The Third Week of Advent
Sunday Isaiah 42:5-9
Monday 1 Kings 18:17-24, 36-39
Tuesday Isaiah 2:4; 7:14; 9:6-7
Wednesday Jeremiah 23:5-6; 31:31-34
Thursday Daniel 6:10-23
Friday Nehemiah 4:15-23
Saturday Luke 1:5-17
Monday, December 17, 2007
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Second Week of Advent
Second Week of Advent
Sunday Genesis 35:9-15
Monday Genesis 37:1-4
Tuesday Exodus 20:1-17
Wednesday Ruth 1:15-18
Thursday I Samuel 16:1-13
Friday II Samuel 5:1-5
Sorry I haven't kept this up-to-date this week. I will try harder. :)
Sunday Genesis 35:9-15
Monday Genesis 37:1-4
Tuesday Exodus 20:1-17
Wednesday Ruth 1:15-18
Thursday I Samuel 16:1-13
Friday II Samuel 5:1-5
Sorry I haven't kept this up-to-date this week. I will try harder. :)
Thursday, December 6, 2007
ADVENT week1 Wednesday & Thursday's Readings
Genesis 6:11-22, 8:6-12
6:11-22
6he was sorry that he had ever made them and put them on the earth. He was so filled with regret 7that he said, “I will wipe out these people I have created, and also the animals and the birds, because I am sorry that I made any of them.” 8But the Lord was pleases with Noah.
Noah
9-10This is the story of Noah. He had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Noah had no faults and was the only good man of his time. He lived in fellowship with God, 11but everyone else was will in God’s sight, and violence had spread everywhere. 12God looked at the world and saw that it was evil, for the people were all living evil lives.
13God said to Noah, “I have decided to put an end to all mankind. I will destroy them completely, because the world is full of their violent deeds. 14 Build a boat for yourself out of good timber; make rooms in it and cover it with tar inside and out. 15Make it 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. 16Make a roof for the boat and leave a space of 18 inched between the roof and the sides. Build it with three decks and put a door in the side. 17I am going to send a flood on the earth to destroy every living being. Everything on the earth wildlife, 18but I will make a covenant with you. Go into the bat with your wife, your sons and their wives. 19-20Take into the boat with you a male and a female of every kind of animal and of every kind of bird, in order to keep them alive. 21Take along all kinds of food for you and for them.” 22Noahdid everything that God commanded.
8:6-12
8After forty days Noah opened a window 7and sent out a raven. It did not come back, but kept flying around until the water was completely gone. 8Meanwhile, Noah sent out a dove to see if the water had gone down, 9but since the water still covered all the land, the dove did not find a place to light. It flew back to the boat, and Noah reached out and took it in. 10He waited another seven days and sent out the dove again. 11It returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive leaf in its beak. So Noah knew that the water had gone down. 12Then he waited another seven days and sent out the dove once more; this time it did not come back.
Thursday week 1
Genesis 12:1-7, 13:2-18
The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father’s home, and go to a land that I am going to show you. 2I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.
3I will bless those who bless you,
But I will course those who curse you.
And through you I will bless all the nations.”
4When Abram was seventy-five years old, he started out from Haran, as the Lord had told him to do; and Lot went with him. 7Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the wealth and all the slaved they had acquired in Haran, and they started out for the land of Canaan.
When they arrived in Canaan, 6Abram traveled through the land until he came to the sacred tree of Moreh, the holy place at Shechem. (At that time the Canaanited were still living in the land.)
13:2-18
2Abram was a very rich man, with sheep, goat, and cattle, as well as silver and gold. 3Then he left there and moved from place to place, going toward Bethel. He reached the place between Bethel and Ai where hi had camped before 4asn had built and altar. There he worshiped the Lord.
5Lot alos had sheep, goats, and cattle, as well as his own family and servants. 6And so there was not enough pasture land for the two of them to stay together, because they had too many animals. 7So quarrels broke out between the men who took care of Abram’s animals and those who tool care of Lot’s animals. (At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were still living in the land.)
8Then Abram said to Lot, “We are relatives, and your men and my men shouldn’t any part of the land you want. You go one way, and I’ll go the other.”
10Lot looked around and saw that the whole Jorden Valley, all the way to Zoar, had plenty of water, like the Garden of the Lord or like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord had destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11So Lot chose the whole Jorden Valley for himself and moved away toward the east. That is how the two men parted. 12Abram stayed in the land of Canaan, and Lot settled among the cities in the valley and camped near Sodom, 13whose people were wicked and sinned against the Lord.
Abram Moves to Hebron
14After Lot had left, the Lord said to Abram, “From where you are, look carefully in all directions. 15I am going to give you and your descendents all the land that you see, and it will be yours forever. 16I am going to give you so many descendents that no one will be able to count them all; it would be as easy to count all the specks of dust on earth! 17Now, go and look over the whole land, because I am going to give it all to you.” 18So Abram moved his camp and settled near the sacred trees of Mamre at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the Lord.
