God Answers Prayers!

Well, this is the post I have been waiting to write!

We have renters! We are so excited! We have been advertising since the beginning of September and it took us this long to find the right people. We've been praying all along that God would bring the right people to us and we really believe that he has. Our mortgage doesn't start until Nov. 1st so we knew we had time to wait but as October was getting closer to saying good-bye our patience was tested! Sorry to say, I wasn't always faithful in trusting God. I KNEW He had someone for us, I was just getting concerned that it was going to be too late. But, something I learned years ago when I was at Capernwray - "God makes all things beautiful, in His time!" This was confirmed again yesterday!

So, who is it? Well, it is two young ladies (both 21) from Aldergrove. They are Christians, friends, and very excited about moving into downstairs; and they are moving in this weekend! I had the privilege of phoning their references. I was so encouraged by what I heard. Both girls have friends who have mentored them along the way, encouraging them, challenging them, teaching them and being a strong Christian influence in their lives. I feel like I made new friends while chatting with their references on the phone. All of that, along with the circumstances that led them to our place, really helped to confirm for us that these are the people God has chosen to live in our suite.

Since our friends (& co-owners) moved out I have been realizing that we will need to adjust to whoever moves in downstairs. We were so used to our friends and had worked out the kinks; everything seemed to be running smoothly. Yes, we will have to adjust to our new tenants, but somehow it doesn't seem as overwhelming as I had originally thought! Another praise item!

So many times in our married life (and even before we were married) God has confirmed to us that He is taking care of us and providing for our needs. Yesterday was another confirmation of that! Thank you, Jesus!

Giving Thanks

I know that Thanksgiving has come and gone, but this is something that has been running through my mind ever since.

Typically, when you hear a sermon at Thanksgiving it is about being thankful for our family, friends, homes, the pilgrims.... But our pastor shared a refreshing perspective - at least for me it was refreshing! He focused on who we, as Christians, are in Christ and what Christ has done for us. He wrote out scripture verses, mainly from Psalm 103, and stapled them inside the bulletins. Then during the sermon, he handed around a cordless mic and each of us read the verse inside our bulletin. It was so cool! That night I was feeling particularily exhausted and "done" with the day. As people read the scripture verses, I closed my eyes and really listened and concentrated on what was being read. It was so uplifting and encouraging. I wanted to share Psalm 103 with you, and hope that as you read it, you too, will be encouraged.

Psalm 103
Of David.

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-

3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,

5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:

8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.

9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;

10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

14 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field;

16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.

17 But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children-

18 with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.

19 The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.

21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.

22 Praise the LORD, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the LORD, O my soul.

So many things to be thankful for! The Lord forgives all our sins, is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love, doesn't treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our sins. He honors each generation of those who obey Him. PRAISE THE LORD O MY SOUL!

Then, today as I was looking on Facebook, I found a song on YouTube that made me pause and reflect on more things I am thankful for. The song is called "Who I Am" by Casting Crowns. I hope you enjoy it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT7x3VnrqbA

I'm thankful that I am a child of God, that He loves me and forgives me. Something to ponder on!

My Little Blessings

"And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them." Mark 10:16

For the past couple years I have taken care of other people's children while they worked. At first I didn't want to babysit as my way to financially contribute to our family. I even tried other things to earn the necessary income. But, things just didn't seem to work out. The only thing that kept working out was me taking care of other kids. So, I decided to make it my official form of income! Jeremy & I have always agreed that me being home and raising our kids is of utmost importance, and it also provides playmates for my own children.

Well, these past few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind around here. I went from having 3 kids down to one and back up to 3 kids again. The two that finished were 10 yrs old and I only had them before and after school. The three kids I have now are part time, but because of the schedules, I am now working 7 days a week, although this weekend I get two days off! I'm so excited! So, at this point I have a 3yr old boy who I've had for over 2 years now, a 15mth old girl (just started in September) and a 7mth old boy who I just started with this week.

