Month: August 2013

Miley Cyrus, the VMAs, and Jesus.

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In today’s facebook news… I saw a couple of posts about something Miley Cyrus did on the VMAs? with a teddy bear? and a foam hand?… and then read a few blog posts that were linked with “letters to Miley” regarding her… ahem… VMA ‘performance’. 
To be honest, I don’t really know who Miley Cyrus is.

I wouldn’t be able to pick her out of a crowd if you paid me to.

I didn’t even remember she was “Hannah Montana” until a friend reminded me. 
I’ve never seen an episode of “Hannah Montana”. 
<>. 
Now. You might think I am a recluse who writes from under a rock and rarely sees the light of day. 

On the contrary…
I. Just. Don’t. Care.
I don’t care about what Miley Cyrus did or didn’t do with a foam hand and a teddy bear on national television. 
I don’t care about the VMAs – or MTV – or Academy Awards – or the Oscars Schmoshcars – or the Silver Globes – or any other kind of award show that involves red carpet, limousines, over priced dresses, and people giving themselves statues for things they do, in which they are over paid for in the first place.
So. If “I don’t care”… why am I using my precious time and blog space to write about how I don’t know who Miley Cyrus is…?
Because I know God. and He knows Miley Cyrus. He created her and loves her. 
I know a God who cares about what she does and how she lives her life. 
I know a God who cares about the rest of us –the audience- of these shows. 
He cares about how we spend our time, how we spend our money, what shows we watch, who we support, who we make into celebrities. 
We made Miley Cyrus into a celebrity. We have glorified her from a young age as “Hannah Montana”. We push celebrities to push the envelope by our boredom and demand for more. more. more. and We have contributed to how she uses her “stardom”. 
When we are star-struck with someone, we give them glory. 
Who are giving glory to? Who are we spending our time getting to know, read about and talk about? 
We. Have. A. Choice. to put down the People magazine. To turn off the television. To choose not to see the latest movie. To save our money instead of wasting it on garbage. To save our time instead of wasting it by feeding into making other people “stars”. 
So. I still don’t care what Miley Cyrus did or didn’t do on the VMAs. 
It’s not going to change my life one way or the other. 
But I do care about Miley as a human being. 
I desire for her to know her true value and self worth. 
I hope for her to know it is not sex or songs on a stage that will fill her life.
I pray she will see there is a Holy God who sees her as precious. 
And she is worth His great love.
And I hope we will know we are worth His same great love.
I hope we will seek to know about, read about, and talk more about Jesus. 
I hope we will be star struck by an awesome God, rather than the latest celebrity performance.
I hope we will be in awe of the One who gave His life for all mankind.
and I pray He will be glorified. 
In Him, Leslie

folding laundry for Jesus

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yesterday was one of those days i’m not immune to…
running all over my house -with plenty of things to do- while accomplishing very little.

well, i did take care of a few things-
the kids needed a ride to their elementary school, so i drove them.
our plumber came over to fix our leaky sink, and i let him in the door.
the dirty dishes were sitting in the sink, and i loaded them into the dishwasher.
the kids room was a disaster, so i cleaned it up.
my family was hungry at dinnertime, so i made dinner.

and before i knew it, evening had come.
i went downstairs to switch out a load of laundry, and it all felt pointless.
really, my whole day felt pointless?
yea. just a little.
hmmm. well, at least i washed a load of laundry…

my thoughts were caught up in what i hadn’t done, should’ve done, could’ve done… 

sometimes i feel as if it’s me against the house. 
and i hate feeling that way… because although i am a homemaker, stay at home mom, non-working outside-of-the-home-mom, or however else you want to label it… 
i don’t exist for my house… 
but i still have to take care of it.

