It's Friday and we are back on duty. The boys are home doing their study hall and then we are going to work on some chores. We have a Volleyball game tonight in our gym. It's staff at ABC Home against the kids here. The kids are probably going to kick our tale. LOL Especially after today. Me and the new relief house parent walked 5 miles today! YEA!! I hear Tylenol PM calling me tonight. :) We have a busy weekend ahead. Tomorrow we have a golf tournament and have a bunch of golfers coming to have lunch with us. Our friends Stephanie and Shane are coming to hang out with us. We are excited about their visit.  Sunday we have 4 different groups coming to hang out and do some volunteer work on campus. We will probably be non-stop after tonight. Pray for lots of rest for us and pray that the kids don't stomp on us too hard tonight during Volleyball. If you don't hear from me tomorrow, I probably broke a bone. LOL Love you guys and hope you have a great weekend! May God bless you always and may you find peace in his hands.

OFF AND WALKING

I'm still walking. Trying to lose some weight and feel better about my health. Gary and I were off today so I took advantage of this gorgeous day! We have a new house parent couple that started this week. She also likes to walk. Today we walked from the home to down town then back home again. (After we stopped at Sonic) Once we got back home we went and clocked how far we walked. We walked 4.4 miles! Go us!! It was the perfect day to walk and I enjoyed talking to her. It's always fun to find out how God brings people to the home. God works in mighty ways. Things you never thought you would do, God may ask you to do. You just have to be willing and ready to say yes! Even if you feel like your not capable, I promise you if God is asking you do to something, he will equip you with the tools to do the job. God blesses you so much if you are in obedience of his will. Walk for Jesus! Make all your walks for Jesus and he will bless you steps. Have a wonderful day and God bless you!

STEPHANIE GOES TO WASHINGTON, DC

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Off to Washington!

Ephesians 1
22And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church.
Ephesians 4
4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

In our Sunday school class we are doing an inductive study on Ephesians and wow is God blessing my socks off with this study! Everything is under His feet and He is head over everything.
This past week I traveled to Washington DC. I had never been there before and also I was meeting some people that I had not met before. We were traveling to speak on residential care and foster care, to our government. I was so honored to be a part of it. I was thinking forward about the city and thinking about the metro that I had never been on and speaking to congress and their staff was a challenging thought too. The Sunday before I left, my ladies in my Sunday school class laid hands and prayed with me and I constantly was thinking about the prayers of Gods people and that I was smothered and covered with them. There was a confidence and peace that came over me while I was there. We had a meeting ( the pic of me at the table) at 11 , before the larger meeting and it was with the woman that writes the laws, it went so well! The five minutes I had to speak, in the larger meeting at 1 PM, was wonderful and everything I thought that I might not get it, was placed in my speech very nicely. Only God could of done that.
I was around a diversity of people and God allowed some sweet friendships to form and I cannot wait to see them again!
God has everything in His hands and we just have to be obedient to each next step, no matter if it doesn’t fit into what you think you were supposed to do. Because, I am a testimony that God will use anyone that is willing to be used for His glory.
Savannah quote for the week: We were walking into her school yesterday and she had picture day, she was wearing some new shoes and she didn’t care for the fit. As she was walking in, she shared her dislike for the shoes and then said “ Great, now I am going to be walking like a turtle all day”. This was added cute because she is four and she was walking really funny! :) Of course we brought her extra shoes but the things kids say…..

ROOM MAKEOVER!

I had a visit from some angel's this weekend. My mom and sister came up for Ethan's birthday and brought me a surprise. I love surprises! We have 2 different cottages that we go back and forth to stay in. The room in one of the cottages we stay in depresses me. If you could just picture a square room, all one color, off white. Same color curtains, no pictures at all on the walls, a bed with an outdated green quilt on it...Well, I will just say that I told my mom one time too many, that it reminded me of a jail cell. LOL.  After Ethan's birthday party, one of the boys came in the cottage to get me. He said I was needed outside. When I got outside my mom said, you do so much for everyone else, we wanted to do something special for you. My sister lifted the tailgate on her truck and all I seen was decorations! A comforter, curtains, plants, throw pillows....they told me I was getting a room makeover! I was so excited. I know that our comfort is not what we NEED to be here, but it sure makes it a little sweeter. Take a look below at what they did.......

Gorgeous right!

They even bought us a mattress cover. When you take it out of the air tight package, it starts inflating with little pillows in it. It feels awesome!

