Mom of Many

Courageous

momofmany — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:44:25 +0000

We just watched Courageous last night – what a great movie! My favorite scene was at the end of the movie when the police officers were in pursuit of gang members. The producers of this film did a great job of getting their point across to fathers about their role in the family and responsibility toward God.

I highly recommend it! Click here for the Resolution the men signed in the movie. You can buy it for $8.92 at ChristianCinema.com.

Family Christmas 2011

momofmany — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:25:37 +0000

Click to view slideshow.

Christmas in Virginia

momofmany — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:58:25 +0000

Click to view slideshow.

Mine is the Night

momofmany — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 01:18:28 +0000

Mine is the Night by Liz Curtis Higgs is a story set in 18th Century Scotland patterned after the biblical story of Ruth and Naomi. The author does a good job of making her characters intriguing and believable, drawing the reader into the story. As the story unfolds, the reader is transported to Scotland with its thick accents and family traditions.

The main character, Elisabeth Kerr, is a recently widowed young woman who traveled with her mother-in-law’s family home town of Selkirk. Broke and alone, the two women lodge with a distant cousin who is also alone and poor. The story weaves a tale of love and acceptance as it tells of two strangers who meet in an unlikely manner and discover God’s plan to draw them together. I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading more from this author.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated for writing this review.

Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo

momofmany — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 03:06:22 +0000

Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo is about a little boy who had a near death experience when he was 3 years old. His appendix had ruptured and infection had spread throughout his body. In a casual comment one day just after he had recovered from the life saving operation, he told his parents about how he met Jesus, his grandfather, and many other children who were growing up in heaven.

After he described for his father and mother what they doing in the hospital when he had this experience, his father began asking questions, wanting to find out more about what he else he had to say about his visit to heaven. For a YouTube video of Colton telling of his experience, click here. For another click here.

Most would disbelieve such an experience, yet I still enjoyed reading about what Colton said he had experienced (now 11 years old) regardless whether he actually experienced the things he described. It was a good read. Heaven is for real, believe it or not and it is refreshing to hear of children who desire to spread the good news about heaven, Jesus, and His saving power.

The post below is a picture of Christ that Todd Burpo refers to in his book – painted by a little girl who also tells of her “heavenly experience.”

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Akiane Kramarik’s Prince of Peace

momofmany — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 01:50:05 +0000

Check out the amazing story of Akiane Kramarik and her art here.

Remember the Waltons?

momofmany — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 15:59:28 +0000

Remember watching the Waltons when you were younger? Click here to watch a recent video of an interview of the cast members.

Vance Havner

momofmany — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 17:14:03 +0000

“I am certain that the Bible is the Word of God. Either it is or it isn’t, and either all of it is the Word of God, or we never can be sure of any of it. It is either absolute or obsolete. If we have to start changing this verse, toning down that, apologizing for this and making allowances for that, we might as well give up, so we must take it as it is or leave it alone.” – Vance Havner

Update 2011

momofmany — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 00:52:29 +0000

With Christmas quickly approaching, I often find myself in reflection of the past months since the turn of 2011 – much like I often re-run the day’s events in my mind just before falling asleep each night. It’s been happening much more often than usual because of the changes we’ve incurred this past year. With selling our house, moving to another state and leaving off the old and thoroughly enjoying the new, it’s a chapter in our life’s book that I find to be an easy read.

They say money doesn’t buy happiness, but I have found that the lack of it can bring an awful lot of pain and suffering. Being tied financially to that house back in Michigan brought with it not only financial distress, but also a long period of being in a very uncomfortable state of limbo – I hate being in limbo! Our ministries as assistant pastor and full-time teacher as well as a dozen other jobs and titles had ended 3 years prior at the church that had originally moved us to their little church in Scotts, two hours away from our hometown of Flushing. We joined a loving congregation nearby and waited for nearly 3 years for our house to sell so we could move to Wausau. Why Wausau, you ask? Let me spell it out for you…G.R.A.N.D.K.I.D.S.

And of course, in contrast to that sadness, the selling of that house brought with it great joy. We can be at the mercy of our circumstances if we let them control us. And sometimes, let’s face it, they do control us – in our decisions, peace of mind and how we live on a daily basis. Settling up with Bank of America (hallelujah!) and walking away with enough money to move was a major turning point in our life (amen!). Not much before that we experienced the Empty Nest syndrome. Ok, I have to pause here and say, “Double amen!”. I do love my kids, surely I do, but just think, after 30 years of parenting, it was time to lose all the stress and gain the freedom.

Jillian had moved back home from college in December so she moved with us to Wausau in April, lock, stock and barrel. We moved into a cute little rental just 3.5 miles from April’s house. It sure was different! Moving from over 4,000 feet of living space with acreage out in the country to a 900 sq. ft. house in town was definitely a change, but it has been a good one. Though moving was difficult (especially since our big strong teenage boys no longer lived with us), it was an end of a long period of limbo and sadness. Jillian and I quickly acclimated to Wausau (as did Mark and my mom) and found it to be a fun and cordial little town. I truly enjoyed having those months with Jillian as we set out to discover Wausau. We were home!

The happiness of the much desired end of a 3 year prayer (Ok, more like begging) can be tempered a bit with the adverse affects of leaving family and friends behind. I’m a people person – those of you who know me well know that I tend to collect people. My peeps are a large part of my happiness. I feel fortunate that distance doesn’t have to separate friends.

We spent the next few months finishing up on Jillian’s wedding plans and then we were off to Battle Creek for her wedding in June. Since Taylor’s job plans at Liberty U hadn’t been finalized, Jillian and Taylor spent their first month with us in Wausau before moving to LU where Jillian planned to finish out her college degree. I considered that month to be my wedding present from them to me. They are a great blessing to their mother (I now claim Taylor as a son). During that time we worked on making our house a home, met many new and interesting people, added to our grandchild collection, and settled into our new church. It’s been a fun ride and for the first time in years I am looking forward with anticipation to what the future has for us. My next post will be about my kids, the real reason I began this long preface to the real story I’ve had rolling around in my head all day today. This was a very long rabbit trail…

11.11.11

momofmany — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 19:09:09 +0000