Our tree. A casualty from the storm last night.

As soon as the tornado sirens began blaring, our children’s emotions ran the spectrum from fearing we were going to die all the way to male bravado. But there are lessons to be learned in all situations–whether joyful or terrifying and tragic.

To the ones who were fearful, we remembered this verse from Psalm 56: “When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.” We prayed that God would help us trust Him.

To the ones who were displaying machismo, we considered the tree.

It wasn’t a tornado that ripped the tree apart. It was a mere wind gust, which doesn’t even scratch the surface of the wind in a tornado. And the fact is that the destructive power of a tornado doesn’t hold a candle to the power of God. He truly is infinitely more mighty than anything we can fathom. He is the One whom we should fear.

Before tucking the kids into bed, we thanked God for His mercy. Surely He has the power to blow down houses and take life–we’ve seen the destructive potential of tornados this year in other parts of the country. And whether He allows destruction or prevents it, He is to be praised because He is God.

**I must add this: I am helping Peter with his Bible study for church right now, and this is the verse he is writing. Just so appropriate.

For the Most High God’s dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, but He does according to His will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth; and no one can ward off His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’ (Daniel 4:34-35)

I read an article over at DesiringGod.org the other day that encouraged me in my life as a mom. It’s called “Motherhood as a Mission Field”. The author tackles the questions we moms often ask about whether the menial things we do day in and day out really make a big impact. Hope this excerpt encourages you too.

Giving up what you cannot keep does not mean giving up your home, or your job so you can go serve somewhere else. It is giving up yourself. Lay yourself down. Sacrifice yourself here, now. Cheerfully wipe the nose for the fiftieth time today. Make dinner again for the people who don’t like the green beans. Laugh when your plans are thwarted by a vomiting child. Lay yourself down for the people here with you, the people who annoy you, the people who get in your way, the people who take up so much of your time that you can’t read anymore. Rejoice in them. Sacrifice for them. Gain that which you cannot lose in them.

It is easy to think you have a heart for orphans on the other side of the world, but if you spend your time at home resenting the imposition your children are on you, you do not. You cannot have a heart for the gospel and a fussiness about your life at the same time. You will never make any difference there if you cannot be at peace here. You cannot have a heart for missions, but not for the people around you. A true love of the gospel overflows and overpowers. It will be in everything you do, however drab, however simple, however repetitive.

God loves the little offerings. Given in faith, that plate of PB&J’s will feed thousands. Given in faith, those presents on Christmas morning will bring delight to more children than you can count. Offered with thankfulness, your work at home is only the beginning. Your laundry pile, selflessly tackled daily, will be used in the hands of God to clothe many. Do not think that your work does not matter. In God’s hands, it will be broken, and broken, and broken again, until all who have need of it have eaten and are satisfied. And even then, there will be leftovers.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love having a daughter?

I sure do look forward to watching her grow and develop as the years go on.

The inspiration:

The potential:

The tools:

The plan:

The creation:

The finished product:

Do you know those people who are entertaining to watch, even if they’re just breathing? For me, Jeremy is one of those people. I could sit and watch him and his bazillion facial expressions all day.

I am thankful to God for this special guy and look forward to his next five years of life.

Ruthie’s new fav song. She gets so excited when we’re singing it, though, that she shouts out “Bible!” a little too soon.

Sitting with Daddy outside…

Cuddling with Molly inside…

Chatting with Peter.

Watching the storms roll away.

It’s little things like this that bond brothers together.

What happens when this guy has control of the hose?

People get watered, along with the plants. His primary victim:

She doesn’t look happy in the picture, but trust me, she was all smiles and laughter as she was being doused.

Jeremy has a unique relationship with his sister–a rough-and-tumble type of affection. She will certainly have no problem understanding the male population when she grows up.

After the yard work was completed, we rewarded ourselves with a trip to DQ.

When Jeremy was too little to order his own treat, we would all pay a “Bubbie tax” by donating a portion of our own treats to him. Well, now we’ve instituted the Ruthie tax. Now that I think about it, she has it even better than Bubbie, as she has 5 people donating to her, rather than 4.

We took advantage of the nice weather today and met our friends, the Crudeles, at the arboretum. Tis the season when one day is sunny and 75, and the next is rainy and 50, so we’ve learned to seize the day when the weather cooperates!

It was good to know that the trees were kept warm with handmade, custom sweaters. Here we saw the ultimate tree-hugger.

I’m afraid Ruthie may grow up confused about what tree bark really is.

Meanwhile, Derek was thinking how great it would be to climb up that tree, what with all those spaces to grip.

Jake is now in that awkward stage between childhood and adulthood, so rather than run around with the rest of the boys, he opted to take care of Ruthie. And take care of her he did.

