One Thing Remains

Yesterday it was so hot; we were sitting outside in shorts and flip flops and we were getting tan- even sweating!
Today it is so cold it is snowing!
Life is like that. Nothing is constant. Everything changes.

Well, wait. "One thing remains."

Yes...in all the uncertainty that goes along with this life we live, I find one constant. One thing that never changes. A perfect love.


Higher than the mountains that I face.
Stronger than the power of the grave.
Constant in the trial and the change
One thing remains,
One thing remains

Your love never fails -It never gives up
It never runs out on me.

Because on and on and on and on it goes
It overwhelms and satisfies my soul.
And I never, ever,
Have to be afraid

One thing remains,
One thing remains

In death, in life,
I'm confident and covered
by the power of Your great love
My debt is paid,
There's nothing that can separate
My heart from Your great love

That's my song right now. I am thankful that one thing remains. :)

Emotions and Thoughts Running Wild

I woke up early and felt like this all must have been a dream....

Waves tossing, thoughts crossing.
Head spinning, mind racing.
Nothing is guaranteed. Is all the sin catching up to me?

I rely on grace, love, mercy. Has it run out?
When she told me I DID have a lump- it made it real- it wasn't just me. I AM human. I AM frail.

Then, there was more. I had no idea THAT was in store. What do you mean there is something else?
How can that be? How can that be?

I am on my knees. I am on my knees. God, have mercy on me.
You have blessed me so much, I don't want to give that all up.
I know I have taken things for granted. I know I have been less than thankful more than some of the time.
But, the reality is that I AM THANKFUL. I AM BLESSED.

I feel this opression. This finger pointing at me telling me to cower...to run...to sink...
I tell this finger- "NO". I cannot give in. I will not give in. I am strong. I am going to turn away from fear- or maybe face it- and I am going to overcome.

"This is just a lump. That is just a thing. My God has my back. My God loves me. My God will give me peace. YOU cower."

Maybe this was just what I needed. Maybe I just needed to understand more fully how precious life is- how much I am loved and how much I love.

I am on my knees. I am feeling so human...so frail...so uncertain....But somehow, when I get back on my knees I feel strength. I feel peace. I feel courage. I feel His love. I feel His mercy. I feel His grace.

Love Always Protects

I can remember walking into a room and seeing my little brother climbing on a big book case that was starting to lean in toward him as he climbed. I ran in and put myself under it's weight and held it there on top of  us as I called to my mom for help. I didn't even have to think about it. I loved that little guy and wasn't about to let anything hurt him.

Now, I am older and I have my own children and it seems that since they have come into my life, I have stumbled on a whole new level of protection. I am protective over them in every way possible. I protect their feelings, by being careful of how and what I say to and about them. I protect their brains as much as I can by what I allow in to influence them such as music and TV. I protect their bodies through cautioning them and teaching them about safety, as well as setting limits for what they can and cannot do. I am so much more cautious with my own life now as I know my living is important to them.

Recently, I am learning to not protect in the same ways I used to- as I have to give them more freedom as they get older...freedoms to choose for themselves and at times, I realize there is a possibility that they will end up hurt physically or emotionally because of this. However, I offer guidance and draw lines where I can and pray they trust me enough to follow and know that I am here to protect, love and help them through. I will also be here should they choose another path and end up hurt. I will always be here....I love them.

We were talking as a family on day about this part of love. We said that as an example, if car or a bullet were coming at someone we loved, we (my husband or myself) would jump in front to take the hit for the kids or for eachother. THAT is love. Being willing to lay down your own life for the life of another.

THAT is what Jesus did for us. Similarly, the things we read about in the Bible. The rules, the guidance, the warnings are there for our protection. LOVE ALWAYS PROTECTS.

The HOT TUB at the Hot Springs!

Though we never were cold, as long as we were in the water, we wanted to also try out the Hot Tub- also filled with water from the Hot Springs... DELIGHTFUL! :)
                                  
Shyanna enters....

Nikayta is gonna check it out!

Hmmm...not sure Cadence is anjoying this much heat!

Mark and Tanise enter....."oooooo nice!"

More wholes in the bottom for more heat! :)

Shyanna and Cadence relax in the Bubble Chairs!

Nikayta and Tanise......

Mark- hangin out being his cool self ;) in the hot springs...

Hot Springs!

Never had I been to the HOT SPRINGS before. Until this weekend! How amazing- and let me tell you, now I know where people got the idea for HOT TUBS! :) What a fun experience! One I highly recommend to anyone with any sort of adventurous spirit- or to anyone who wants to relax- or to anyone who thinks soaking in some minerals while toasty warm and enjoying the beauty surrounding you!- so, I guess you could safely say, I recommend this trip to ANYONE and EVERYONE!!

This is a picture taken the day we arrived. Looks like a big swimming pool at a country club. We were wondering why it looked so dark in the middle....turns out the bottom is unpainted cement in that portion...

Night time view of the same pool. (We were on our way home from dinner at the BrewPub) Looks soothing and relaxing....

View from up above the mountains on the tram ride...looking down into the valley...The pool still looks pretty big!

The girls got in first! LOVE the snowy mountains in the background and the steam coming off the very warm waters!

