The book of James, lots of leaves, and my little blessings

Hello friends!  It's been a while and things have been super busy around here.  It has been a hard two weeks for me.  Nothing has "happened" per se, but a lot going on and the winter "blah" has set in.  Our times with the Lord have been excellent and family circumstances changing (for the good) so we feel as if Satan is doing what He does best...confusion.  I love the holidays but I feel as if Satan tends to use it to distract us when we get too "busy."  That I don't like.  The simpler things are for me, the better.  I decided it would be less stressful for me if I did most of my shopping early this year, so I am almost done with my Christmas shopping...that's a plus!

It is not by coincidence that the Lord had me reading through James the last two days.  WOW...like drinking through a fire hydrant.  Like a dagger to the heart and relief to the soul all at the same time beginning with verse 2, 

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know htat the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.  BUT when he does ask, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind."  James 1:2-6

 Wow ok Lord...you got my attention.  You should see my Bible, it is underlined, highlighted so much it would give you a headache.  James goes on to say all of these nuggets of truth....

• Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, 
• Every good and perfect gift is from above, 
• We should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 
• Don't merely listen to the word but be doers, 
• Keeping a tight reign on your tongue, 
• Love your neighbor as yourself, 
• Faith if it is not accompanied by action, is dead, 
• We don't have because we don't ask, 
• Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God, 
• Submit yourselves to God, resist the devil,
• Anyone who knows the good he ought to do yet doesn't do it, sins,
• Be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near,
• Let your "yes" be "yes," and your "no" be "no",
• The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective,
• The beginning of Saul and Barnabus,
• Peter's miraculous escape from prison.,
• Herod is struck down by an angel and was eaten by worms and died.

Iva May then discusses how we tend to want to "bail-out" when things get tough.  "Bailing out has become a defining characteristic of American culture, but for followers of Jesus Christ, bailing out isn't an option.  With every bailout, you become weak-willed wimps, pathetic, and remain infantile in your faith and experience of God.  Persevering through difficulties and trials matures believers.  God uses the tough stuff to toughen our stuffing (our internal resolve to become mature believers).  The path to maturity leads through fields of disappointment, hurt, and sometimes, unbearable pain...God calls us to persevere, not bail out!"  

WHEW!  But God sure is good and speaks to me through His Word.  And it refreshes my spirit every time!

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Ok...really changing gears here.

I haven't had good stockings since Lucy joined our family and have put off getting personalized ones for years.  But I decided I was not going to wait until the last minute this year and I bit the bullet and ordered them.  I LOVE the way they turned out.   I looked for weeks and could find nothing I liked other than these below and I LOVE them!  I bought them off of Etsy from ZaneyJanes.

I can't wait to hang them up this weekend when we put up our Christmas tree!!!!

Wow things have really changed around here.  The pretty Fall leaves didn't stick around for long and they have since turned brown and alot of them blanket our grass.

Cool that God knows the exact number of leaves that are just on my lawn just like the grains of sand near the ocean!

Now some pics of the kiddos...

I came around the corner to find Lucy like this....made me laugh!  She had put her swimsuit on over her clothes.  I don't think we will be going swimming anytime soon!

 Our friends Story and Meila came over yesterday and they had gotten this hat out of Karis' "special drawer."  It is the hat Jay wore during my C-section.  Hilarious!

Meila loving on Everett....

Last night right before dark, the sky got really dark blue but the sun was still shining through the clouds and it was a beautiful reminder that God is in control. :)

This is the difference a week makes.  The pic on the left is last week and the one on the right is this week.  All those pretty Fall leaves are now on the ground. 

Looking forward to camping out this weekend, putting up our Christmas tree, and spending time as a church family celebrating Thanksgiving.  Also looking forward to seeing family over the next week for Thanksgiving. Oh and only 2 more weeks until my half-marathon.  Eeeeekkkkk!!!  I need to get to runnin' folks!