.....And they bought us these pretty throw pillows. One with an "R" on it so we know who lives there. :)
The first night I slept in our newly decorated room, I slept like a baby. I woke up the next morning just looking around and snuggling up in my comforter. It was great! Thank you very much to my angel's for doing something so special for us. It really means a lot and we love you sooooo much! I am so thankful that I have you and I so thankful that you always know what I need. Thank you Lord for giving me my family!

ETHAN'S BIRTHDAY PARTY!

My beautiful kids!

Ethan had a great birthday party. Lot's of kids from the campus came and we hung out and played basketball. My mom, sister and nephew came and we enjoyed visiting with them. They did a room makeover for me. I have some picture's of that I will show you tomorrow. My sister placed trick candles on Ethan's cake. But he managed to finally get them all blown out! He had to do some huffing and puffing though. LOL We had a really good time and appreciate all who came and those who thought about us to help Ethan have a special day!

My beautiful mother! 

                                                   
                                                 
                                                   
                                                             Paige, Lyndsie's roommate
                                                       
                                       He blew and blew and BLEW!

                                                   
                                          
                                      
                                                            Gotta love some sonic!

                                            My sister and Lyndsie
                                        You know you love me!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ETHAN!

8 years ago today my son, Ethan was born. I just wanted to let him know that he is loved very much and we hope he has an awesome day. I am so thankful that God blessed me with Ethan. Not only have I taught him things, but he has taught me things as well. God bless you son and I hope you have a wonderful birthday. (I will post pics of his party sometime soon.)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ETHAN!

YOU ARE LOVED VERY MUCH.

LOVE SATURDAY'S!

We had our last Volleyball tournament this morning. It was really fun. Our new guy is settling in well and seems to be very nice. Everyone is just running around today doing their own business. It's a beautiful day and I am so thankful for the awesome day God has given us. We are having Ethan's birthday party today. He will be 8 years old tomorrow. My mom and sister are coming to his party today. We are very excited about that and the boys are looking forward to it as well. I hope you enjoy this gorgeous day and are rejoicing in the Lord today. He is Almighty and whatever is bothering you today, give it to the Lord and let him carry the load for you. You just enjoy the day he has given you. God bless you and I hope you have a wonderful day!

PRAYER REQUEST

We have one of our house parents in the hospital. He has not been feeling well. Please pray that he is feeling better real soon and able to return back to work soon. Praying for you. God bless you!

We have a new guy coming this week. Please pray for him and an easy transition. It's hard for them to go from their environment to ours. Most adjust well but it's almost like a cultural shock sometimes for some. Prom is coming up in 3 weeks. We have some beautiful girls wearing some gorgeous dresses going with some handsome men. They are all running around trying to get ready for it and the girls can't hardly wait. The school year is almost over. I can't believe it. Time just seems to go by so fast! I hope you have a wonderful day and get a quiet moment to talk to God today. God bless you!


I WILL PRAISE YOU, O LORD, WITH ALL MY HEART;
I WILL TELL OF ALL YOUR WONDERS.
I WILL BE GLAD AND REJOICE IN YOU;
I WILL SING PRAISE TO YOUR NAME, O MOST HIGH.
                     PSALM 9:1-2

GOD IS IN THE HEALING BUSINESS

I took one of our sick guys to the doctor today. He is dehydrated and still having stomach problems. The doctor said we could put him in the hospital or push fluids for 24 hours. He was scared to death of the word "hospital" so I told the doctor we would overdose him on fluids for the next 24 hours. If he is not better by Thursday they are going to put him in the hospital for fluids. So please pray for God's healing hand. It's not fun to be sick, we all know that. But we also know we have an awesome God who heals the sick everyday. I pray that God just lays his hands over this illness and takes it away soon. We are praying for your prayer needs and we appreciate you being so faithful to pray for ours. Have a blessed day!

                                     HE DIDN'T DIE FOR NOTHING!

THANK GOD FOR MOM'S

Today I was talking to one of the guys who wants to find his family. His mom died when he was young and he wants to find someone that can show him a picture of her. He wants to know what his mom looked like. It broke my heart. I know how lucky I am to have the loving family that I have. But I didn't know just how fortunate I was, until I started working here. I could have been one of those kids wondering what it would be like to have a family. I am so thankful that I have a mom that loves me for who I am. And I am so thankful that I had wonderful parents to raise me and teach me about God. If I had not had the family I had when I was growing up, I would not be able to help these children. For the little time that they are here, at least God has allowed me to step in and show them what a loving family feels like. Thank you God for my mom and dad. Thank you for my family. Thank you for teaching me how to love.

