A Time For Every Season....

From 1/31/2011 - a great reminder for me today! "A thankful heart is constantly extending grace  because it has received grace. Love and Grace are uneven." "Grace Begets Grace." Paul Miller, A Praying Life Page 152 Grace ~ a word I thought I knew much about. From a young age I learned in church that grace was "unmerited favor."   Now, ask me to define that in my own words and I would have said something like, "I am unworthy of anything and God has shown fit to bless me with a relationship with Him."  Over the last few months the  Lord has been speaking to my heart about living a grace- filled life. It  began last August with a Kay Arthur bible study on Spiritual gifts. I studied the word "Charis" (5485), it is Greek for grace and in the context I was reading meant "grace gifts or gifts of grace." I was slightly intrigued by this concept of spiritual gifts being gifts of grace. I never thought of spiritu...

Here is a sweet story from Wednesday that I hope will encourage all to participate in some way - big or small - in the Northwood Home Makeover coming up October 8-9. Drew's character quality for this week is generosity and his Bible verse is "Even a child is known by their deeds." So while we were talking about generosity Drew asked if he could take all the change in his piggy bank and give it to someone poor. Drew immediately ran upstairs and wanted to count it all. I was a little smarter than him on this one and found that coin star will take change and waive the fee if you have over 40.00 and buy a gift card. So I asked Drew if we could support the Home Makeover with all his change and he thought it was a great idea. We headed down to the coin star machine, feeding on his excitement,  and had 69.97 in change, which he converted into a Lowe's gift card for the Makeover. Drew was so excited! I rewarded his generosity with a  trip to Starbuck...

"You have turned my mourning into dancing for me; You have put off my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, To the end that my tongue and my heart and everything glorious within me may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever." ( Psalm 30:11-12, AMP )   We are so thankful this year! There are just too many blessings; it is hard to record them all! Our biggest praise for 2009 is the blessing of John's hard-earned Teaching job! What began as an aid position, soon led to him taking a very difficult exam, which we just found out John passed – with an 84%! John has found favor with many teachers and the principal at the middle school where he works, with his present position and credentials there are a few job opportunities being discussed. We're excited to find out which one God will bring to fruition. I'm also thankful that for the first time since marriage, my husband has a normal job with set hour...

The Thanksgiving CD is playing, the sweet potatoes are boiling, the pumpkin pie is going to be made, and the little peanut is kicking away at my rib cage. It is a glorious per-Thanksgiving day! Drew and Daddy are wrestling out front, Gabe is deep into slumber, John built a fun hopscotch course in our kitchen, the house is clean, soupo is in the crock-pot, and thankfulness is in the air. Wow, God is the master planner of blessings! This past year has been quiet, reflective - preparation for the changes ahead. Changes of jobs, changes of family dynamics, changes in finances, & hopefully it all leads to changes within our hearts. We are a thankful family, there is nothing I could possible be ungrateful for - it was all pre-ordained by God and those few things in my life which I like to grumble about are also the things that grow me and raise me up to handle a God filled life. I am truly grateful today, more so than ever before. We have health, a roof over our heads, a great marriag...

Be joyful always;  pray continually;  give thanks in all circumstances,  for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.   1 Thessalonians 5:16   I just love Fall! I love the season of Thanksgiving and the quiet evenings of tea by the fire. I love books and reading to my boys. Recently John and I started to dialog about ways we teach our children about gratitude; we soon discovered that gratitude in our house needed to be emphasized more. We felt Drew's excitement for Christmas & his Birthday, yet quickly picked up on his "I need, I want" attitude. So we went back to the basics and have been implementing some fresh ideas into our Fall fun, I'm so excited to see Drew's heart change from "I want" to "Lets give!" Tonya Ruiz writes on her blog that, "The Bible tells us that the wicked are not thankful, but that Christians are to give thanks always, for all people and things. I'll admit I don't always have a gratef...

Today it felt like Autumn, it has been the season for a few weeks, but just today it finally felt right - must be the 55 degree day of chilly windy weather! Thus the traditions have begun! Today we celebrated with Makeover at church, John spent his day off in the garage, hiding from the rain, and working on some exciting projects for the Home Makeover. We enjoyed cocoa and breathed in the cool brisk air with our warm coats and boots. Such a delightful day. I finally gave in and put Fernando Ortega's CD's into the player, broke out the pumpkin spice candles and spend the afternoon doing laundry. It was fun laundry because a friend from John's work gave him 3 bags of children's clothes! Most were cute, adorable little girl outfits and some boy clothes that were thrown in were perfect for Gabe. What a blessing! Abby will be so stocked, I only kept about half so I can pass the blessing along to my friend Nicole who is also having a little girl around the same time I am. Abb...