It was around 30 degrees outside when we got in!

A refreshing way to start the day!

Mark and the girls... :)

Nikayta underwater- gotta love this digital camera that can go under water without getting ruined!

Cadence!

Shyanna and I- our family is really part fish, I think! lol

Bubbles coming up between cement cracks....this is where some water right from the Hot Springs is coming in....

Looks pretty cool!

There was also a line up of these pipes that came in along the bottom center of the pool where more hot water from the springs entered.... ;)

Moving on to the next post- which will offer insights from the other pool- which was hotter- about 102 degrees...and even more like a Hot Tub! :)

Falling In Love Again -While Unplugged

For the past few weeks, I have been unplugging more and more from much of the technological side of life. Not tweeting much, facebook- what's that? lol and this weekend, we went on a little three day get-away, and I felt compelled to leave the laptop and the cell phone behind.

In fact, the family left them behind. We had some old fashioned family time together....lots of singing, talking, hanging out with eachother face- to- face.

We went to a town nestled in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains, in part- Glenwood Springs. Without the distractions of technology, I felt such relaxation....such peace....it really helped bring me back to my roots, in a way, I guess. I found myself imagining many wonderful things as I took in the splender and beauty of the Rocky Mountains, and I thoroughly enjoyed the people most dear to my heart on this earth- my husband and our four beautiful daughters.

So much so, that I could not stop thinking on my way home about how refreshed and new I felt. how grateful. How amazed and how loved. I feel at home here in this amazing state, more so than I have ever felt home before- anywhere.

I am amazed at the creativity of the Creator. Humbled, really, that I am able to enjoy all the beauty and wonderment all around me. Even more humbled that He has also given me such wonderful people to enjoy all of it WITH. Sigh......so overwhelmed.

My oldest daughter said this was her favorite vacation we have had as a family since we went to Hilton Head. (Now, that is saying something....especially, since she is one of the ones who was really NOT wanting to unplug for the weekend.) I was loving it so much, that when we went to my husband's softball game tonight, I left the old cell phone at home again. It feels good to UNPLUG! :) and really focus on the ones you are with and love the most!

In the Absence of Facebook

For Lent this year I gave up something I enjoy a lot- Facebook. I gave it up after our church had been talking about "Interior Design" and how sometimes we need to declutter- and honestly...Facebook came to my mind every time I heard about this.

Now, I have a lot of friends on Facebook. Friends from around the world and all over our country- and although my brother gives me a hard time- I haven't gone out randomly finding friends on Facebook.  A lot of high school peeps, some great friends I have made through different jobs I have held, and younger people my kids are friends with as well as people from churches we have been/ are a part of, neighbors we have lived by, and LOTS of family members! My dad comes from a family of 6 kids and they all have kids...I have 3 sisters and 3 brothers...you get the point. A lot of connectivity is found in facebook for me.

I have something like 24 days left of not using FB socially. Before I left, several people told me they would miss my positive posts, etc....they didn't want me to go. But, I felt like the only thing that seems to clutter my life in some way really, that wasn't a necessity, was FB. I felt like having less email to read, less times of my cell phone going off and less time of me looking around to see what everyone was up to would help me make time for reading my Bible, spending more time doing things around here that I need/want to do, and spending more time with people in my home and in our new town.

So far, I have been reading through the 4 Gospels in a Lent Reading from "Bible Gateway" on line. They just send me a link through email each morning for the day's reading. Good stuff. Thought provoking. I love the Bible. No matter how many times I have read through passages, I always find myself getting a fresh, timely word, a better perspective...

I have a lot less cell phone time now. I might miss that the most. I loved "stalking" people! By that, I mean...some people in my life were on a list and I would get a cell phone notification (sms) whenever they posted something. It made me feel like I was closer to loved ones who are far away. However, it is nice that I do not have the interruptions I used to have when I am involved in something or with someone here. And, I am learning to go back to that old way of just calling or texting someone when they come to mind. "Just checking in!" ;) I also have enjoyed hearing from some people via texting, a phone call, an email when they have thought about me. Feels a little old school after being on FB for a few years- but I LIKE IT! :) It is always nice to know someone is thinking about you! (Did I mention I even got a package of presents from a friend by SNAIL MAIL?! THAT was amazing!! I cannot remember the last time I received something by mail like that! I was like a little kid on Christmas morning!! :))

One more thing I miss is feeling like I can reach out and give people a positive message. I know I still have this, my Nike Running, You Tube, and my FB Zumba page connecting....but I feel like positive posts on people's walls, or my own are something that I REALLY love about FB. I DO miss that part, terribly...I enjoy so much being an encouragement to others. Even posting silly pictures of my food- which I always thought brought a smile to at least one person's face for the silliness of it, if nothing else...

I am feeling more focussed and relaxed. I am considering when I go back to keeping things more limited...not sure how limited...maybe no FB on weekends? Whatever the case, I am glad that I have given FB up as a social media so far, but I am finding that I am missing those who are far away from me more than I was when I was using FB. I am glad that almost half the time has passed and I am trying to imagine "catching up" when I go back on after Palm Sunday! THAT will be a glorious Monday!