THANK YOU GOD FOR MY MOM AND DAD!

I love you both very much......and I'm looking forward to the day I am reunited with my daddy in Heaven.

IT'S MONDAY....REJOICE IN THE LORD!

I know most people dislike Monday's. But today try thanking God for everything he has done for you. It's a good thing that God doesn't dislike Monday's. Could you imagine if God said he won't hear prayers on Monday's? He won't heal the sick on Monday's,  perform miracles on Monday's or oh, 'not today my child, I don't do Monday's. I'm going back to bed'. We have a God that listens and hears, performs and heals 24/7. He never stops not for one second, working in our lives. So thank you Lord for today and all Monday's! Today, on Monday, I will start a whole fresh week and try to clean up the mess I made of my life last week. This Monday will give me another chance to witness to that person that is lost and this Monday will give me another day to serve you Lord. So thank our Awesome God for giving us Monday's......and hopefully many more Monday's to come. God bless you and I hope you have a great Monday!

JESUS-THE ULTIMATE HEALER...AWESOME SAVIOR!

I brought a sick one home early from church today. Please just pray for him and all the kids. There is so much stuff going around. Also please pray for me. God is taking me out of my comfort zone and having me speak in front of church next week. I'm not very good at speaking in front of a people, so please keep me on your prayer list, as well. Hope you all have a wonderful day with the Lord today. God bless you!

P.S......

When the guy's came home from church today, I found out that one of them got saved. Yea! We had a new kid come to ABC Homes about 3-4 weeks ago. Since he came here, one of our newest Christians in the cottage has been witnessing to him. Amazing! He has been witnessing to him through the weeks and last night he led him to the Lord! Today the young man went up in front of the church and told the preacher that he had asked God into his heart! When I asked the guy that led him to the Lord why he didn't tell us, he said; 'Because I didn't want to take credit for it. God did it.' I am so proud of this kid. He is truly living his life for God and wants to make sure his friends go to heaven with him. What a great kid and witness for the Lord. God has great plans for this young man. And I am so glad he has allowed me to be a part of his life.

WIENER ROASTING FUN!

We are all still on spring break and it definitely has felt like spring. God has given us the perfect weather to enjoy the outdoors. Yesterday the guys hung out at the park and then we had a campus baseball game in the afternoon. That was a lot of fun for all of us. Everyone was a winner! We have a gentleman at church that has a cabin on a pond and he invited us to come and stay there with the boys. So last night we packed up our cottage and IB cottage and we headed for the woods. We sat around a camp fire and roasted wieners and marshmallows. It was a beautiful night outside and we enjoyed it so much. The young man in our cottage that recently surrendered to preach gave a devotional for us. He preached on Noah getting consumed by the whale and even amidst his troubles, God showed him how much he loved him. Some of the boys got in on the conversation on how they know God loves them. It was really nice just sitting around the camp fire enjoying talking with everyone. Before I knew it, it was late and time to head back home. Today the guys went to Pine Bluff with Gary and then came back and helped do some mulching. This evening we are all going to Ethan's first baseball game. This will be the first time he has had 6 brothers cheering him on. I'm sure he will enjoy that. I hope you are enjoying this gorgeous day. May God bless you!

FUN DAY WITH THE GUYS!

Yesterday we started the day off in the canoes with the boys. We had two of the boys screaming as the canoes were going out, "take me back....I'm serious....I don't want to go!" They don't know how to swim, even though they were wearing a life jacket, they thought they were going to drown. By the time they had been in the boat 2 minutes, they started paddling and were having a blast! Both my kids learned how to swim by the time they were 2 years old. I just thought, these kids didn't have someone to teach them that. Maybe they will know how to swim by the end of summer. After that we went on a hike. There was a trail through the woods and it was a 2 1/2 mile hike. I am proud to say that it only took us 45 minutes to complete it. One of the boys ran ahead of us on the hike and would leave us messages on the trial. His name is Payton. We would go a little ways and see something written in the dirt that said; P-went this way. And it would have an arrow pointing in the direction we were supposed to go. We went a little further and seen a stick on the trial. It had been broken up into several pieces and was placed in the shape of an arrow pointing in the direction we were supposed to go. There were several messages on the way that he left for us. When we got to the end of the trail and was working our way out of the woods, there was a message written in the dirt that said; 'I have been found. Love, Payton'. It was fun and the guys had a great time on the hike. It was so much fun to get them out of their element for a while and just let them act silly. Gary and  I enjoyed that as much as they did. We played football, soccer and baseball then grilled burgers. Some of the guys went fishing but they didn't catch anything. It didn't matter though. We had an awesome day. God had blessed us with a beautiful day and we were sure thankful for that! God bless you and we hope you enjoy this beautiful day as well.