as i bent down toward the dryer, i saw this note my girls had left me a few months ago when they had surprised me, and helped with the laundry without my asking them to. 
i have left their note on the dryer door because i love it! and it reminds me our kids are wonderful helpers! 
and as i was pulling the laundry out of the dryer it struck me – i can fold this laundry for Jesus.
usually, the laundry stays in a pile on the floor. or on the bed. or both. 
sometimes it takes me weeks to put all the laundry away, and the cycle never ends.
folding and putting away the laundry is the chore that is always procrastinated… until the next round of clean laundry is thrown into the pile.
the kids are used to looking thru a pile to find their clean clothes.
and if i do put the laundry away right away, it’s usually shoved into the drawers.
pathetic, i know 😉
  
if i look at the chores at home thru the lens of it being another part of my never-ending “to-do list”, i will always be overwhelmed.

many of things we have to do in life can seem pointless and go unnoticed…
but my heart is seen. my attitude is seen. and my worship is seen.
by Jesus. 
i can please Him by worshipping Him at all times, no matter what i’m doing.
whether i’m leading worship on a Sunday morning, or folding laundry… it’s all for Him.
i exist for Him.

today, i am folding laundry for Jesus. 
what are you doing?

In Him, Leslie

sometimes we need a pastors conference… and sometimes, we just need to fall apart

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a few weeks ago we returned from an epic trip, visiting family and enjoying the pacific northwest.
after surviving our family vacation time, we traveled onto the great state of california to visit more family, and attend the national vineyard pastors conference in anaheim. 
my heart was full from family time, and my emotions were high with expectation for the conference time awaiting us…  
buuuut… after a trip to the beach, my excitement quickly faded…
and i fell apart…
sometimes moms need to fall apart.
disappointment, frustration, and tiredness had all set in. 
i could feel it growing inside me while we were at the beach. 
i was pissed off while we were at the beach. 
the beach was beautiful, the kids and adam were having a blast, but i was melting down internally.
as we were leaving the beach, i slipped and fell flat. on. my. butt. 
looking back at the scene, it was funny. (and thankfully i can laugh about it now)
but in that moment, i lost it. 
i fell apart. 
i wept from the beach all the way to the pastors conference for nearly 2 hours (while we were driving in heavy los angeles traffic, of course).
the kids were asleep, adam didn’t know what to do with me, or how to help me, and all i could do was weep. 
a pile of kleenex covered my feet on the floor of the car.
i blew my nose so much, my nose ring fell out. 
fall apart. give up. lose control. be selfish. let go.
that’s exactly what i needed to do. 
and in that time of weeping and losing it, i found it… 
God taught me so much thru the hot tears streaming down my cheeks… 
the words i managed to choke out in between sobs, so adam would know i was going to be okay.
i needed the freedom to cry.
and thru those tears, i began to see again.
they washed away my frustration, disappointment and anger.
when the tears subsided, my face was red and swollen, but i could see again. 
they washed away my human expectation and i could see with God’s vision. 
ironic ~ we were on our way to a pastors conference that we had planned for and dreamed about, and all i could do was weep. 
pastors give so much of themselves day in and day out… and the hope was to be poured into at the conference. 
our expectations were so high, they were bound to be disappointed. 






moms often feel that have to keep it all together ~ for the kids, for their spouse, for the sake of the family. 
and pastors carry that same burden ~ for their congregation, for their leaders, for the sake of the church.
but sometimes, we all need to fall apart…

Selah having one of her many meltdowns…



and do note the sign in the background referring to the kids still in the children’s ministry,
“please pick up your children [pretty please with sugar on top]”
isn’t it ironic? 😉 


the pastors conference was tough for our family. 
the kids were homesick. 
the girls wouldn’t go into their classes.
selah threw many a temper tantrum. 
the schedule was busy and time ran thin. 
it was difficult to glean from the conference, while balancing the needs of our family.
but God.
He is so good. 
He taught me so much thru my kids that week…
He showed me so much thru the ‘random’ people we talked with…
He poured into us in ways we never expected.
in our weakness, God is strongest.
in our frailty, God shows His power.
in our disappointments, God reveals His plans.
in our weeping, we let go so God can work.
sometimes we need to attend a pastors conference…
and sometimes, we just need to fall apart.

Thank you for reading~feel free to comment, share and follow us on halfwritten records.
In Him, Leslie 🙂

insanity.

