He is definitely a beach baby. Can’t help it. He gets it honest.

Tonight we went out onto the beach, he and I, just as the thick pink line around the horizon was beginning to shrink. It was the perfect time of day.

Fascinated by the ocean, much like I am, he didn’t blink as I held him on my hip and walked the short trip down the sand. He was mesmerized by the sight and sound of the waves. With excited squeals escaping his lips and legs kicking full force, he itched for that feeling on his toes from a few days ago. Finally those toes touched the water and he was able to just enjoy it for a while.

After a good showering of splashed water on both of us, we walked up to a dry spot of sand and I set him down in front of me, my legs encircling his. At first, he just looked at the sand in front of him. Then his feet started kicking. And they didn’t stop.

His rhythmic kicking started forming a cute little heart shape right there in front of us.

As he continued to kick his energy out, I sang I Love You Lord. Reminisced about a campfire 20 years ago when I first learned that song. It is now a theme song of my life… one that I sing in my head when bad thoughts come in.

I love you, Lord, and I lift my voice. To worship you. Oh my soul. Rejoice. Take joy my King in what you hear. May it be a sweet, sweet sound in your ear…

May it be a sweet, sweet sight to your eyes…

May it be a sweet, sweet smell to your nose…

May my life be such that everything I think, say, and do looks like worship to you.

In the midst of my own worship moment, I looked down at Little Man and realized that he was worshiping too. Kicking those little feet against the sand was his way of saying thank you to God. I love your sand, God. I love your ocean, God. I love sitting here with my mommy, God. Thank you.

Worship is such a simple act. It’s not about what manner we choose to do it. It’s not about the songs we sing. Worship is our way of telling God thank you. Of showing him that we love him with all that is within us.

I’m pretty sure Little Man’s kicking was a sweet, sweet sight to His eyes.

So when the pink horizon shrank enough that it was just a spot disappearing behind the buildings, we got up and walked back to the condo. Leaving behind a cute little heart made by Little Man’s feet. Beach Baby’s worship offering to his King.

Thank you God for letting me see worship tonight through the eyes {and feet} of my baby boy.

Wow, there are some good waves today.

At first, I was frustrated about staying in the condo because little man needed a nap. But as I sit here on the balcony watching my family play in the ocean, I have nothing to complain about. Typing away and relaxing with my coffee beside me. Finally some me time.

We have such a special family. See all those people in the picture? That’s them. Right now, the adults are standing around talking at the water’s edge while the kiddos are playing in the shallow surf. Jeffrey is testing a boogie board made for little people, while Katherine is carrying a bucket that is almost as big as she is. Yesterday, we watched baby Josh feel the waves hit his toes for the first time.

I. Am. Blessed.

I’m trying to take in every breath. To enjoy every moment I’m given while we are here this week. Vacation goes so fast. Just like life.

What moments have you been missing out on lately? Stop today and just try to take in every moment. They go away too quickly.

It was strange. A feeling I didn’t expect. I had just dropped off both kids at school for the first time this year and I felt sad.

This summer was tough. There were times that I wasn’t sure I would make it through. Times when I questioned my ability to be a mother to 3 young children. August couldn’t come soon enough.

I was sure that relief would come over me after I dropped two of the kids off. After all, it was a particularly difficult morning. But inside of me, something else took over. A simple twinge of sadness that said a piece of me was missing. Two of my babies were now inside that big building for the day… for the week… for the school year… for a long time.

I’m glad this emotion took over. Thank You, God, for showing me that I do love my job as Mommy. Thank You for reminding me that my family is my greatest ministry. Thank You for not allowing me to feel relief as silence took over my car.

For this simple twinge of sadness that You gave me, I am grateful.

What are you thankful for today? Link up with us and share.

Her face said it all. The corners of her little mouth turned down… her lower lip poking out a little further than the upper. Red blotches covering her cheeks and forehead. Tears streaming, as her eyebrows angrily formed a V above her nose. Mommy was finally putting her foot down. No more pull-ups.

For months, we have struggled with the potty. Good days and bad days. The bad days dominated by stubbornness and a need to be in control. Hmmm… Katherine is definitely my daughter. She has moments where she fights me with every bit of physical and emotional strength she’s got.

But I love her. With every bit of strength I’ve got.

I guess God often sees me as I described Katherine in the first paragraph. Still fighting  to get my way. Still holding onto my pride. My need for control. My need to have it “my way.” Becoming weaker by the minute.

