"Dress by Sewing Machine"

This past weekend, while Tay & I celebrated our 15th year anniversary (a little early), our girls learned how to make a simple dress.  Teacher Susan was kind enough to add sewing teacher to her babysitter role.  Here are a couple of pictures of Jasmine working on her dress.  Mia also put in some work on her own dress.  Altogether, they finished the 2 dresses just in time to wear for church on Sunday.

Our Baby is FOUR!!!

Our Offie turned for 4!  When as a young mom, folks used to tell me that time flies, I couldn't fathom the idea.  All I could see then was the years of potty training ahead and sleep deprivation.  Now our youngest one is 4!  Time does fly.  In spite of my shortsightedness, God's kindness and blessings overflow.  He has blessed us with four children to love and raise for Him.

Now, our littlest one is slowly becoming "not so little anymore".  He enjoys everything from Legos to Star Wars to Transformers toys.  Offie often bonds with Daddy, Ate Jazzy, Mia, and Timmy by playing "shooting" and sword fight with them.  I'm the one he goes to for reading his favorite books, and, of course, when he's hungry.

                             Here he gets his Star Wars Ice Cream Cake.

We were blessed to have some family and friends to celebrate Offie's 4th birthday with us.       We love you Offie!

Chapter 2--Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands by P. Tripp

Our personal ministry always goes back to our dependence on God's Word.  It shows our great need to be in the Word of God, so that we may be transformed and be used as vessels to funnel His Word through to others in love.

Chapter 2, page 21

“In personal ministry, I want to bring more than a heart of compassion, a willingness to listen, and a commitment to help bear someone’s burden.  Though these are the sweet fruit of Christian love, I want to offer more.  I want to bring the heart-changing truths of Scripture to people in the midst of their situations and relationships.  Personal ministry is about people loving people, but in a way that includes bringing them God’s Word.  This is the truth in love model Paul describes in Ephesians 4.”

Chapter 1 "Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands" by Paul Tripp

I hope to be able to write out a few things I learn from each chapter as I read them.  It helps me remember and solidify what it is I've read.  So far, this book has been such an awakening and an encouragement!

Chapter 1, page 6

“God’s ultimate goal is his own glory.  Christ came to restore people to the purpose they were made for: to live every aspect of their lives in worshipful, obedient submission to him.  He accomplishes this by breathing life into dead hearts so that we grasp our need for him.”

Page 9

“We must never offer a message that is less than the good news.  We don’t offer people a system; we point them to a Redeemer.  He is hope.”

What I learned:

Though I practically underlined half of this chapter, this is some of what I came away with.  What is fundamentally wrong with us and makes us incapable to ever do the right thing is sin.  Often, we try to treat our mere symptoms, but what we need is a heart change that only One can do.  We need the ONE who offers hope through redemption, Jesus Christ.  Therefore, we must always present the good news of the King who came to redeem us and make lasting change.

Timmy's Official Baseball Picture

We are so thankful for this particular Baseball Little League that Timmy is a part of.  For a long time, we prayed for an activity that Timmy would enjoy and could be a part of.  Along came the Challenger Giants baseball team last year.  This team consists of a wonderful group of people who desires to see children of all abilities enjoy this great sport.  This is Tim's 2nd year, and he is enjoying it tremendously.

                                                  This is his official picture for this year.

Let's Use Our Noggin!

This is what happens when electronics is not always an option.  The kiddies get creative and use their imagination.  It's great!

This is Offie, convinced he is a pirate.  His sword is hanging onto one of Mia's glitter belt.  It was so cute!

The kids worked on this maze with our soft blocks.  They were quite excited and made sure no one tore it down before daddy got home to see it.