“Be content and resigned to God's will.” - Thomas Jonathan Jackson

Today marks the 186th year that Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson was born.  He was another great and admirable Confederate General.  He believed in the Sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man.  He was quoted as saying, "My religious belief teaches me tofeel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time for my death.I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matterwhen it may overtake me. That is the way all men should live, and then all would be equally brave."  And then again, "Duty is ours, consequences are God's".  How many of us could truly say that we would feel as safe on the battle field as in bed?  Is our trust completely and fully in the powerful might of the King of kings?  "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust." - Psalm 91:1-2  Are we content and resigned to whatever God's will is for our lives?  To me, one of the greatest blessings is to be a wife and mother.  God has given me a great responsibility as the mother of 8 children, and yes, there are days that I wonder if God knew what He was doing!  But who am I to question the God of the Universe?  We have been placed on the earth at this very time and in varying situations because that is what God had planned....before the foundations of the earth!  Many people frown upon the teachings of the Sovereignty of God, but I love the fact that God had my life planned out for me before He even created me, before He created the universe!  Nothing takes God by surprise!  I am so glad that He knows me better than I know myself, that I am in His care and that He even thinks about me!  "But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me..." - Psalm 40:17  Are we content and resigned to what God's will is for our lives?  Remember what man's chief end is...to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.  It is all for His glory alone that we live our lives anyway, so let's purpose to be content!  
Soli Deo Gloria!

Happy Birthday, Robert E. Lee!

Many people celebrated MLK Day yesterday...unfortunately.  But people have been duped into thinking he was a good man.  If you want to know more, HERE is a good place to start. Anyway, we need to give tribute to men who deserve it, such as Robert E. Lee!  Hope you had a wonderful Robert E. Lee Day!

 

 

Looking back on 2009

Click on picture to enlarge

Do you ever have days like this?

you just feel plain exhausted?

Do we baptize babies?

Tonight during our evening devotions, my husband asked the question "Are the infants of such as are professing believers to be baptized?", which is question 77 in the Puritan Catechism compiled by Charles Spurgeon.  He asked our 7 year old son Reb, who emphatically said  "No!  They would drowned!"  Well...there you have the answer! 

Watch your step...you may be closer than you think!

GiveAway!!

Jasmine Baucham, Author of the Joyfully Home Blog, is giving away a copy of Homeschool Dropouts, a new video by the Botkin family.  You can read Jasmine's review of the video and enter her drawing here.  Don't miss this opportunity!  Homeschooling our children is a great responsibility and it is mandated by God, but it is also important that we instill this worldview into our children so that it won't stop with them, but that they will continue on with their children and they to their children, and so on!  May God receive all the glory Alone!

Rambling....something I'm good at!

2010!  Where did 2009 go?  It was here just a few minutes ago, then disappeared.  Yet so much has transpired in the last year, that I don't know if I can pen it all.  I still may do a photo post to recap 2009, we'll see.

We did enjoy a wonderful Christmas holiday!  Our good friends from Indiana stayed the week with us and we enjoyed their company along with my sister and her husband and kiddo's.  We had a total of 16 kids in the house!  Almost a Duggar Family Christmas!!  We did more baking this Christmas than we ever have before!  I think we had more desserts than we had food!  (but desserts are food, aren't they?)  I am so thankful for family and good friends!  God truly is good!

As I said earlier, so much has happened over the course of 2009, I really don't know where to begin.  So much, that it would be so easy to sit down and question God about what He is doing or going to do in our lives.  It has been a trying year in many ways, yet we can still see His hand at work and know that He has not forsaken us.  Time is nothing to God, yet to us it can seem like an eternity!  Many of you know we are trying to start a church, and it can wear down even the most committed of people, so please keep us in your prayers as we seek to follow God's will in our lives.  So many times we think that if we aren't being blessed financially then we aren't being blessed at all, yet there are so many other ways God blesses our lives, that we tend to overlook them when we are having money troubles.  But God is so good to us in spite of ourselves!  "But I am poor and needy; YET the Lord thinketh upon me..." ~ Psalm 40:17 (emphasis mine)  I am so glad that my life is in God's hands and that He knows and has planned every step that I take!  To Him be the glory!  May we strive to bring Him glory in everything we do through out this New Year!  Soli Deo Gloria!