6:11-22
6he was sorry that he had ever made them and put them on the earth. He was so filled with regret 7that he said, “I will wipe out these people I have created, and also the animals and the birds, because I am sorry that I made any of them.” 8But the Lord was pleases with Noah.
Noah
9-10This is the story of Noah. He had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Noah had no faults and was the only good man of his time. He lived in fellowship with God, 11but everyone else was will in God’s sight, and violence had spread everywhere. 12God looked at the world and saw that it was evil, for the people were all living evil lives.
13God said to Noah, “I have decided to put an end to all mankind. I will destroy them completely, because the world is full of their violent deeds. 14 Build a boat for yourself out of good timber; make rooms in it and cover it with tar inside and out. 15Make it 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. 16Make a roof for the boat and leave a space of 18 inched between the roof and the sides. Build it with three decks and put a door in the side. 17I am going to send a flood on the earth to destroy every living being. Everything on the earth wildlife, 18but I will make a covenant with you. Go into the bat with your wife, your sons and their wives. 19-20Take into the boat with you a male and a female of every kind of animal and of every kind of bird, in order to keep them alive. 21Take along all kinds of food for you and for them.” 22Noahdid everything that God commanded.
8:6-12
8After forty days Noah opened a window 7and sent out a raven. It did not come back, but kept flying around until the water was completely gone. 8Meanwhile, Noah sent out a dove to see if the water had gone down, 9but since the water still covered all the land, the dove did not find a place to light. It flew back to the boat, and Noah reached out and took it in. 10He waited another seven days and sent out the dove again. 11It returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive leaf in its beak. So Noah knew that the water had gone down. 12Then he waited another seven days and sent out the dove once more; this time it did not come back.
Thursday week 1
Genesis 12:1-7, 13:2-18
The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father’s home, and go to a land that I am going to show you. 2I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.
3I will bless those who bless you,
But I will course those who curse you.
And through you I will bless all the nations.”
4When Abram was seventy-five years old, he started out from Haran, as the Lord had told him to do; and Lot went with him. 7Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the wealth and all the slaved they had acquired in Haran, and they started out for the land of Canaan.
When they arrived in Canaan, 6Abram traveled through the land until he came to the sacred tree of Moreh, the holy place at Shechem. (At that time the Canaanited were still living in the land.)
13:2-18
2Abram was a very rich man, with sheep, goat, and cattle, as well as silver and gold. 3Then he left there and moved from place to place, going toward Bethel. He reached the place between Bethel and Ai where hi had camped before 4asn had built and altar. There he worshiped the Lord.
5Lot alos had sheep, goats, and cattle, as well as his own family and servants. 6And so there was not enough pasture land for the two of them to stay together, because they had too many animals. 7So quarrels broke out between the men who took care of Abram’s animals and those who tool care of Lot’s animals. (At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were still living in the land.)
8Then Abram said to Lot, “We are relatives, and your men and my men shouldn’t any part of the land you want. You go one way, and I’ll go the other.”
10Lot looked around and saw that the whole Jorden Valley, all the way to Zoar, had plenty of water, like the Garden of the Lord or like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord had destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11So Lot chose the whole Jorden Valley for himself and moved away toward the east. That is how the two men parted. 12Abram stayed in the land of Canaan, and Lot settled among the cities in the valley and camped near Sodom, 13whose people were wicked and sinned against the Lord.
Abram Moves to Hebron
14After Lot had left, the Lord said to Abram, “From where you are, look carefully in all directions. 15I am going to give you and your descendents all the land that you see, and it will be yours forever. 16I am going to give you so many descendents that no one will be able to count them all; it would be as easy to count all the specks of dust on earth! 17Now, go and look over the whole land, because I am going to give it all to you.” 18So Abram moved his camp and settled near the sacred trees of Mamre at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the Lord.
Have a Blessed day!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Advent
This past Sunday was the beginning of Advent and this year I am determined to keep in the season. So we will not be celebrating Christmas UNTIL Christmas! So to help our family focused on the coming of Christ we are trying something new. We are going to do a Jesse Tree. I know this is not something “new” however it is something new to us. We participated in it when we were in formation in Texas but have never actively done one ourselves. So we are embarking on a new challenge and we invite you to join us this year.
Here are the readings for this week:
Sunday 1 Samuel 16:1-13
Monday 1 Genesis 1:24-28
Tuesday Genesis 3:1-24
Wednesday 6:11-22, 8:6-12
Thursday Genesis 12:1-7, 13:6-18
Friday Genesis 22:1-14
Saturday Genesis 27: 41-28:22
Here are the first three days typed out for you to read.