OFF TO THE PARK WE GO!

We are taking both cottages of boys to the park today. We are going to grill hamburgers and hang out. The little boys cottage is going to join us as well. I'm glad that God gave us such a beautiful day to enjoy his creation. The boys are having a great week. They volunteered to do some mission projects with a local church. They went and cleaned some elderly peoples yards and even came to ABC Homes to pull weeds. They are trying to stay busy this week. We are hoping to get to go fishing this afternoon and then combine cottages to have dinner. It should be a great day just hanging out and spending time together. I hope your spring break is going well and the Lord blesses you in a mighty way today!

                                                  YUMMIE!

A BURNING DESIRE FOR GOD

Do you remember when you first got saved? I'm sure that you do. That's a feeling you can never forget. I was thinking today about my daddy. He led me to the Lord. I started thinking about that overwhelming feeling you get when you become saved. It's like a flood just sweeps over you. A feeling like nothing is ever going to be able to stop you, because now you have God on your side. I wondered why we lose that feeling. The Bible says God never changes. He's always the same, so that just leaves us. We change the feeling. Over time, we let the world get to us and break our spirit. We need to find a way to get that "New Saved" feeling back. That type of feeling that only God can give you. He didn't change it.....we did. We allowed the devil to sneak in and steal a piece of our joy. Don't you know that the devil is happy about that. Let's take it back from him! I am praying that God will set my soul on fire for him. To give me that "WoW" feeling again. That feeling that nothing will ever come between me and God. That type of feeling that everyone you run into, you want to tell them about your Jesus! You want to get that feeling back? Pray for God to change your heart. To make your heart desire him only. I know that if we truly seek his presence, he will come. He's never changing, always the same. Let him put us back together again, and let's learn how to keep that burning desire in our soul.....forever.
Lord, I want to feel your presence today and always. Please set my soul on fire for you!

DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD AND HE WILL GIVE YOU THE DESIRES
OF YOUR HEART.             
                           PSALM 37:4

O LORD, GOD OF OUR FATHERS ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND ISRAEL, KEEP THIS DESIRE IN THE HEARTS OF YOUR PEOPLE FOREVER, AND KEEP THEIR HEARTS LOYAL TO
YOU.                    
                    1 CHRONICLES 29:18

YES, LORD, WALKING IN THE WAY OF YOUR LAWS, WE WAIT FOR YOU; YOUR NAME AND RENOWN ARE THE DESIRE OF OUR HEARTS. MY SOUL YEARNS FOR YOU IN THE NIGHT; IN THE MORNING MY SPIRIT LONGS FOR YOU.
                         ISAIAH 26:8-9

May God fill your heart with a burning desire for him, and may he bless you always!

SPRING BREAK.....YEA!

As you can imagine, it's spring break and we are very busy. All the guys are home and ready to have some fun. Today we cleaned the yard and placed mulch in the flower beds. It really looked nice we finished it. The guys want to go fishing tomorrow, so we were probably head out to the pond. All the guys are pretty excited about being on spring break. Gary and I are just trying to keep our heads above water. :)
It's nice to have the guys home all day though. We have really enjoyed spending time with them without having to worry about rushing chores for events or early bed times. It's been a nice back day with everyone just hanging out. What a gorgeous day the Lord blessed us with to enjoy with the guys. God is good! I hope you are enjoying your week. Have a blessed one.

THANK YOU LORD

We had a church group come and hang out with us today. We made kites and grilled burgers and hot dogs with us. We had a really good time and enjoyed the fellowship and fun. We are only having one boy go home for spring break. The rest will be here to hang out and have fun with us. :)
It was such a beautiful day that the Lord allowed us to share in today. I am so thankful that he allows wonderful moments like today and I am so grateful that we have sponsors that are able to come and share them with us as well. I hope you all enjoyed the sunshine the Lord made today, and I hope you all feel his presence in your lives today and always. God bless you!