It's funny how quickly you forget the various stages of babyhood. Before I started with the 15mth old and the 7mth old I was concerned that I wouldn't know what to do with them. You know, like what do they play with, what do they eat...! Yet, as I took care of them, it surprised me how much I did NOT forget.

So, for now, my life is all about kids! Before I started writing this post, I looked in my Bible for a verse about children. I found the one I wrote at the beginning: Mark 10:16, "And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them." It was a good reminder to me that these little children have been entrusted to me by their families and by God. And Jesus loves these little children! And when the kids are fighting over a toy or a baby is crying, remember that Jesus loves them more than I do and even more than their families do.

A friend of mine shared something with me recently. It is a remake of the "Love Chapter", 1 Corinthians 13. The following is the remade version:

What Remains:

The "love chapter" for parents

by Cindy Sigler Dagnan

If I spend my days building skyscrapers with blocks, assembling cool stuff out of LEGOs and creating relationships with other moms at Starbucks, but have not love, I am only the siren of the kids' ride-on fire truck, annoyingly stuck on hold.

If I have the gift of knowing which child attempted to flush the Hot Wheels down the toilet and which one pushed her sister, and if I have faith that somehow we'll survive life's emergencies, but have not love, I am nothing.

If I save all my box tops for school and give outgrown clothing to the local shelter, and if I surrender my body to stretch marks and under-eye circles (without the benefit of botox, tanning salons or diet bars), but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patien when someone isn't ready to use the big girl potty. It is kind when my husband has a hard day. It doesn't envy my neighbor who drives the new sport utility vehicle I can't afford.

It is not rude, snapping at my spouse or children when things don't go my way. It is not easily angered at perceived or real injustices.

It always protects the smallest, sweetest family confidences; always trusts God to provide my children's needs; always hopes in the freshness of tomorrow and the bright future of family; always perseveres amid hardship and doubt.

Where there are sleepless nights, they shall end. Where there are diapers, Little League and dioramams built from shoeboxes, they will cease. Where there is knowledge of baby-care trends, discipline strategies and boy-girl problems, it will pass away. Now these three remain: faith, lived out in my daily circumstances and instilled in my children; hope, of one day rejoicing with my family in heaven; and love, which covers over a multitude of less-than-perfect moments.

But the greatest of these is love.

It is what remains...

long after I am gone...

Cindy Sigler Dagnan lives with her family in Webb City, Missouri

A Great Weekend

This weekend we packed up and headed to Camp Squeah (just past Hope, BC) for our annual church retreat. We hadn't been for the 2-3 years so it was especially nice to be there with our church family. We arrived late - Jeremy didn't even get home until 7pm! After setting up our room we got the kids ready for bed.

It was Daniel's 6th birthday on Sunday, so we decided to have his birthday party at Camp! He thought the whole weekend was just for him & his birthday! After brunch on Saturday we set up things for his party. His friends came (7 of them including siblings of his friends), they played, opened gifts, had birthday cake, picked up their goodie bag and left to enjoy the rest of the day with their families! Short & sweet and no mess at our house! Just the way I like it!!!

Saturday night we had a blast with the talent show/"Are you smarter than a 5th grader?" game show! It was a lot of fun. A brother and sister definately stole the show! One entertained us with a magic show (she made her leg disappear - she's in kindergarten) and her brother enthralled us with his singing and guitar playing - he's in Gr. 2! Then there was the rap and the Tae Kwon Do demonstration, complete with breaking of wood.
Sunday morning we (as a congregation) were privileged to accept a lady into membership. Then we sang "Happy Anniversary" to a couple still madly in love after 35 years of marriage and "Happy Birthday" to Daniel. It was a great weekend of getting to know each other better, playing games, enjoying God's beautiful creation and getting exercise at the same time, and laughing. I'm so glad we went and I'm looking forward to next year!