Sunday week 1
1 Samuel 16:1-13
1The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you go on grieving over Saul: I have rejected him as king of Israel/ bur now get some olive oil and go to Bethlehem; to a man named Jesse, because I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”
2”How can I do that:” Samuel asked. “If Saul hears about it, he will kill me!”
The Lord answered, “Take a calf with you and say that you are there to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. 3Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will tell you what to do. You will anoint as king the man I tell you to.”
4Samuel did what the Lord told him to do and went to Bethlehem, where the city leaders came trembling to meet him and asked, “Is this a peaceful visit, seer?”
5”Yes,” he answered. “I have come to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me.” He also told Jesse and his sons to purify themselves, and he incited them to the sacrifice.
6when they arrived, Samuel saw Jesse’s son Eliab and said to himself, “This man standing here in the Lord’s presence is surely the one he has chosen.” 7But the Lord said to him, “Pay no attention to how tall and handsome he is. I have rejected him, because I do not judge as man judges. Man looks at the outward appearance, but I look at the heart.”
8Then Jesse called his son Abinadab and brought him to Samuel. But Samuel said, “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen him either.” 9Jesse then brought Shammah. “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen him either,” Samuel said. 10In this way Jesse brought seven of his sons to Samuel. And Samuel said to him, “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen any of these.” 11Then he asked him, “Do you have any more sons?”
Jesse answered, “There is still the youngest, but he is out taking care of the sheep.”
“Tell him to come here,” Samuel said. “We won’t offer the sacrifice until he comes.” 12So Jesse sent for him. He was a handsome, healthy young man, and his eyes sparkled. The Lord said to Samuel, “This is the one—anoint him!” 13Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David in front of his brothers. Immediately the spirit of the Lord took control of David and was with him from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
Monday week 1
Genesis 1: 24-28
24Then God commanded, “Let the earth produce all kinds of animal life: domestic and wild, large and small:--and it was done. 25So God made them all, and he was pleased with what he saw.
26Then God said, “And now we will make human beings; they will be like us and resemble us. They will have power over the fish, the birds and all animals, domestic and wild, large and small.” 27So God created human beings, making them to be like himself. He created them male and female, 28blessed them, and said, “Have many children, so that your decedents will live all over the earth and bring it under their control. I am putting you in charge of the fish, the birds, and all the wild animals.
Tuesday week 1
Genesis 3: 1-24
The Disobedience of Man
Now the snake was the most cunning animal that the Lord God had made. The snake asked the woman, “Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?”
2”We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden,” the woman answered, 3 “except the tree in the middle of it. God told us not to eat the fruit of that tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die.”
4The snake replied, “That’s not true; you will not die. 5God said that because he knows that when you eat it, you will be like God and know what is good and what is bad.”
6The woman saw how beautiful the tree was and how good its fruits would be to eat, and she thought how wonderful it would be to become wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, and he also ate it. 7As soon as they had eaten it, they were given understanding and realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and covered themselves.
8That evening they heard the Lord God walking in the garden, and they hid from him among the trees. 9But the Lord God called out to the man, “Where are you?”
10He answered, “I heard you in the garden; I was afraid and hid from you, because I was naked.”
11”Who told you that you were naked?” God asked. “Did you eat the fruit that I told you not to eat?”
12 The man answered, “The woman you put here with me gave me the fruit, and I ate it.”
13 The Lord God asked the woman, “Why did you so this?”
She replied, “The snake tricked me into eating it.”
God Pronounced Judgment
14Then the Lord God said to the snake, “You will be punished for this; you alone of all the animals must bear this curse: From now on you will crawl on your belly, and you will have to eat dust as long as you live. 15I will make you and the woman hate each other; her offspring and yours will always be enemies. Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite their heel.”
16And he said to the woman, “I will increase you trouble in pregnancy and your pain in giving birth. In spite of this, you will still have desire for you husband, yet you will be subject to him.”
17And he said to the man, “You listened to your wife and ate the fruit which I told you not to eat. Because of what you have done, the ground will be under a curse. You will have to work hard all your life to make it produce enough food for you. 18It will produce weeds and thorns, and you will have to eat wild plants. 19You will have to work hard and sweat to make the soil produce anything, until you go back to the soil from which you were formed. You were made form soil, and you will become soil again.”
20Adam named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all human beings. 21And the Lord God made cloths out of animal skins for Adam and his wife, and he clothed them.
Adam and Eve Are Sent Out of the Garden
22Then the Lord God said, “Now the man has become like one of us and has knowledge of what is good and what is bad. He must not be allowed to take fruit from the tree that gives life, eat it, and live forever.” 23So the Lord God sent him out of the Garden of Eden and made him cultivate the soil from which he had been formed. 24Then at the east side of the garden he put living creatures and a flaming sword which turned in all directions. This was to keep anyone from coming near the tree that gives life.
