustration.
Modern readers have trouble with the Bible’s unicorns because we forget that a single-horned feature is not uncommon on God’s menu for animal design. (Consider the rhinoceros and narwhal.) The Bible describes unicorns skipping like calves (Psalm 29:6), traveling like bullocks, and bleeding when they die (Isaiah 34:7). The presence of a very strong horn on this powerful, independent-minded creature is intended to make readers think of strength.
The absence of a unicorn in the modern world should not cause us to doubt its past existence. (Think of the dodo bird. It does not exist today, but we do not doubt that it existed in the past.). Eighteenth century reports from southern Africa described rock drawings and eyewitness accounts of fierce, single-horned, equine-like animals. One such report describes “a single horn, directly in front, about as long as one’s arm, and at the base about as thick . . . . [It] had a sharp point; it was not attached to the bone of the forehead, but fixed only in the skin.”³
The elasmotherium, an extinct giant rhinoceros, provides another possibility for the unicorn’s identity. The elasmotherium’s 33-inch-long skull has a huge bony protuberance on the frontal bone consistent with the support structure for a massive horn.⁴ In fact, archaeologist Austen Henry Layard, in his 1849 book Nineveh and Its Remains, sketched a single-horned creature from an obelisk in company with two-horned bovine animals; he identified the single-horned animal as an Indian rhinoceros.⁵ The biblical unicorn could have been the elasmotherium.⁶
Assyrian archaeology provides one other possible solution to the unicorn identity crisis. The biblical unicorn could have been an aurochs (a kind of wild ox known to the Assyrians as rimu).⁷ The aurochs’s horns were very symmetrical and often appeared as one in profile, as can be seen on Ashurnasirpal II’s palace relief and Esarhaddon’s stone prism.⁸ Fighting rimu was a popular sport for Assyrian kings. On a broken obelisk, for instance, Tiglath-Pileser I boasted of slaying them in the Lebanon mountains.⁹
Extinct since about 1627, aurochs, Bos primigenius, were huge bovine creatures.¹⁰ Julius Caesar described them in his Gallic Wars as:

“a little below the elephant in size, and of the appearance, color, and shape of a bull. Their strength and speed are extraordinary; they spare neither man nor wild beast which they have espied . . . . Not even when taken very young can they be rendered familiar to men and tamed. The size, shape, and appearance of their horns differ much from the horns of our oxen. These they anxiously seek after, and bind at the tips with silver, and use as cups at their most sumptuous entertainments.”¹¹

The aurochs’ highly prized horns would have been a symbol of great strength to the ancient Bible reader.
One scholarly urge to identify the biblical unicorn with the Assyrian aurochs springs from a similarity between the Assyrian word rimu and the Hebrew word re’em. We must be very careful when dealing with anglicized transliterated words from languages that do not share the English alphabet and phonetic structure.¹² However, similar words in Ugaritic and Akkadian (other languages of the ancient Middle East) as well as Aramaic mean “wild bull” or “buffalo,” and an Arabic cognate means “white antelope.”
However, the linguistics of the text cannot conclusively prove how many horns the biblical unicorn had. While modern translations typically translate re’em as “wild ox,” the King James Version (1611), Luther’s German Bible (1534), the Septuagint, and the Latin Vulgate translated this Hebrew word with words meaning “one-horned animal.” ¹³
The importance of the biblical unicorn is not so much its specific identity—much as we would like to know—but its reality. The Bible is clearly describing a real animal. The unicorn mentioned in the Bible was a powerful animal possessing one or two strong horns—not the fantasy animal that has been popularized in movies and books. Whatever it was, it is now likely extinct like many other animals. To think of the biblical unicorn as a fantasy animal is to demean God’s Word, which is true in every detail.