My lesson for this warm Thursday was, " Say "yes" as often as possible - God uses all opportunities to reveal himself through life's daily circumstances. The day began as any other, I awakened my sleepy eyes too early for my liking, calls of "Mama" from the other room drew me to reality, and Drew's excited voice jumped to the euphony of classical music -- my day had begun. We hurried through breakfast, packed lunches, and I sent oldest child ahead to dress and brush his teeth before school. When I arrived upstairs, I sighed and persuaded, "Drew. why are you wearing jeans to school? It is going to be hot and sweaty today, your not going to enjoy wearing pants." Believing I had won my argument I went into his drawer to find a pair of shorts to match his already worn shirt. "But Mommy I want to wear jeans, their comfortable and I like them!" I glanced at the clock, almost time to go, no time for Drew to argue with me. Then I heard a s...

After 6 1/2 years of struggling our way through the seemingly endless mounds of Student loans, credit cards, auto loans, medical loans, and that nice mortgage - we had finally reached the top of our mountain called consumer debt. John and I realized the day we married that our battle would be a long and uphill battle - freeing ourselves from the debt of slavery is never an easy process, but was necessary to learn faith and master obediance ! I am so thrilled that we walked together on the journey and have finally overcome the first mountain of consumer debt! We have taken many classes through Crown Financial and listened intently to their radio broadcasts, as well as taken instruction from Dave Ramsey's program - Financial Peace University. God has more to say about how to handle money than any other topic in the bible - God has used people like Dave Ramsey, Larry Burkett , and Howard Dayton to teach Christian and Non Christians how to handle money wisely. God's plan for how we...

This December we focused on Advent - remembering the Lord through various Biblical names. It was so much fun to see Drew captivated by who God is, not just one aspect of God, but God in all his Glory and Abundance. We put the ornaments away yesterday and Drew was so sad to see the Advent ornaments and tree leave our entry way. It was sweet watching him place each ornament back in the "puzzle" book that they came in. He called each by name as he placed them back - "Goodbye Father of Light," "Mommy, here goes the Bright Morning Star," "Where does the Good Shepherd go?," "Here is the Cross, I mean Savour," "Good Bye Bread of wife." We opened Jesus' gift first on Christmas morning - so it wouldn't get lost in the gift opening. His gift -- a home made book filled with pictures and verses and personal writings about the gifts we gave Jesus in December. Though we would like to see our children giving all year long, this month...

How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you. Psalms: 31:19 Our family spent the day thanking the Lord for His "indescribable gifts." While many spend this holiday mourning the loss of loved ones we are simple thankful to be together for another year! We loved waking up late, talking together as a family, reading the Thanksgiving story (part of it anyway!), eating a yummy brunch, and taking our family photo's. Oh, we can't forget loosing Gabe outside in the backyard tonight too! So here is the Williams 2008 family thanksgiving list: Drew is thankful for Jesus, his church, his school and his wonderful teachers Andrea and Misty. He is also thankful for his friends and for cookies! We're thankful for the wonderful home the Lord has provided where we can raise our two boys and truly enjoy fellowship together. I am especially grateful that we converted the dining room w...

Well, I'm having way too much fun getting Gabe's Birthday "shopping" done. Shopping is in quotes because I did it online. I love Thanksgiving; Fisher-Price.com put their Mayflower Boat on sale! I love it, we're starting to collect the Little People sets, their safe and fun for Gabe who loves to put things in his mouth, but also fun for Drew who is into character playing and setting things up. I ordered a few additional Christmas gifts too since there were many other things on sale (Drew is getting a race car track!). I even found a coupon code for 15% off plus free shipping. During our shopping Wednesday I used the rest of my giftcard on Noah's Ark for Gabe's Christmas present. It's so cute! I love the musical train, but decided we really had spent enough on Little People for a while. I do think the "Little People" name is fitting for us, don't you? Gabe is getting the above Mayflower boat plus the feast set for this Birthday next month....

391. Sweet uncle who comes to visit and play in the garage 392. Drew’s kind voice asking “momma, will you play Lego ’s with me?” 393. Drew is going through a “needy” time, he now wants to be a baby and has started to call me “mama” instead of “mommy.” He is growing so quickly! 394. Letter puzzle stacked 12 high – a wonderful way for a boy to learn letter names and dexterity – not so much fun crawling on hands and knees under table with dog hair and cheerio’s 395. CareNow – so glad its open Sunday’s – Gabe jabbed a medal pointer into his cheek and we went over for Antibiotics just in case . 396. Intimate times with the Lord – I wish I were more diligent about keeping my mind fixed on Him 397. Musical reminders “Be careful little feet where you go, for it's the little feet behind you that are sure to follow” from Casting Crown song Slow Fade 398. Coffee chat with friend – sharing struggles, brief stitches of time, & strength God is growing in our hearts. 399. You know those fri...