A WALK WITH GOD

I started walking this past week trying to lose some weight and get in shape. I started walking 20 minutes and yesterday I walked 2.6 miles in 47 minutes. My goal is 5 miles a day. I will get there, it will just take a little while. I used to walk all the time and forgot how much I enjoy it. I realized today that I can utilize that time to spend with just me and God. I walked and started praying for God to just protect and bless my friends and family. I was talking to God as if he was physically walking right beside me. It was awesome. I would just say; God, look at this gorgeous day you created and look at that beautiful sky you painted. I talked to God and thanked him for so much that I neglect to thank him for daily. Even the little things. I passed a lady working in her flower beds and asked God to bless her today. I passed a bum on the street and asked God to help him today. And then I passed this.............

A baby's shoe laying on side of the road. I started praying for that baby. I asked God to bless the baby that once wore that shoe. I said please let this baby grow strong and healthy and eventually come to know you as their Lord and Savior. I asked God to please let this babies parents come to know him if they don't, so this baby could be raised in a Christian home. Then I played a game and said, every blue car that passes me, I'm going to pray for. So if you were in Monticello today in a blue car, prayers went up for you. :-) I learned very quickly today that I'm not only exercising my physical body, I'm exercising my spiritual body, which is more important to me anyway. If you need that one on one time with God (which I believe everyone does) and can't seem to find a quiet place, go walking. You will be surprised how God uses you on your walk. And you will love how close you feel to God when it's just you and him. Talk to God like he's your best friend. He love's those talks and you will treasure the moments. I hope you have a great day and can exercise your spirit today in some way. May God bless you in a mighty way today!

THIS IS WHAT THE LORD SAYS:
'STAND AT THE CROSSROADS AND LOOK;
ASK FOR THE ANCIENT PATHS,
ASK WHERE THE GOOD WAY IS, AND WALK IN IT,
AND YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
                  JEREMIAH 6:16

WHAT OR WHO DO YOU BELIEVE IN?

I feel like no matter what I'm doing for God, I'm not doing enough! I constantly am trying to find new ways to get the word of God out. I just feel that his coming is soon and there are so many people who are going to be disappointed. We have a young guy here that does not want to be a "Christian." He does not like going to church and he does not like our morning devotions. I know we can't ever push salvation on anyone, but my prayer is that he is here long enough to see us living Christ like, and and he will want what we have. My sister sent me an email this past week and this is what is read;

I WOULD RATHER LIVE MY LIFE AS IF THERE IS A GOD, AND DIE TO FIND OUT THERE ISN'T, THAN LIVE MY LIFE AS IF THERE ISN'T AND DIE TO FIND OUT THERE IS.

That is pretty powerful! I know without a doubt there is a God, but there are some that don't think God exist. I think it's important for all of us to remember to just keep finding ways to get God's word out. Maybe we can even reach some of those people that don't believe in our Savior. You may not think your capable of telling someone about Jesus, but you are. God made you for a reason. He wants us witnessing and telling others about him. It's like bragging on your kids or grand kids. Try bragging on your God and see what happens. Everyone needs to hear it, and we are not finished....... until God says we are finished.

THERE CAME A MAN WHO WAS SENT FROM GOD; HIS NAME WAS JOHN.
HE CAME AS A WITNESS TO TESTIFY CONCERNING THAT LIGHT,
SO THAT THROUGH HIM ALL MEN MIGHT BELIEVE.
                                  JOHN 1:6-7

                     GOD USED JOHN AND HE CAN USE YOU TOO!

......HE BELIEVES IN YOU!

THANK YOU LORD

Today I just want to give my Lord thanks for my family. I take for granted sometimes the little things I'm blessed with. We are not only teaching these children here, but they are teaching us. There is a teenage boy here that wants to find his family. He has 2 brothers that he has never met and he wants to find them. He wants to know his brothers and he wants them to know the person he has became. Talking to him makes me realize how fortunate I am and was growing up. I have always had a loving and caring family. I have always had the pleasures of family vacations, movie night and going to church together. I remember when I was a young girl, we had this big sawdust pile in the woods around our house that had a road that went around it. My brother was learning how to drive. Me and my sister would stand at different spots on that road and my brother would act like he was a bus driver and stop and pick us up. I remember my daddy when he surrendered to preach. Every Saturday night he would sit us all down in the living room and practice his Sunday sermon on us. (So if we didn't listen Saturday we could hear it again Sunday. lol) I have lots of memories growing up with my family. A lot of these kids here are not that fortunate to have those precious memories. So thank you Lord. Thank you for my family and the blessings you give me everyday. Lord, please help me to never take them for granted...... and please tell my daddy I love him.