Quiet

It's nice and quiet now. The boys are sleeping. The house is relatively picked up, and I'm about to head to bed. Monty is in South Carolina, for more Chaplain training. He'll be there through the end of August. Life does look a bit different when he's not around. ( I have less laundry to do, so that is a plus ) Seriously, we do miss him. Yet, I'm so excited about this process. I'm so proud of his efforts to bring our family into the next phase of ministry. While he's gone, I"m going to try to get back into the habit of blogging. I have missed this outlet. It seems to get pushed aside when life gets crazy. Though I miss Monty, I do get some more quiet in my life while he is gone. Time for God to speak to me. Time for me to listen, to be still. Time to focus on Him.

My Bluebird

So, this is the pair of bluebirds that have nested in the birdhouse on our fence. They are so beautiful. Of course, I had to figure out what they liked to eat. So, the boys and I researched it on line and figured out that they like " mealworms". Of course then, I had to buy some at the Wildbird store. Of course, the worms have to be stored in my fridge. So, every morning and noon, I feed the bluebirds. The male comes and perches on my windowsill and eats some of the worms and takes some of back to the nest. The male has even been known to peck at my window if I forget to feed him. It's been such a fun deal. I'm so greatful to the Lord and His great creativity.

The Johnson boys color easter eggs

Enjoy this little video of the Johnson boys coloring eggs.....it was an adventure to say the least....

Sarah Beths Surgery

Hello All,

Sarah is scheduled to have her surgery tomorrow (Monday) between 5PM and 7 PM EST. Thanks for your prayers. We know that God has Sarah in His hands. We just pray that all goes well. Thanks again...

My Cousin Sarah

My Cousin, Sarah Beth, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005. Many of you reading this already know this story, but some of you don't. I won't go into the details of the past 4 years...if you're interested in knowing, please read her online diary at www.loveyourguts.com ..it's worth your time. The cancer metastasized - the main area of concern in the past year (plus) has been her brain. She has already had one surgery in 2007 to remove a brain tumor. The brain tumor they have been monitoring is now around 4cm. The symptoms/difficulty it causes her are worsening. She's kind of been in a holding pattern waiting for her doctors to come to some conclusion about what to do. chemo has been hanging there as an option, but yesterday she was advised by the 3 of them - her neurosurgeon/oncologist/radiation oncologist to go ahead with surgery and then chemo. So that's what she's going to do. They want her to do it sooner rather than later and gave her the option of today (saturday) or early in the week. She's going with early in the week, so it will be monday or tuesday. One of her reasons for wanting to wait until then is to give people more time to pray. she knows the power of prayer and feels the support of so many through that. it makes all the difference for her...so, that said..the reason for this note is to ask you to pray for her, whether you know her or not. If God moves you to do so, please pray. Please also pray for her Mom and Dad (Mark and Kathleen), her brothers (Jeremy and Jason), and the rest of us..we love this precious girl so very much. She is loved by many.Thank you, in advance, for lifting her up to the Lord, for speaking her name to Him and laying her and her circumstance at His feet.

Why blame the dark for being dark?

I'm reading an interesting book these days. The author has many great ideas, and thoughts that have made me stop and think. He has some great thoughts about what the church could be, how the church was meant to act and what it's ultimate purpose is. Most of my life I've grown up in churches that are strong and take stands on issues. Which is great. That needs to be done. However, when I get email forwards asking me to boycott a certain actor for statements made at the Emmys, or listing all the wrong things with a particular celebrity or politician, I tend to think differently now. One thing the author said was "why blame the dark for being dark", instead, think why are Christians are not more full of light? Will a person be drawn to Christ because I boycott? Or will they come to Christ because I love them? Am I going to sit within the comfort of my christian world and refuse to purchase bubble gum because someone said they don't like Jesus? Does forming a picket line show God's love to people who desperatley need it? C'mon.....is that really what being a light is?

My Boys

So..I don't really think they were napping...do you?

Hawks

I first noticed the Hawk on the telephone pole as I was driving home from work. It was 14 years ago. I was going through a very painful breakup with my ex fiance. Everyday, as I climbed into my car, the tears would flow. I would cry all the way home. I noticed that every day, on the same fence post, was a hawk. After awhile, I started looking for him. Everyday, he was there. It seemed to me, that in the midst of the pain, God sent this Hawk to be a representative of his presence.

Since that time, I believe that God has sent me Hawks to tell me that it's going to be OK. Like the time one landed in my tree, just outside my front window in downtown Joplin. I had just received a call from the Doctor telling me that JD needed to be admitted to the hospital, he was only 3 days old. As the tears started to flow, the hawk landed in my tree and looked at me. A wave of peace came over me and I knew it was going to be OK. Or there was the time where Monty was out of work and we didn't know how we were going to meet any of our bills, and I saw a hawk on the power lines right outside our back door. Then there was the time I was on a walk two days before I had Nathan. A Hawk swooped down in my suburban neighborhood and landed in the street right in front of me. He paused, looked at me and then flew off. Two days later I had a ruptured Uterus and Nathan entered the world by emergency C-section. As I was laying on the table, I remembered the hawk. I knew it was going to be OK.

I saw one today. I was eating lunch with the boys and a hawk landed on a power line right outside the window. He looked at me and nodded and then flew off. Once again, I felt at peace. God is here, in the midst.

Our God is so mighty, so powerful that He can use the birds of the air to minister to us, his children who need to know his presence. I'm not sure why He chose a hawk for me. I just know He did. I'm reminded of the verse that states.." Look at the birds of the air, they do not sow or reap or gather food, but your heavenly father feeds them. How much more valuable are you to your heavenly Father than they..."