Learning from Jesus

There are many people who I look up to and learn from. I am so thankful for those the Lord graciously places in my life who model things like:

training their children
how to schedule days with children
what to do when a child throws a fit
how to be a loving wife and mom
what exercises work and how to fit them in with children :)
what meals to make


Of course it's wonderful that the Lord has given us one another to sharpen and encourage and learn from! So thankful! But God is first. I often forget this simple truth and I find myself measuring myself against others, only to be left discouraged because my child didn't sit on the steps quietly when she was taking a break, or I'm not able to schedule a monthly meal plan... 

The ONE I need to learn from is Jesus. He knows what I NEED and what is best for ME.. because I am His child and no one knows me like He does.

"Learn from Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart."

So glad I have Jesus.

quick thought

"The creature has not only to look back to the origin and first beginning of existence, and acknowledge that it there owes everything to God; its chief care, its highest virtue, its only happiness, now and through all eternity, is to present itself an empty vessel, in which God can dwell and manifest His power and goodness. 
The life God bestows is imparted not once for all, but each moment continuously, by the unceasing operation of His mighty power. Humility, the place of entire dependence on God, is,  from the very nature of things, the first duty and highest virtue of the creature, and the root of every virtue.
And so pride, or the loss of this humility, is the root of every sin and evil."

From the book Humility by Andrew Murray

Just chewing on this. The opposite of humility-- being like my Savior and all that He is--- is pride.

Kill pride in me.

Make me more like You, Jesus.

Summer 2013

What have we been up to the past few months? In a nutshell....

Loving life in Mississippi.. we have almost been here a year! We have made sweet friends and are so thankful the Lord has put us here.  We had a dear friend, babysitter, Kristen come visit over her Spring Break from college and the girls just adore her. Miriam graduated from Kindergarten.. we are so proud of her hard work and she is so happy to learn! Ella Grace finished 2nd grade and we took her picture next to all the states and capitals she learned. She was excited! Susanna finished Preschool and will be jumping in to Kindergarten soon! The girls have fallen in love with Old Maid and Uno so we have played that often. They went to VBS at the beginning of the summer and had a blast. Gabe got to come to the finale.  The girls and I took a road trip to Minnesota to see my Grandma ( She is 99!) and on the way we stopped in St. Loius to sight see and stay in a fun hotel.  Grandma gave them her Bingo quarters she had been saving for three years! We saw my sister Rebecca there too! Then we drove to Michigan for the Van Wyke family reunion at Lake Michigan.  Papa and GiGi met us there. We saw lots of cousins and visited the famous Dutch village the girls love. Then we headed to SC to see the Fleming family with Poppy, Nee Nee and our cousins.. and meet the newest cousin Baby Sam! We saw my cousin Abby at the beach for a few days, then reunited with our Daddy that we had not seen in a few weeks! JOY! Miriam lost two teeth, Gabe and I celebrated our 13th anniversary! And finally, we spent two weeks at the beach with both of our families. It was truly a remarkable summer filled with family and fun and so many wonderful memories.