The pride fight is especially tough for me. Sometimes I think I struggle more than others. Remember The Truman Show? Somewhere in the deepest part of my soul, in the parts of me that I don’t like to examine or talk about, I feel like I am supposed to be Truman. The world is supposed to revolve around me. But that is not who I really want to be. It’s just my selfish human nature. 

My pride gets in the way of so many blessings that God has prepared for me. Somehow I get mixed up, believing that the things I WANT are the blessings God SHOULD want for me. And holding on to those wants is exactly what prevents me from receiving God’s true blessings. I can only find out what He really wants for me when I give it all over.

Sure I have (a lot of) moments where, like Katherine, I fight Him with every bit of physical and emotional strength I’ve got. And in the same way that I love Katherine with everything I’ve got, I’m thankful that…

He loves me. With every bit of strength He’s got.

It's Tune-In Tuesday again! A day where we meet together to worship. Here is what we do on Tuesdays at Grow Where You're Planted:

Each week, I share about a song that God is using in my life. One that is speaking to me in whatever season I may be going through. The invitation is for you to jump in and do it, too! Here are the steps:


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Some days, Katherine goes to bed singing… then she wakes up singing. Definitely a music lover to the core. (I have NO idea where she gets that from!!) :o)

These lyrics are some of her favorites… “Christ is risen from the dead. We are one with Him again. Come awake, come awake, come and rise up from the grave.” If you haven’t heard Christ Is Risen by Matt Maher… listen to it below. In fact, play it while you’re reading the rest of this post. Awesome!


One day, Katherine kept singing the same lyrics over and over again. So, I decided to play the whole song for her on my iPhone. For the rest of the day, she asked for it again and again with a big smile… “Play Come Awake, Mommy!” “I want to hear Come Awake!” You know what's funny? Come Awake is not the title of the song. Sometimes I think we should let the kids name the songs.

Think about what the lyrics are saying to us. So often, we remain in our guilt and shame. We take up residence. We dwell on the past. We dwell on the regrets. Yes, I do it. (By the way, if you missed my testimony, you can read it here on my friend Karen’s blog.)

This song has taught me that if I choose to stay in my guilt and shame, I am not doing what God has called me to do. Christ died and rose again so that we would “come awake” and live in the risen mindset. He doesn’t want us to stay dead in our sin… in our shame… in our regret. If we have truly repented, then He is calling us to wake up. To let go of the past and reach FORWARD! In the RISEN life! In Philippians 3:14, Paul calls us to “…press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

If we live defeated lives, we are useless for the kingdom.

How are you doing in the regret area? Have you realized that all of your past sin can now be turned around and used in others’ lives? Do you seek out opportunities for God to use you to help others move out of sinful patterns and lifestyles? Or are you still dwelling on the sin? If we try to forgive ourselves in our own strength, we will just stay in a defeated cycle. But with Christ in control, we can put the sin behind us so that we can come awake and live again. A new life! A new day! A new song!

Oh church! Come stand in the light!
The glory of God has defeated the night!
Our God is not dead! HE’S ALIVE! HE’S ALIVE! 

We can learn a lot from our kiddos. When I keep my eyes open, our little ones teach me something every day. They view life from an innocent perspective. A point-of-view that we grown-ups sometimes miss because of the doubt, regret, and fear in our lives. I'm thankful that God used our little girl to remind me to come awake!

Your turn! :) Don't have a blog? No worries... Just comment below. Thanks for stopping by.

I haven’t done a 5 Minute Friday in a couple of weeks. This one, however, really spoke to me. If for no other reason, I’m doing this one because I need to do it. I need to be reminded that all the little things that frustrate me are actually there to show me how strong God is. Here we go…

GO

I am grateful...

For the toys on the floor that I seem to pick up 200 times per day...
It means the kids are full of life and love to play.

For the dishes that continue to stack up no matter how much I clean them...
It means we have food to eat, no matter what else may be going on.

For all of the little things in the house that need to be fixed...
It means we have a house that God has provided for us to live.

For the noise, the screams, the fights...
It means the kids are healthy and have some grit about them.

For the disrespectful phase that we seem to be going through right now...
It means God has trusted us enough to teach them how to come out of it.

For the financial struggles...
It means God trusts us enough to let go and trust Him (even though we fail).

For the tears, the feelings of failure, the spiritual warfare...
It means God wants to use us for something that we can’t even see yet.

For the years of wilderness that have brought us to now...
It means that God never gave up on us and has a bigger purpose.

For the things in our lives that hurt. The things that we just don’t understand...
It means God is teaching us that He is in complete control.

STOP

What are you grateful for today? Would love for you to tell me… and also to jump in with Lisa-Jo and link up.