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!2 Sing to him, sing praises to him;tell of all his wondrous works! Psalm 105:1-2 We give thanks for the many trial and tribulation that have softened the uneven edges of our hearts, bringing us wisdom and understanding and the life-changing realization that God is always in control. We give God thanks for the life that is growing inside of me, that by Thanksgiving will be home in his parents arms – Gabriel Allan Williams. We are thankful Lord for the gift and blessing of life, the responsibility to raise godly heirs, and the wisdom you provide to us daily. Thank you Lord for continued health, it was a rough year for John and the auto accident that brought on back and neck pain. Thank you that he is healing and is able to return back to work. Thank you Lord for the blessing of a great family. Our little boy Drew is abounding with energy and life, he loves to sign praises to You and is learning to...

Today I was explaining to Drew what Thanksgiving was all about. I asked him what he was thankful for and he replied "God," I asked him again thinking I might not have heard him correctly and he proclaimed "God mommy, I am thankful for God." Oh so cute, no wonder Jesus said in Matthew 19:14 "Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Researchers studying those who kept gratitude journals concluded : "At the end of the 10 weeks, participants who’d kept a gratitude journal felt better about their lives as a whole and were more optimistic about the future than participants in either of the other two conditions. To put it into numbers, according to the scale we used to calculate well-being, they were a full 25 percent happier than the other participants. Those in the gratitude condition reported fewer health complaints . People who kept a gratitude journal reported feeling more joyful, enthusiastic, interested, attentive, energetic, excited, determined, and strong than those in the hassles condition. They also reported offering others more emotional support or help with a personal problem— supporting the notion that gratitude motivates people to do good. And this was not limited to what they said about themselves. We sent surveys to people who knew them well, and these significant others rated participants in the ...

I just loved this article in Christian Women Online by Ann Voshamp . It touched my heart and pushed me onward to seek a life of giving. I especially liked the scientific data backing up the delight we get when we give to others. John had me listen to an NPR program on the concept of love and the various hormones that are released when you fall in love. Funny that the release of oxytocin in present in both falling in love and generous giving. YOURS! Teaching Children to Give Ann Voskamp , September 2007 He was all of eighteen months, crowned with a mess of ringlets that fell over one eye, when he began gloriously saying it. An only child, yet to be joined by siblings, he lifted our house with exuberance. The place was his. But he kept charitably, delightfully saying, “Yours.” Our hands would fall upon his glossy 1456 International tractor, his engine-red train, scuffed and worn, his basket of board books and beloved Beatrix Potter. And he would singsong: “Yours! Yours!” What a rhapsod...

Last year at this time Texas was in a major drought - crops were failing, water restrictions were in effect, burn bans were everywhere. Not so this year, we have had more rain just this month than in all of 2006. On Monday night we had the worst storm I've ever been in. The thunder woke us up around 1:00 am and lasted until 3:00 am. Our power went out, the fuse box went off, and anywhere from 5.5-7 inches of water flooded the streets. We even had hail. I had the thought cross my mind that the end of the world may have come. It was so scary yet there was a peace knowing we were being sheltered from the storm inside our home. I now have a real life experience to visualize when I picture the Lord sheltering me from the storms of life. Poor Kitty ran into our bedroom and cowered next to the bed; she didn't like it one bit. She slept there all night and managed to not snore! The cats also found comfort on our bed, it was a huge slumber party minus Drew. Drew slept through the whole ...

John found out today that he doesn't need surgery! The herniated disk looked a lot better according to the second MRI - God is good! The doctor is sending John into "traction" when he returns from Oregon and has a pain management doctor calling him to set up a drug program; hopefully one that will allow him to sleep. The drugs he is currently taking for his nerve problem keeps him awake all night. We are so happy he doesn't need surgery, the surgery the doctor spoke about was too invasive, it involved moving John's vocal cords and being in bed for at least a month. This plan is much better! John and Drew leave Saturday for Oregon - they will enjoy 4 fun filled days of male bonding without mommy. I will get a wonderful vacation, I can actually clean the house and enjoy having it stay just the way I left it - no messy hands leaving stains and muddy feet to track in dirt! There are carpets to be shampooed and my office needs a thorough organizing! Today was the firs...