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some days i think i’m going insane, ifffff…

insanity is ‘doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.’ [at one time, Albert Einstein was given credit for this quote]

 

“brush your teeth, change your clothes, get ready for school, put your shoes on, brush your hair, do your homework, don’t whine, don’t fight, don’t mess around – just GO to the bathroom if you need to…”

 

i tell my kids the same thing over and over and over again – every day – expecting this time they will do what i am asking them to do without my having to repeat myself over and over and over again. i’m expecting different results, right? daily, i do the same tasks over and over and over again – the dishes don’t disappear, the laundry won’t wash itself, the bills won’t pay themselves. insanity, right?

 

a few weeks ago, i began the work out program insanity. 

i love running. and usually that’s my exercise of choice…

but i realized i needed to do something different, if i was expecting different results. 

so the insanity began.

i’ve peed my pants while doing the jumps.  [sorry, tmi] after having 3 babes au natural, this happens.

i’ve sweat more profusely than any other time in my life. i’ve debated taking a shower before and after the workout because of the insane amount of sweating with this workout. 

i’ve never sounded more ridiculous while trying to be healthy. seriously, these power and diamond jumps evoke weird noises when you’re giving your all to this work out. 

buuut… if i’m working out in the evening – and then eating noodles for dinner at 10pm – it might be, just might be, pointless.

so i’m working out with insanity and i’m expecting different results.

 

buuut… insanity is not really ‘doing the same thing(s) over and expecting different results’.

insanity is actually defined as:


1) a deranged state of the mind usually occurring as a specific disorder (as schizophrenia)

2) such unsoundness of mind or lack of understanding as prevents one from having the mental capacity required by law to enter into a particular relationship, status, or transaction or as removes one from criminal or civil responsibility

3) a: extreme folly or unreasonableness

 

 

 

 b: something utterly foolish or unreasonable

 

 

 

 

…

 

the insanity work out program is centered on exercises which work on/from your core. physically, our core is primarily what keeps us together.

it is all about your posture, keeping the correct posture for each exercise, and making sure your core is always in check.

 

whether you’ve been exercising a long time, or never have, our physical core needs the most focus. everything hinges on our core.


so what about our spiritual core?

we have to maintain our spiritual core, keep it in check, and work on having a correct core posture, or it will get flabby and out of shape and cause us heart problems… hmm… the same as our physical core.

 

my hearts core desire is to maintain a spiritual posture of surrender. 

if i am surrendered to God, i can fully abide in Him, lean on Him to keep my spiritual core in check and trust the Holy Spirit to convict me of sin.

 

there are many things that can impact the deterioration of our spiritual core… leading to sin – and even insanity. 

one of the most disruptive areas of sin that can absolutely crush our spiritual posture of surrender, is pride. 

pride is the polar opposite of surrender. 

part of our spiritual work out plan should be to keep our pride ‘in check’.

 

how can we avoid insanity? 

in the same way a physical work out needs to be maintained on a regular basis, keeping our spiritual core in check is a continuous activity.

this can’t just happen in a church service on christmas, easter, or even once a week on sunday mornings…

sin never takes a day off.

how do we maintain a healthy spiritual core? everyday we must be spending time in God’s Word, in worship, in a posture of surrender.


in the Bible we can read of King Nebuchadnezzar, who was filled with pride. even after he saw the miraculous works of God and praised Him, still his own heart was filled with pride. he was humiliated, stripped of his rulership, and… eventually he went insane. {Daniel 4:28-37 NKJ}

 

The king spoke saying, “is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty? While the word was still in the kings mouth, a voice fell from heaven: ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you!”… that very hour the word was fulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar; he was driven from men and ate grass like oxen; his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.


we are responsible for our core posture.

physically, we need to maintain an exercise routine and build up our core posture.

spiritually, we need to maintain our core posture of surrender unto the One true God.

 

it’s never too late to start building your healthy core posture. 

physically, start today – start with 1 mile – 25 sit ups – 10 push ups – whatever you can do. just do it.

spiritually, start today – read your Bible for 15 minutes – pray for 10 minutes – take 5 minutes to listen to a worship song.

 

there is always hope for physical and spiritual restoration.