Here are the readings for this week:
Sunday 1 Samuel 16:1-13
Monday 1 Genesis 1:24-28
Tuesday Genesis 3:1-24
Wednesday 6:11-22, 8:6-12
Thursday Genesis 12:1-7, 13:6-18
Friday Genesis 22:1-14
Saturday Genesis 27: 41-28:22
Here are the first three days typed out for you to read.
Sunday week 1
1 Samuel 16:1-13
1The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you go on grieving over Saul: I have rejected him as king of Israel/ bur now get some olive oil and go to Bethlehem; to a man named Jesse, because I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”
2”How can I do that:” Samuel asked. “If Saul hears about it, he will kill me!”
The Lord answered, “Take a calf with you and say that you are there to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. 3Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will tell you what to do. You will anoint as king the man I tell you to.”
4Samuel did what the Lord told him to do and went to Bethlehem, where the city leaders came trembling to meet him and asked, “Is this a peaceful visit, seer?”
5”Yes,” he answered. “I have come to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me.” He also told Jesse and his sons to purify themselves, and he incited them to the sacrifice.
6when they arrived, Samuel saw Jesse’s son Eliab and said to himself, “This man standing here in the Lord’s presence is surely the one he has chosen.” 7But the Lord said to him, “Pay no attention to how tall and handsome he is. I have rejected him, because I do not judge as man judges. Man looks at the outward appearance, but I look at the heart.”
8Then Jesse called his son Abinadab and brought him to Samuel. But Samuel said, “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen him either.” 9Jesse then brought Shammah. “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen him either,” Samuel said. 10In this way Jesse brought seven of his sons to Samuel. And Samuel said to him, “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen any of these.” 11Then he asked him, “Do you have any more sons?”
Jesse answered, “There is still the youngest, but he is out taking care of the sheep.”
“Tell him to come here,” Samuel said. “We won’t offer the sacrifice until he comes.” 12So Jesse sent for him. He was a handsome, healthy young man, and his eyes sparkled. The Lord said to Samuel, “This is the one—anoint him!” 13Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David in front of his brothers. Immediately the spirit of the Lord took control of David and was with him from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
Monday week 1
Genesis 1: 24-28
24Then God commanded, “Let the earth produce all kinds of animal life: domestic and wild, large and small:--and it was done. 25So God made them all, and he was pleased with what he saw.
26Then God said, “And now we will make human beings; they will be like us and resemble us. They will have power over the fish, the birds and all animals, domestic and wild, large and small.” 27So God created human beings, making them to be like himself. He created them male and female, 28blessed them, and said, “Have many children, so that your decedents will live all over the earth and bring it under their control. I am putting you in charge of the fish, the birds, and all the wild animals.
Tuesday week 1
Genesis 3: 1-24
The Disobedience of Man
Now the snake was the most cunning animal that the Lord God had made. The snake asked the woman, “Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?”
2”We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden,” the woman answered, 3 “except the tree in the middle of it. God told us not to eat the fruit of that tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die.”
4The snake replied, “That’s not true; you will not die. 5God said that because he knows that when you eat it, you will be like God and know what is good and what is bad.”
6The woman saw how beautiful the tree was and how good its fruits would be to eat, and she thought how wonderful it would be to become wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, and he also ate it. 7As soon as they had eaten it, they were given understanding and realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and covered themselves.
8That evening they heard the Lord God walking in the garden, and they hid from him among the trees. 9But the Lord God called out to the man, “Where are you?”
10He answered, “I heard you in the garden; I was afraid and hid from you, because I was naked.”
11”Who told you that you were naked?” God asked. “Did you eat the fruit that I told you not to eat?”
12 The man answered, “The woman you put here with me gave me the fruit, and I ate it.”
13 The Lord God asked the woman, “Why did you so this?”
She replied, “The snake tricked me into eating it.”
God Pronounced Judgment
14Then the Lord God said to the snake, “You will be punished for this; you alone of all the animals must bear this curse: From now on you will crawl on your belly, and you will have to eat dust as long as you live. 15I will make you and the woman hate each other; her offspring and yours will always be enemies. Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite their heel.”
16And he said to the woman, “I will increase you trouble in pregnancy and your pain in giving birth. In spite of this, you will still have desire for you husband, yet you will be subject to him.”
17And he said to the man, “You listened to your wife and ate the fruit which I told you not to eat. Because of what you have done, the ground will be under a curse. You will have to work hard all your life to make it produce enough food for you. 18It will produce weeds and thorns, and you will have to eat wild plants. 19You will have to work hard and sweat to make the soil produce anything, until you go back to the soil from which you were formed. You were made form soil, and you will become soil again.”
20Adam named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all human beings. 21And the Lord God made cloths out of animal skins for Adam and his wife, and he clothed them.