If you are finding this blog today and you have experienced any kind of pregnancy loss, I also want to invite you to see my post from July 4^th – The Pain of Miscarriage. I’m doing a survey to help my research to put together a resource booklet for women who are experiencing miscarriage. Would love for you to take the survey if you feel led.

Death is a part of life. The grief that goes along with some types of death is hard to comprehend. Miscarriage is one. For women who lose a child, even early in pregnancy, it is an incredibly painful experience.

My husband and I have had 2 miscarriages. You can read about our second one here: Still, Part 2 of 2. Since the time of that miscarriage, my heart has been burdened for hurting women. The women who went through a pregnancy loss without completely grieving… The women who are going through it now… The men beside them who are trying to be strong support while they are trying to deal with their own grief.

God has led me to this point. I am in the beginning stages of research for a new resource eBook that will help all involved to cope with the pain of pregnancy loss. I’m hoping that you all might be able to help me with this research.

Have you experienced miscarriage or another type of pregnancy loss? Do you know someone who has? If so, please let me know… by comment or email. And if you are willing, please click here and take a survey about your experiences. Your answers will be used to help others understand and work through what they are experiencing. And if you are on Twitter, Facebook, any social networking channels… please spread the word. Thanks ahead of time for helping!

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the changing of the seasons. In the past six months or so, several seasons of my life have changed:

• I left work to come home and be a mommy;
• Joshua was born;
• Jeffrey graduated preschool;
• Because of changes at the church AND my not working there anymore, the sense of my “identity” in ministry has changed;
• My best friend moved away.

Accepting change has proven extremely difficult for me. I get stuck in comfort zones that seem to be missing the exits… at least in my mind.

Some days, Katherine goes to bed singing… then she wakes up singing. Definitely a music lover to the core. (I have NO idea where she gets that from!!) :o)

One day last week, in her cute little way, she couldn’t stop singing these lyrics… “Christ is risen from the dead. We are one with Him again. Come awake, come awake, come and rise up from the grave.” If you haven’t heard Christ Is Risen by Matt Maher… listen to it below. In fact, play it while you’re reading the rest of this post. Awesome!



So back to Katherine. After she sang the same lyrics several times, I decided to play the whole song for her on my iPhone. For the rest of the day, she would ask for it again and again with a big smile… “Play Come Awake, Mommy!” “I want to hear Come Awake!” You know what's funny? Come Awake is not the title of the song. Sometimes I think we should let the kids name the songs.

Think about what the lyrics are saying to us. So often, we remain in our guilt and shame. We take up residence. We dwell on the past. We dwell on the regrets. Yes, I do it, too. (By the way, if you missed my testimony as shared about a week ago, you can read it here on my friend Karen’s blog.)

This song has taught me that if I choose to stay in my guilt and shame, I am not doing what God has called me to do. Christ died and rose again so that we would “come awake” and live in the risen mindset. He doesn’t want us to stay dead in our sin… in our shame… in our regret. If we have truly repented, then He is calling us to wake up. To let go of the past and reach FORWARD! In the RISEN life! In Philippians 3:14, Paul calls us to “…press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

If we live defeated lives, we are useless for the kingdom.

How are you doing in the regret area? Have you realized that all of your past sin can now be turned around and used in others’ lives? Do you seek out opportunities for God to use you to help others move out of sinful patterns and lifestyles? Or are you still dwelling on the sin? If we try to forgive ourselves in our own strength, we will just stay in a defeated cycle. But with Christ in control, we can put the sin behind us so that we can come awake and live again. A new life! A new day! A new song!

Oh church! Come stand in the light!
The glory of God has defeated the night!
Our God is not dead! HE’S ALIVE! HE’S ALIVE! 

We can learn a lot from our kiddos. When I keep my eyes open, our little ones teach me something every day. They view life from an innocent perspective. A point-of-view that we grown-ups sometimes miss because of the doubt, regret, and fear in our lives. I'm thankful that God used our little girl to remind me to come awake!

I'm guest posting at my friend Marni's blog today! I hope you will read this little introduction and then head over to her blog for the rest of the post.
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 When Jeffrey was about a year old, he would play a game with us. We bought him a little plastic basketball set that he could play with for hours. When he first started playing with it, our sharp little boy learned quickly that all he had to do was put the little plastic ball in the little plastic hole… and Mommy, Daddy, MeMaw, or whoever else may be watching would clap loudly, cheer, and smile!

... Continue reading here: Relevant Brokenness. Then come back and leave me a comment! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!