If Bubbie is good for one thing lately, it’s making us laugh. Ruthie is not at all pleased with the attention he is receiving, hence the complaining in the background. Alter the volume control on your computer accordingly.

Who knew that a few tulips in the front yard would offer so many object lessons? Here is what they look like now:

All the petals are missing, as they have blown off and fallen to the ground. Soon the leaves and stems will turn brown and wither.

The lesson has not escaped the boys, as both Derek and Jeremy separately reminded me of this verse in the Bible:

All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever. (Isaiah 40)

I thank God for giving us visual pictures of mysterious truths. I see every year what happens to the flowers–they fade, their petals fall to the ground. They are temporary. If only the word of God endures forever, then why would I want to put my trust in anything but Him?

Ruthie was able to bond some more with her Auntie Chris on Mother’s Day. She showed her the tulips.

Later that day, Ruth discovered bubbles. She used all of her five senses to explore.

Jim has the opportunity to travel to Ghana, Africa for a week and a half to meet with our friend and partner in the ministry, Ray Mensah, and his family. In fact, just today Jim was doting on Ray’s kids, Esi and Joseph. He introduced them to Cookie Doodle on the iPad, and it made quite a hit, as you can imagine. Some things know no language or culture barriers…Cookie Doodle is just such a thing.

The team is keeping a blog during the trip here. Check it out, and please pray for them.

Look who has discovered crayons. Crayons (and pens and pencils, along with any other writing instrument she can find) are all the rage these days.

Constant supervision is required, as she has learned that paper is but one of countless surfaces upon which crayons can make a mark.

But the little dear sure is happy with her masterpieces.

**UPDATE

Ruthie had been happily drawing next to me as I was putting pictures up for this post. When I went to put her in her dinner chair, this is what I saw:

Like I said: constant supervision.

It’s one way to use your telescope during the day.

Wave to the passengers, count how many are eating their peanuts.

You see it all around. Once a new road is built, over time it begins to deteriorate–cracks, potholes begin to form. As soon as you drive a new car off the lot, it too begins to deteriorate, some cars more quickly than others. That new outfit looks great right off the rack, but wash it once and you can see that even it has a life span.

Jesus knew this when He gave some wise words recorded in Matthew 6: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in a steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Whether by nature or human hands, decay happens everywhere. The kids observed with rapt attention this week as our rickety, rotted deck was taken down.

It didn’t take long for it to be disassembled and piled up like junk.

Sure, we’ll build a new one, but over time it too will begin to deteriorate. Everything on earth does. But what Jesus was teaching is great news: there are ways we can invest our money with no risk of losing it–no crashing stock market, no destructive natural disaster can touch it.

Store up your treasures in heaven, where they will be kept safe.

We planted the bulbs in the fall of 2008. In early 2009, they burst out of the ground and bloomed in beautiful shades of red and yellow, and at the same time, inside my belly there was a colorful, beautiful little girl growing. God was preparing her to bloom in this world.

One year later, the beautiful girl sat among the beautiful tulips.

Yet another year has passed, and the beautiful girl now stands among the flowers, enjoying their color and beauty.

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. May God grow her to be beautiful in His eyes.

Jake recently received a sun filter for his telescope in the mail (thanks, Uncle Dave and Aunt Judi!). And because it has been cloudy and/or rainy every day since receiving it, there has been no sun at which to look.

This reminds me of the proverb that says: “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12)  As he keeps an eye on the clear sky forecast, with any inkling of a cloudless sky, Jake has risen early in the morning in anticipation of seeing the sun rise. But alas, every morning his hope has been deferred. Cloud cover surrounds.

This morning was different, though. He was up at 5:00, peering out the back window, waiting for the sun. And it greeted him (and his telescope) not long after.

Not only did he snap some pictures of the sun, but he also created a sunspot tracker so he may record the ever-changing sunspots each day. If you look closely in this image, you can see a spot on the lower left part, and some more faint spots at the bottom.

sunspottracker

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they reveal knowledge.

They have no speech, they use no words;

no sound is heard from them.

Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,

their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,

like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

It rises at one end of the heavens

and makes its circuit to the other;

nothing is deprived of its warmth. (Psalm 19)

Since we’re getting to know Ruthie on the blog lately, I thought I’d share another new practice of hers. She watches to see if Jeremy finishes his meal. If he leaves food behind, her target is set.

She finishes her meal in her booster seat,

asks to be let down,

and promptly walks over and climbs up to Jeremy’s seat. (His habit of not finishing his meal coincides well with Ruthie’s new practice)

The good thing is that Jeremy doesn’t mind–for him it means he’s off the hook for finishing his meal.

So I guess it’s a win-win situation.