Adam and Eve Are Sent Out of the Garden
22Then the Lord God said, “Now the man has become like one of us and has knowledge of what is good and what is bad. He must not be allowed to take fruit from the tree that gives life, eat it, and live forever.” 23So the Lord God sent him out of the Garden of Eden and made him cultivate the soil from which he had been formed. 24Then at the east side of the garden he put living creatures and a flaming sword which turned in all directions. This was to keep anyone from coming near the tree that gives life.
I pray that this Advent season brings you much peace.
God Bless, Melinda
Monday, November 5, 2007
Picture Updates
Back of the SOLT house on 10-30-07.
Now 11-2-07, getting closer!
Inside the chapel. The stairway to the meeting room (main floor of the house).
Now 11-2-07, getting closer!
Inside the chapel. The stairway to the meeting room (main floor of the house).The freshly painted kitchen. 
Painting before the cabinets and counters leaves room for some teenage creativity.
This is just a test wall in the dinning room.
Ok, time for a little story about an apple less pie. There once was a little girl who helped make an apple pie……… she ate a piece and it was SO GOOD she wanted more. She used her manners and asked….she was told that dad hadn’t had any yet and we should save the “pie” for him. Do you dare ask why does she say “pie”, well this little girl thought mom said no more “pie” she didn’t say I couldn’t eat “the apples”. And there you have the story behind the apple less pie. 
Don’t worry dad still enjoyed the apple less pie that was left for him. ;)
Painting before the cabinets and counters leaves room for some teenage creativity.This is just a test wall in the dinning room.
Ok, time for a little story about an apple less pie. There once was a little girl who helped make an apple pie……… she ate a piece and it was SO GOOD she wanted more. She used her manners and asked….she was told that dad hadn’t had any yet and we should save the “pie” for him. Do you dare ask why does she say “pie”, well this little girl thought mom said no more “pie” she didn’t say I couldn’t eat “the apples”. And there you have the story behind the apple less pie. Don’t worry dad still enjoyed the apple less pie that was left for him. ;)It's Been A LONG Time!
Ok, I know it has been a real long time since I have put anything up on this Blog. I will only say sorry and I will try to do better. Thank you to those who still keep checking in. (PS if you leave me a comment or two and let me know you are there I might be more motivated to do more.)
There has been a lot going on here lately, mostly school. It is fun but a lot of work. I think they had the most fun learning more about some of the saints in preparation for all Saints Day. I hope you enjoy, the rest of this post will be pictures. Enjoy!
St. Nicholas
St. Catherine 
St. Bernadette 
Our Saintly crew!
(As you can see it’s hard to get a good picture of St. Agnes.)
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Thursday, August 30, 2007
ADOPTION :)
Ok, as most of you know or can tell by our picture, we have adopted three beautiful children. They were all very young (babies) when we brought them home. So as far as they remember we are the only “family” they know. However, as children get older they start to notice differences, namely skin color in our case, and start asking questions. So naturally we answer with honest loving answers, example “Mom is my other mom pretty?” Answer “Yes, she is very pretty, a lot like you.” Then she smiles. Of course she looks a lot like her birth mom so it was an honest answer. Anyway, sometime you just get stuck and don’t know what to say and what not so say and just pray that God guides you in what His plans are for you to say and how to approach what a special gift they are and that no matter what it was ultimately His plan for them to be in this family.
That being said I want to share with you a story God provided for the children and me. Let me back up for a minute and give you a little more history, we home school and started three weeks ago, when coloring people’s skin color started to matter, “she is brown like me mom not yellow like you”….Keep in mind all of these questions have been arising in the past few weeks. One of our supplemental story times comes from this wonderful book by Nancy Nicholson called Devotional Stories for Little Folks. (Side note, it is a great book!) God knew we needed help so here is what He shared with us on our lunch break yesterday. Now I want to share with you.
Child of the Promise
Dad was home and leading devotions when he suddenly asked, “Who can tell me what a covenant is?”
Waving his hand wildly, and bouncing up and down, Greg blurted, “I know! I know what’s a gumamint!”
Meg giggled, and Seth rolled his eyes.
Laughing, Dad said, “Not government, Greg, but covenant.”
Isn’t it a kind of promise, Dad?” offered Seth.
“Yes! It’s a very special kind of promise. And when God makes a covenant, or a promise, He always keeps it.”
Dad opened his well-worn Bible. “Listen to God’s words: “This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel……says the Lord. I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
“Your mother and I want to tell you about a special promise, or covenant, that we are making as a family. You are going to have a new sister, and we are making a promise that by adoption, she is going to be “our people.” She’s going to be a part of our family forever.”
“Ya-hoooo!” shouted Meg, hopping around the living room with excitement. “Seth and Greg have each other to be brothers, but I’ve never had a sister. We can play with dolls and have tea parties, and she can share my room.’
“Yeah, and we can chase you both with frogs,” teased Seth. “When do we get to start collecting frogs, Dad?”