Footnotes

1. In addition to Job 39:9–10, the unicorn is mentioned in Numbers 23:22, 24:8; Deuteronomy 33:17; Psalm 22:21, 29:6, 92:10; Isaiah 34:7. Back
2. In Job, God’s list of impressive real animals goes on to discuss peacocks, ostriches, horses, hawks, and eagles. God builds up to a crescendo, commanding Job to look at the behemoth, which He had created on the same day He created man (Job 40:15). The behemoth’s description matches that of a sauropod dinosaur. Following the behemoth, the list concludes with the leviathan, a powerful fiery sea creature. See “Could Behemoth Have Been a Dinosaur?” Back
3. Edward Robinson, ed., Calmet’s Dictionary of the Holy Bible, 1832 revised edition, pages 907–908. Back
4. The report in Nature described a 33-inch-long skull with a bony frontal protuberance more than three feet in circumference. This bony protuberance with its associated structures is thought to have supported a horn over a yard long. Norman Lockyer, “The Elasmotherium,” Nature: International Weekly Journal of Science, August 8, 1878, p. 388. Back
5. Austen Henry Layard, Nineveh and Its Remains (London: John Murray, 1849), p. 435. Back
6. A margin note on Isaiah 34:7 placed in the King James Version in 1769 mentions this possible identity, and the Latin Vulgate translates the same Hebrew word as “unicorn” in some contexts and “rhinoceros” in others. Back
7. Aurochs is both singular and plural, like sheep. Back
8. Viewable at www.britishmuseum.org. Back
9. Algernon Heber-Percy, A Visit to Bashan and Argob (London: The Religious Tract Society, 1895), p. 150. Back
10. Brittanica Concise Encyclopedia, 2007, s.v. “Aurochs.” Back
11. Julius Caesar, Gallic Wars, Book 6, chapter 28 (http://classics.mit.edu/Caesar/gallic.6.6.html). Back
12. Elizabeth Mitchell, “Doesn’t Egyptian Chronology Prove That the Bible Is Unreliable?” in The New Answer Book 2, ed. Ken Ham (Green Forest, Arkansas: Master Books, 2008), pp. 245–264 Back
13. Some writers who hold to the two-horned identity think that the KJV translators substituted the plural unicorns for the singular an unicorn in Deuteronomy 33:17 because they were uncomfortable with the idea of a two-horned unicorn. However, the KJV translators themselves noted the literal translation an unicorn in their own margin note. They likely chose the plural rendering to fit the context of the verse. Deuteronomy 33:17 states, “His [Joseph’s] glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh.” The verse compares the tribal descendants of Joseph’s “horns,” meaning descendants of his two sons Ephraim and Manasseh, with the strong horns of unicorns. “Horns” is plural because there are two sons in view, and “unicorn” is reference

2011 Co-op Christmas Party

We had a great Christmas party this year.  The kids played music & presented a verse, poem or song from their foreign language class.

:Will playing:

:Violin class:

:Faith played her piece from Sound of Music.:

:Spanish class reciting John 3:16 in Spanish:

Christmas crafts from 6 different continents.  My room represented Africa.  At Christmas, the African children would use wire to make different trinkets.

:Busy bees:

Will made me a stone wire ring.

 

I found a blog that did Minute To Win It games.  The kids had a great time.  This game, the kids are to throw as many "snowballs" into the wreath as possible within a minute.  (We had 5 other great games set up too.  I'm just sad that I couldn't be in 5 places at once in order to get pictures.)

Food & Fellowship

Just can't get enough of our friends. After our party, we went to Chick-fil-a with the McCathrens for a little more fun.

*******************

After a long fun day of celebrating with friends, we went to see Denver & the Mile High Orchestra.  It was wonderful.

 

Mary's Story, A Mother's Point of View

Mary's Story, A Mother's Point Of View by Lura Langenback

How is it that so many folks try to praise me? ME! Who am I to be esteemed thus? Above all things, I am blessed of my Lord. But it was my Son that must be so honored, not I. Only He should be treated in this manner. I am but a mother who was so blessed to give birth to this Child. The angel told me....but I am walking ahead of myself. Is that not how it is said?

How do I know such as this? Because from where I live, I can see the people honoring me. But they must not! If I tell you my story, perhaps then you will see the need to honor the correct One. Will you promise not to interrupt until I am finished? Very well. I will begin.

I will introduce myself. My name is Mary, wife of Joseph, son of Jacob, of the tribe of Judah, sons of David, the King. A long time ago, (do not such stories begin thus?) when I was still living in my Father's home, I remember being told to go to bed and not fret because of my betrothal. Not that he thought that I needed to know this but Father did say that I would like Joseph, my soon-to-be husband. He was so kind to tell me that. It was not required, you know, that I like the person picked by my Father. My heart leaped for joy. Joseph was a very good man, full of honor, devoted to the Lord and so talented. He was a carpenter with a reputation for being a craftsman.

The night of my betrothal was so beautiful from my window. Sleeping was the farthest thing from my mind. My body would not stay still. Dancing around my room was the only thing I wanted to do at that moment. I was to be married! ME! I recall marveling at the thought. It was the custom then to marry at an early age, but at 13, I did not feel so young. People become grown up when they reach that year. My heart was celebrating even before the family celebrated!

