Yay!

I am so happy! Tonight is David's last night working at the nursing home! He will actually be home at night! I might actually go to sleep at a normal time. :o) The best part is, he will be home at night in his new position too! That is unless he gets a call in the middle of the night, which I know will happen. At least it won't be an every night thing though!

The "S" Word

I am not exactly sure why, but this whole subject popped into my head the other night while I was laying in bed. For some reason, I felt that I should write a blog about it. I don't know why, but here it is.

Okay, as you may have noticed, the title of this is "The "S" Word." By "S" word, I mean submission. In our society today, with the women's liberation movement and that whole mess, submission is almost a curse word. We (especially us girls) have been told that a woman should never submit to a man. We're just as good as men, or better. First of all, let me just go a little off the subject and say that this attitude has killed chivalry. Women demand to be treated as equals and then wonder why men no longer open doors, pull out your seat, and give you their coat. Go figure. Anyway, I digress.

As I was saying, we've been told that women shouldn't have to submit to their husbands. That's not what the Bible teaches. The Bible says in Ephesians 5:22, "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord." It's right there in black and white, and this verse has often resulted in Christians being dubbed as sexist. That's because they fail to look a few verses down. Ephesians 5:25 says, "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it."

So, what does all this mean? Well, it means that, yes, wives should submit to their husbands. Husbands should be the leader of the household. Here is the catch though, they should be leading with love. Not just love as the world defines it but with the same love that Christ has for the church. We're talking a deep, unconditional, eternal love, enough to lay your life down. If a husband is leading with that kind of love, a wife should have no problem submitting.

Many people cannot believe that a woman would have this opinion. In fact, I remember having a discussion about the Bible with one of my husband's uncles. I had stated that I believed the Bible was 100% true. He thought he was going to catch me and asked me if I believed that a wife should submit to her husband. I still remember the look of shock on his face when I said, "I absolutely believe that a wife should submit to her husband as long as her husband is leading in love." I have no problem submitting to my husband. First of all, he is a very godly man who loves the Lord and seeks His will for our family. Secondly, he loves us. I can trust that any decision he makes for our family has been prayed over and is in God's will and in the best interest of our family. Submitting to my husband doesn't make me feel bad, cheated, or demeaned. On the contrary it makes me feel safe, comforted, and glad that there is someone there to take care of me. My husband respects me 100%. He asks my opinion on things and respects them. At the end of the day though, he is the leader, and he is the one who will ultimately have to answer to God for the state of our family.

Anyway, as I said, I am not exactly sure why that came to me, but it did. Believe me, I am not a great theologian, as you can probably see from the stumbling words in my writing. There it is for what it's worth though. Comments and discussion are welcome, but as this is a touchy subject, rudeness and fighting is discouraged. :o)

Things I've learned....

I was laying in bed last night and for some reason, things started coming to my mind that I have learned since becoming a wife and a mother. My first thought was, "Hey, that would make a good blog!" :o) So, here it goes, things I have learned since I become a wife and mommy:

• I do NOT know everything. (I bet a lot of people thought they'd never hear that from me.) :o) In reality, I know very little.
  
• My parents really did know what they were talking about.
  
• Your mother starts to become more of a friend and source of experience than a mother.
  
• Marriage is hard work mostly because it is two selfish people coming together as one, but it is definitely worth it! (That piece of info came from my mother-in-law, but I have found it to be very true.)
  
• Children are trying, frustrating, and tiring, but they are also rewarding, wonderful, and fun.
  
• Children really are a miraculous blessing from God.
  
• Sometimes you have to remind yourself of the former statement to get through the day. :o)
  
• When you get married, you feel like you could never love any more deeply, then, you start to really go through life, and that person being right there by your side makes you love them even more.
  
• The trials make you appreciate the good times more.
  
• Have faith in God. He will always come through. It may seem to you that He waits until the last second, but He is always on time.
  
• When your relationship with God is in good standing, everything else falls into place.
  
• The most amazing feeling in the world is to look into the face of your newborn child and know that God created that little miracle with a little piece of you and a little piece of the man you love most in the world.
  
• You will never feel a bigger feeling of accomplishment than to look at that same child and know that they were just inside you, and you birthed them into the world.
  
• You can't get any luckier than to marry a man who is more in love with God than he is with you. That may sound strange to some people, but believe me, it makes marriage a lot easier.
  
• Your husband is also your best friend, confidant, hero, role model, spiritual leader, lover, and shoulder to cry on.
  
• You should be your husband's helper, best friend, lover, shoulder, ear, and confidant.
  
• You are not your children's best friend. You are their parent. They may not like it now, but they will appreciate it when they get older.