“No frogs just yet,” Mother warned, “but lots of prayers, and love, and understanding. She’ll be home in two weeks.”
“Where is my new sister?” asked Greg. “What’s her name? Does she have a bike?”
“Her name is Rebecca, she doesn’t have a bike, and right now she is living in another state, with a foster family,” answered Dad. “For all three years of her life, she has been moved form one place to another, but has never had a real home or a real Father and Mother. Your mom and I have been praying about this for a long time. We believe that Our Lord has chosen Rebecca to be part of our family.”
“But how can she be part of our family if she wasn’t already born in our family?” Meg looked a little uncertain.
“Don’t you remember that Greg wasn’t born in our family?”
“Oh, I guess I forgot because I was little when he came. I just know he’s my brother just like Seth. When we’re happy, and when we get mad at each other, we’re still brothers and sister first.”
“Brothers and sisters for better or worse, a little like this?” —Mother pointed to her wedding ring.
“Where Daddy and I part of the same family before we got married?”
“Oh, no. You didn’t even live in the same state when you were kids,” Seth responded.
“That’s right,” replied Dad as he reached for Mother’s hand. “But when we became husband and wife in the Sacrament of Matrimony, we made a covenant with each other. That covenant was a special promise to be husband and wife, one family, forever.”
“Mommy adopted Daddy?” marveled Greg ad he worked his fingers through a new hole in his shirt.
“It’s sort like this, Greg,” Seth said slowly, “I guess that God has different ways of bring families together, but every family has God as its Father. And then He makes our families strong by helping us keep our promises to Him and to each other.”
“Yes, I think that’s pretty close, Seth,” Dad nodded. “You notice that the Bible verse ser read said that God would put His laws in our minds and hearts. When we know His laws, and that His love guides us, it is easier to do what is right and keep our promise to each other.”
Mother tugged Dad’s hand and reminded him, “Don’t forget that we think of the Church as a Mother who teaches us about our Heavenly Father. And Holy Scripture tells us that we are all adopted into His family.”
“I get it,” cried Meg. “Rebecca is going to be adopted twice. We are adopting her, and God is adopting her, too. She will be a Peterson, and she’ll be a child of God—and a “child of the promise.””
“Oh, boy!” Greg clapped. “Can I ride her bike?”
New Vocabulary
covenant: a very special type of forever promise
adoption: a way of bring someone completely and forever into a new family, just the same if they had been born into that family
“this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write then on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people…For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” Heb. 8: 10 & 12
“…God sent his Son…so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So through God you are no longer a slave but a son….” Gal. 4: 4
I hope you enjoyed this as much as I we did. Have a great weekend!
That being said I want to share with you a story God provided for the children and me. Let me back up for a minute and give you a little more history, we home school and started three weeks ago, when coloring people’s skin color started to matter, “she is brown like me mom not yellow like you”….Keep in mind all of these questions have been arising in the past few weeks. One of our supplemental story times comes from this wonderful book by Nancy Nicholson called Devotional Stories for Little Folks. (Side note, it is a great book!) God knew we needed help so here is what He shared with us on our lunch break yesterday. Now I want to share with you.
Child of the Promise
Dad was home and leading devotions when he suddenly asked, “Who can tell me what a covenant is?”
Waving his hand wildly, and bouncing up and down, Greg blurted, “I know! I know what’s a gumamint!”
Meg giggled, and Seth rolled his eyes.
Laughing, Dad said, “Not government, Greg, but covenant.”
Isn’t it a kind of promise, Dad?” offered Seth.
“Yes! It’s a very special kind of promise. And when God makes a covenant, or a promise, He always keeps it.”
Dad opened his well-worn Bible. “Listen to God’s words: “This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel……says the Lord. I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
“Your mother and I want to tell you about a special promise, or covenant, that we are making as a family. You are going to have a new sister, and we are making a promise that by adoption, she is going to be “our people.” She’s going to be a part of our family forever.”
“Ya-hoooo!” shouted Meg, hopping around the living room with excitement. “Seth and Greg have each other to be brothers, but I’ve never had a sister. We can play with dolls and have tea parties, and she can share my room.’
“Yeah, and we can chase you both with frogs,” teased Seth. “When do we get to start collecting frogs, Dad?”
“No frogs just yet,” Mother warned, “but lots of prayers, and love, and understanding. She’ll be home in two weeks.”
“Where is my new sister?” asked Greg. “What’s her name? Does she have a bike?”
“Her name is Rebecca, she doesn’t have a bike, and right now she is living in another state, with a foster family,” answered Dad. “For all three years of her life, she has been moved form one place to another, but has never had a real home or a real Father and Mother. Your mom and I have been praying about this for a long time. We believe that Our Lord has chosen Rebecca to be part of our family.”
“But how can she be part of our family if she wasn’t already born in our family?” Meg looked a little uncertain.