Many months later, I was in my bedchamber when an incredible light shown into my room. Before I could walk to the window to see what it was, an enormous being stood in front of me. I trembled in fear of the awesome sight. He spoke to me saying not to be afraid. I was amazed at the peace that surrounded him. He called me highly favored of God, that the Lord is with me this night and that I am blessed of all women! But this troubled me more. Once again trembling, I sought to look into his eyes but the light was great. He said that he is an angel sent of God, not to be afraid of him for he brings great news. The next words were so incredible that I can hardly speak them now, after all these years. He told me that I was to have a Child of the Father, a Son of the Highest. His name was to be Jesus. The angel said that He would reign on the throne of King David and be King to the house of Jacob forever, that His kingdom would not end.

I, of course, worried since no man had ever known me, not even my betrothed, Joseph. As I mentioned this to the angel, he told me that the Holy Spirit would come upon me and the power of the Highest would shadow over me. For that reason the Child I bore would be the Holy One, Son of God. Then, if that were not marvel enough, he told me that my cousin, Elizabeth, who was barren those many years beyond all possible child bearing, was to be a mother herself. At that time, she was going to have a child in three months. Finally, the angel said that I should not marvel at such things for with God, nothing is impossible. I could no longer hold my tongue. My last words to him were that I, the maidservant of the Lord (for what else could I be? He is the One that we honor above all.) "Let it be according to your word!" I shouted to him. Then, he was gone. There was much to think about now. I could no longer sleep. That night, what the angel had told me came to pass.

The next day, I told my betrothed that I must journey into the hill country to see my cousin who was with child. Within a couple of days, I was able to be with her and her husband. Elizabeth and Zacharias are so very devoted to the Lord, it is no wonder that she was favored of Him. When I entered their home, Elizabeth cried out with joy as her child leaped inside her. She was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to praise me as being honored above all women! The Lord was truly with us both that day. I remained with her until the birth of her child, John, helping as I could. During that time of my visit, it was so strange that her husband, Zacharias, was not able to speak. I learned later that his tongue was loosed after the circumcising of his son.

After coming back from my visit, it was growing apparent that I was with Child. Trembling at the thought of telling Joseph, for what man would believe that I was still a virgin, I let him know of this thing. He mumbled that he would think on it but that he would put me away secretly to keep my honor as much as was possible. However, in a dream that night, an angel (the same angel had visited me) told him that I was blessed and carrying the Child of the Most High God. Joseph agreed to marry me in the proper time, which he did. What an honorable man he is!

In those days, the law came from Caesar Augustus that all people needed to be counted. As was our custom, we were to travel to the city of Bethlehem, the city of David because we are both of the house of David. It could not have come at a worse time for me. The Child was soon due to be born and I knew that the travel would be hard on us both. Joseph feared that the Child would come before we reached the city but we arrived safely at night but worn out. Unfortunately, because of the counting and the crowds already housed, there was no room at the inn. The innkeeper, who was very nice, told us that we could go to the stable. He was so apologetic for he was told of my condition. I know that if he could, there would have been a place in the house. I prayed that he not feel badly about this.

That night, a wonderous thing occurred. My Child was born to my husband and me. I wrapped Him as best I could in birthing cloth and put Him in the only place available, a manger. There was such a glow of Love surrounding Him! I could not take my eyes from His face. I wanted to hold Him forever, never putting Him down. My Child! God's Son! I sat back marveling at this. Many things I pondered in my heart. One day, I must tell this Child the story. Would He believe me? Could I give the love this Son needs? I, only a servant of the Most High, am the mother of the Son of God. It was still too much to take in.

Joseph had been watching the door because of all the strangers in the town this night. He whispered that men were approaching, running to the stable. They said that they were shepherds who had seen an angel. Fear had come upon them but the angel told them not to be afraid. They were told of a glorious birth of the Son of God Who was in the city of David in a manger. So they followed a star the angel had shown them. The star led them to this place. "Could we be honored to see the Babe?" they asked. Joseph showed them in to see our Son, God's Son. The Love of God radiated out to the shepherds who immediately fell to their knees and praised the Lord God.

Perhaps you do not believe my story though I am told it is now widely known. For many years, I meditated in my heart of these things. I recall holding Jesus, feeling the love I had for Him, feeling the incredible Love pouring from Him even as a Babe just born. I looked into His eyes and saw peace, everlasting peace beyond anything I had ever known in my life. Both Joseph and I wondered how we would care for such a One as this. Would He know all things? Do we teach Him of His Father or must we say nothing until the time He was a man? It would not be easy raising a Child like Him. None other had done so before. There was no one to get advice from but the Father of the Child. So many things are in my heart still of that time. I should tell you that there is much more to this story but perhaps I have kept you long enough now. Another time, I will recount the many wonders that happened. But for now, it is enough that you have heard this. God bless you as He has me.