I am sure there are many more than that, but those are the only ones that came to mind immediately. Besides, that list is long enough. :o) Oh, and I am not any better at keeping mid-year resolutions than New Year's ones. Oh well! :o)

My Cup Runneth Over

Well, we're back! AS I said in my last post, we went to Tennessee for a camp meeting at the church we belong to there. Boy am I glad we did! It was AWESOME!!!!!

Monday night was great, and you could definitely feel the Holy Spirit, two great preachers, two great sermons. We were pumped for Tuesday. Boy am I glad we didn't miss Tuesday. The first preacher was great, and he had a great sermon. When the second preacher started his sermon, oh my! The Holy Spirit fell on that place like a dense fog. You could feel Him. The atmosphere in that church was sweet! We left that place changed and stirred and with a new fire for God. We thought, "How could it get any better than this??" We found out.

Wednesday night we got there, and they had a gospel group singing. They were great, and as they were singing, you could feel the Spirit begin to fall. Then, the first preacher began to preach. I knew when he began to read the scriptures that this sermon was for my husband and me. The tears started to fall for both of us. as God began to speak to us through this wonderful man of God. He preached about the Israelites being in the desert after they were delivered at the Red Sea. It was our story exactly. We saw God work wonderfully when we were in Tennessee at Parkers Creek. Then, God moved us back to Illinois, and it is a desert here! The Israelites began to complain. Boy have David and I done our share of that! The pastor said that they were complaining but where they were was exactly where God wanted them to be. Ouch...that hurt. Then, the second preacher preached about how God sometimes has to bring us to the end of ourselves before He can use us. That hurt too. So, David and I went to the alter and fell before God and prayed. What a sense of relief! In the car, David told me that at the beginning of the first sermon, he heard a still small voice say, "This one's for you." Amazing how God works that way and confirms things in other people. We heard the same thing from God at the same time!

We left Tennessee renewed, relieved, refilled, refreshed, and ready to work! Now, we are just waiting on God to show us where. God is so awesome! We were totally dry going in, but now my cup runneth over! I can't wait to see what God will do next in our lives and at Parkers Creek Baptist Church in Burns, TN. He's moving there in a mighty way, and it's about to explode! I feel like our lives are about to explode in God's work too. I can't wait!

In other news, my baby turned 1 today. :o( I can't believe it! It seems like just yesterday I found out I was pregnant with her. They grow up so fast! Blink and you will miss it! She is such a wonderful blessing from God. I just wish she would lsow down! :o(

Look Away, Dixieland!

I guess more appropriately, it would be look out, Dixieland! (That's not how the song goes though. ) :o) The Colvins are headed to Tennessee tomorrow! We are going to go camping and go to the camp meeting at the church we went to there. Actually, we are technically still members because we have yet to find a church we feel we need to join here, but I digress. We're really excited! Parkers Creek (the church) has always had a wonderful spirit, and God has always moved. They have had 8 people baptized in the last 3 weeks. (I think that is right.) And we are so excited to see what God will do in this camp meeting. Plus, it's always nice to go back and see our friends. Parkers Creek is full of wonderful people too! So, tomorrow morning, we start our 5 hour trek. Thank goodness for portable DVD players!! If you have kids and have been on a long trip, can I hear an "Amen!" :o)

Needless to say, I will not be posting for a while. Not that you are probably on the edge of your seat everyday to see what I post, but just for your information. :o)

God bless!

My Little Theologian

Lately, David and I have been doing a Bible study with our girls everyday. We have been reading through the book of John. So far, really the only thing we can tell has sunk in is that Jesus is the son of God, He made everything, and He loves us very much. All good basic truths, and pretty good for a three year old. Kayleah is still young (1 next week), but she has caught on that we all close our eyes and clasp our hands when we pray, and she follows suit, which is really cute.

The other day though, Isabel and I were sitting in the living room, and she was playing. Then, she looked at me and asked, "Mommy, did Jesus have a butt?" Needless to say it caught me a little off guard. I kind of laughed and said, "Yes, Isabel. Jesus was a person, and all people have butts." It satisfied her, thank goodness, and she went back to playing. Sometimes, I wonder what goes on in their little minds. Only Isabel....she cracks me up all the time! She is something else.

Children's Antics

Today the Bible School kids sang the songs they had learned in the morning worship. Isabel did really well.....for the first 3 songs. She did all the motions and sang. Then, the music just got too good I guess. She forgot all about singing and the motions and started dancing freestyle. The lady in front of us turned around and said "She sure can boogie!" Yes, she can. I am just glad she wasn't singing her Shake Your Booty song. Then, she decided that wasn't good enough. So what did she do? She pulled her dress up over her head and revealed her Dora underwear to the whole congregation. Everyone had a good laugh, even mommy and daddy. Daddy got it on video, so now we have something to show her boyfriends when she gets older. :o) Children are a hoot!