“Don’t you remember that Greg wasn’t born in our family?”
“Oh, I guess I forgot because I was little when he came. I just know he’s my brother just like Seth. When we’re happy, and when we get mad at each other, we’re still brothers and sister first.”
“Brothers and sisters for better or worse, a little like this?” —Mother pointed to her wedding ring.
“Where Daddy and I part of the same family before we got married?”
“Oh, no. You didn’t even live in the same state when you were kids,” Seth responded.
“That’s right,” replied Dad as he reached for Mother’s hand. “But when we became husband and wife in the Sacrament of Matrimony, we made a covenant with each other. That covenant was a special promise to be husband and wife, one family, forever.”
“Mommy adopted Daddy?” marveled Greg ad he worked his fingers through a new hole in his shirt.
“It’s sort like this, Greg,” Seth said slowly, “I guess that God has different ways of bring families together, but every family has God as its Father. And then He makes our families strong by helping us keep our promises to Him and to each other.”
“Yes, I think that’s pretty close, Seth,” Dad nodded. “You notice that the Bible verse ser read said that God would put His laws in our minds and hearts. When we know His laws, and that His love guides us, it is easier to do what is right and keep our promise to each other.”
Mother tugged Dad’s hand and reminded him, “Don’t forget that we think of the Church as a Mother who teaches us about our Heavenly Father. And Holy Scripture tells us that we are all adopted into His family.”
“I get it,” cried Meg. “Rebecca is going to be adopted twice. We are adopting her, and God is adopting her, too. She will be a Peterson, and she’ll be a child of God—and a “child of the promise.””
“Oh, boy!” Greg clapped. “Can I ride her bike?”
New Vocabulary
covenant: a very special type of forever promise
adoption: a way of bring someone completely and forever into a new family, just the same if they had been born into that family
“this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write then on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people…For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” Heb. 8: 10 & 12
“…God sent his Son…so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So through God you are no longer a slave but a son….” Gal. 4: 4
I hope you enjoyed this as much as I we did. Have a great weekend!
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Ok, I know it has been a really long time since I updated this but here we go. Summer was long, busy, and fun. We visited my mom in Indiana for a week. At the same time we visited Jim and Amy and boys, one of Mike’s older boys and family. That was real fun. It was neat to see how well the kids got along and how much Aunt Agnes looks like her nephew Jacob. Aren’t they cute? 
Then we were home for 5 days and headed to Texas for the SOLT assembly. That was awesome! It was like a great big family reunion and retreat all in one. The kids had a wonderful time.
This was from a song/skit the kids did.
Santanna and her Godmother!
Then we were home for 5 days and headed to Texas for the SOLT assembly. That was awesome! It was like a great big family reunion and retreat all in one. The kids had a wonderful time.
This was from a song/skit the kids did.Santanna and her Godmother!Don't they look happy too see each other.
While we were in Texas we headed south and visit my Aunt Joyce for a few days. We enjoyed relaxing and visiting her. It was a much needed rest after the assembly and what better place to relax than to do so with family and enjoy them.
The week after we returned we started school back up. Everyone is enjoying it so far and doing well. I have to say that it is much more exhausting for me since all 7 of them are schooling this year. The little ones are doing very well and seem to be making great progress. Yippy!
Here are some pictures for you to enjoy.
While we were in Texas we headed south and visit my Aunt Joyce for a few days. We enjoyed relaxing and visiting her. It was a much needed rest after the assembly and what better place to relax than to do so with family and enjoy them.
The week after we returned we started school back up. Everyone is enjoying it so far and doing well. I have to say that it is much more exhausting for me since all 7 of them are schooling this year. The little ones are doing very well and seem to be making great progress. Yippy!
Here are some pictures for you to enjoy.
Guess who turned 12 this summer.....
Hmmm, I wonder if we have a look-a-like in the house. What do you think? Do you see the resemblances 
Hmmm, I wonder if we have a look-a-like in the house. What do you think? Do you see the resemblances Tuesday, June 26, 2007
The House Is Here!!!
Well they delivered the priests house today! That was such a neat thing to witness. I am not good at taking pictures but here are a few.
Here it is going onto the property. Then below they are lining it up onto the spot that it will set.
Here they are building temporary “braces” (ok, I really don’t know what they are called) to hold the house. Then they remove the wheels. That was neat looking.
Last but not least is a picture of our professional photographer up on top of the house.
Here they are building temporary “braces” (ok, I really don’t know what they are called) to hold the house. Then they remove the wheels. That was neat looking.
Last but not least is a picture of our professional photographer up on top of the house.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
What's New??
There hasn’t been much going on around here. Well I guess putting your house on the market counts for something. Yes, that’s right we are planning on moving if God wills the sale of our house. We will see how it turns out and keep you posted. If you know anyone interested here is a link:
The only other thing we have been doing is visiting some local parks. We first went to Dauset Trails Nature Center then to Indian Springs State Park. They are both located in Flovilla GA. Both were nice and I am sure we will visit them again before the summer is over. That is about all that has been going on here.