Decorating Christmas

For some reason, I only took one picture of us putting up Christmas decorations.  (Probably because I was so busy working.)

I thought this was soooo precious.  Faith fell asleep in the Christmas tree box.

Thanksgiving 2011

Every year on Thanksgiving Day, I give the kids a Christmas ornament.  Usually, something that represents something they did that year or their interest.

:Will & Collin got the same thing.:

The boys both started getting interested in guns this year when we went to Mississippi.

:Faith really loves Tinkerbell:

She fell in love with this little snow globe, so I bought it & turned it into an ornament with a little Gorilla glue & a hanger.

 *********************

 After we had a great meal at Tony's parent's house (didn't take pictures), we headed to our 4th Annual Turkey Bowl.  This year, the Boyle family joined us.

:"Tuukey" and the bowling balls:

 We had a great time bowling & fellowshiping.

 

7 kids + 4 adults bowling = a great time.

Will was the family winner of the Great Turkey Trophy this year.

The Nutcracker

Every year, we start off our Christmas with the Nutcracker.  Tony plays the trumpet for it & the kids love to see him in the pit.  

Our friends, Mrs. Laura, Whit & Addie joined us this year.

After the ballet, we met up with some of the ballerinas.

The Rochester Family - He Loves Me Like I Was His Only Child

My father has a great big family

And there are many children besides me

If you’re wondering how he divides His time

Just let me say, I never stand in line

He loves me like I was His only child.

I never felt so loved before

I could never ask for more

He loves me like I was His only child.

God really loves me, yes he really loves me

He loves me like I was His only child.

He never favors me above the rest

But I can’t help but feel that I am blessed

He treats me best I often say

But then all my Father’s children feel that way

He loves me like I was His only child.

I never felt so loved before

I could never ask for more

He loves me like I was His only child.

God really loves me, yes he really loves me

He loves me like I was His only child.

God really loves me, yes he really loves me

He loves me like I was His only child.

Youre Still God & Sweet Victory - McKameys

Youre Still God & Sweet Victory - McKameys

I thought that it would happen to anyone but me
I never dreamed that I would carry this heavy burden on my knees
I never thought that I'd be standing just where I stand today
I've never known this kind of heart break
I've never felt this kind of pain

You're still God when my eyes have cried a million tears
You're still God when my last hope has disappeared
You're still God and I know you'll make a way somehow
You're still God and you're  holding me right now

My heart cant find the answer  for the reason for this trial
and Lord I know your ways are perfect And You've been watching all the while
for to me You've proven faithful time and time again
and I'm learning Lord to trust You
even when I don’t understand

GA Aquarium & Johnny Rockets

We went to the Georgia Aquarium our last day in Atlanta.  We love ocean animals. 

Faith, Tony & Will (beside some strangers on the right) at the shark & sting ray petting pool.

 

 :Bonnethead shark:

Faith, Will & Collin petting sea urchins. 

:Puff fish:

:Collin & Faith in another petting pool:

 

:albino alligator:

 

:The kids at the huge aquarium.:

:Collin & the spotted sting ray.:

We were fascinated by this Beluga Whale.  They had 5, but only 2 were in this tank when we stopped by.  There were so many beautiful animals, but only a fraction of God's gorgeous ocean animal creation. As we were looking at some strange looking, beautiful, ugly, etc. animals, I was in awe by His creativity.  Sometimes I wondered why He made one look the way He did.  I am so excited to continue to get a glimpse at His handy work.

After our great time at the aquarium, we were walking back to our van & spotted Johnny Rockets.  It is a 50's style restaurant, so we decided to go in.

They gave us lots of nickels to play the juke box.  We all enjoyed the 50's music playing.

Me & the kids.

 

What A Friend We Have In Jesus - Mahalia Jackson

What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry Everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations? Well there Is trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged— Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful, Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every care; Take everything to the Lord in prayer.

TIS SO SWEET TO TRUST IN JESUS

'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,  Just to take Him at His word;
Just to rest upon His promise; Just to know, Thus saith the Lord.

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him, How I've proved Him o'er and o'er,
Jesus, Jesus, Precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more.

O how sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to trust His cleansing blood;
Just in simple faith to plunge me, 'Neath the healing, cleansing flood.

Yes, 'tis sweet to trust in Jesus, Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking Life, and rest, and joy, and peace.

I'm so glad I learned to trust Thee, Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me, Wilt be with me to the end.