Here are some pictures we have taken lately.
Big difference!
What a blessing to get on Trinity Sunday don't you think? And they were the only flowers on the bush. :)
By the way if you haven't signed my "Guest Map" on the left please take just a few to do it. The kids would love to see who all is reading the Blog (and where you are from) and so would we! Thank you!
The only other thing we have been doing is visiting some local parks. We first went to Dauset Trails Nature Center then to Indian Springs State Park. They are both located in Flovilla GA. Both were nice and I am sure we will visit them again before the summer is over. That is about all that has been going on here.
Here are some pictures we have taken lately.
Big difference!
What a blessing to get on Trinity Sunday don't you think? And they were the only flowers on the bush. :)
By the way if you haven't signed my "Guest Map" on the left please take just a few to do it. The kids would love to see who all is reading the Blog (and where you are from) and so would we! Thank you!
Friday, June 1, 2007
Building Has Started!
We are so excited to see earth starting to be moved around. For those who don’t know we are helping here at the SOLT community to build an apostolic house for a priest. We hope a priest will be assigned sometime this fall.
Here are some of the pictures from the last few days.
This is the difference in the driveway from yesterday to today.
This is where the house will set.
Here are some of the pictures from the last few days.
This is the difference in the driveway from yesterday to today.
This is where the house will set.
Friday, May 11, 2007
More Fun Pictures
“The house is where everyone can live.”
Thomas drew this picture yesterday. There is a tree (right in front of his hand) the upper right side of the picture is Heaven with St. Michael up there. The pink swirl under his hand is the Devil falling down to Hell, last at the bottom right side is Hell.
I thought that was very insightful for him to get all of that. We have been talking about creation and about the fallen angel. He has had lots of questions. I think he has been listening even when he doesn’t sit still. It is always such a wonderful thing to have your kids express what they have learned.
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Trying something new!
We thought since we were no longer in Haiti or going to be there that we would start a fresh. I will try to update regularly, but in reality it may be awhile in between entries. This will mainly be to keep those who are interested up-to-date on what is going on in our life.
Since some of you are returning to follow (grandparents…) I will try to recap the last several weeks we have been down.
From the oldest news to most current: April 9th Kiara celebrated her 4th birthday. She had a blast even though she was a little under the weather. We celebrated with brownies and ice cream. I think her favorite part was getting a new scooter from her Godparents. They are very in tune with the fact that she is an out doors “extreme” sports kind of girl. Yes I know most of you wouldn’t consider a scooter “extreme” sport but you have never seen this girl on one before. She puts a whole new out look on how one is to ride a scooter.
Let me see what else… well Thomas did his own reenactment of Jesus carrying His cross. As you can see he was truly creative and took it very seriously.
The girls where more than happy to join in helping him act it out as you can see.
The only other thing that I can think that has been pretty big around here is we have started on the building project for the SOLT apostolic house. They have applied for all of the permits and have brought the construction gravel for the driveway. For those who don’t know anything about this please check out this link . We are not building from scratch but have purchased an existing house that will be moved here. This is something new to all of us (except our builder) so it should be very interesting to see how it all unfolds. So as you can see this will be a busy summer for us as we plan to help out as much as possible. We live right next to the SOLT property so it will be easy to help out as much as possible.
That is all of the updating for now. Hope to be back to this again soon.
God Bless,
Melinda
Since some of you are returning to follow (grandparents…) I will try to recap the last several weeks we have been down.
From the oldest news to most current: April 9th Kiara celebrated her 4th birthday. She had a blast even though she was a little under the weather. We celebrated with brownies and ice cream. I think her favorite part was getting a new scooter from her Godparents. They are very in tune with the fact that she is an out doors “extreme” sports kind of girl. Yes I know most of you wouldn’t consider a scooter “extreme” sport but you have never seen this girl on one before. She puts a whole new out look on how one is to ride a scooter.
Let me see what else… well Thomas did his own reenactment of Jesus carrying His cross. As you can see he was truly creative and took it very seriously.
The girls where more than happy to join in helping him act it out as you can see.
The only other thing that I can think that has been pretty big around here is we have started on the building project for the SOLT apostolic house. They have applied for all of the permits and have brought the construction gravel for the driveway. For those who don’t know anything about this please check out this link . We are not building from scratch but have purchased an existing house that will be moved here. This is something new to all of us (except our builder) so it should be very interesting to see how it all unfolds. So as you can see this will be a busy summer for us as we plan to help out as much as possible. We live right next to the SOLT property so it will be easy to help out as much as possible.
That is all of the updating for now. Hope to be back to this again soon.
God Bless,
Melinda
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