“at the end of time I, Nebuchadnezzar lifted my eyes to heaven and my understanding returned to me. I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever… at the same time my reason returned to me… now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. and those who walk in pride He is able to put down.”

 

what’s your spiritual posture? how are you maintaining your spiritual core?

 

thank you for reading 🙂 as always, feel free to comment, share and follow this blog.

 

In Him, Leslie

 

Surviving our Family Vacation…

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whew. 
my family is just coming off the highs [and lows] of an epic trip – 26 days and 6,000+ miles of travel by 5 airplanes, 2 rental cars and 5 places we stayed, throughout Oregon and California.
we’ve been back almost 2 weeks, and I am still. tired.
seriously, I was so tired.
we were constantly on the go – seeing so many people, places and things.

it. was. awesome.
seriously, it was so awesome.
all the time we spent with people, places we went to, and things we did were awesome. 

…and these are our stories of the stains, pains and gains of traveling across the country for 26 days.

travel is super fun. but it is also super hard… especially when traveling with 3 small kids.
it is taking your work with you 24/7. it is never getting a break. or downtime. it’s wiping butts elsewhere. it’s time out elsewhere. it’s losing count of how many times you turn around and say “stop fighting! keep your hands to yourselves! quit bothering your sister!” it’s not being able to separate the 3 bickering kids squished into a Toyota Camry rental car when they are used to slightly more space (at home) in the luxury of your own ’97 Honda Odyssey. it’s gritting your teeth and clenching your toes b/c your trying to force your 3 1/2 year old on the toilet and scaring her with your demon angry mom face without everyone in Powell’s bookstore hearing you yell underneath your breath at her to “GO POTTY!”…
as one friend coined the phrase: it’s parenting elsewhere.

it’s finding a tick on selah’s head during our picnic at the beach, smelling oil in the ocean as each wave brings a new whiff of the lovely odor, looking into the vast distance of the ocean, only for the view to be halted by the oil rigs doing their ‘job’. discovering the oil stains on their swim suits and bodies after we’ve spent hours playing in the water unaware of the results. the beach trips were some our favorite days, but there was always a little something to remind us nothing is perfect… even on the beach days that were close to perfect… like hearing them whine ~ “i wish the beach didn’t have so much sand! or “i wish the sand was grass!” really?! these kids.

it’s sneaking into the historical Santa Barbara Mission church service, feeling guilty about limbo-ing underneath the rope with a “service closed” sign attached. [well, soleil and i felt guilty… because we try and follow rules] so after a brief argument, we nonchalantly whistled our way under the rope. oh, and Adam walked right in and joined the communion line, no sweat. the usher telling him, “I’d never tell anyone they can’t take communion.” good job usher – you just affirmed my husband breaking all the rules. the Mission was built in 1786 and has been around a while, so i’m sure we’re not the first ones to have “broken in”.

then there’s selah yelling all the way up the hike to Multnomah falls, and all the other tourists giving me their pity – or ‘you’re a terrible mother’ – glances along the way. well, at least she smiled for the family picture. but only after i bribed her into doing so with the promise of ice cream. then there was our visit to Tillamook cheese factory where you can view the workers processing and packaging the cheese and other dairy products they are famous for. i don’t know about you, but i’m not really comfortable with a bunch of strangers staring at me while i work, packaging dairy products and passing them down a conveyor belt. so we quickly looked around, enjoyed some ice cream and headed for our last stop – the cheese sample line. we grab our toothpicks and start picking up the famous “squeaky cheese” when the lady behind me gasps pointing, “Ugh! SHE just put her used toothpick back in the box of clean toothpicks!” i mumble the response, “well… ummm, i’m not sure which 1 dirty toothpick out of the 300 in the box is hers…” so while she’s still staring at me expecting some kind of crazy reaction, i look at adam, shrug my shoulders and grab about 48 toothpicks of the top of the pile, hoping i got the right “dirty toothpick”. after we continued thru the sample line, and enjoyed our pepper jack samples – plus – the ones the kids didn’t finish, we both burst into laughter. what else can ya do?

not too far into the trip ~ our travel phrase became, “Well. they don’t have a Selah.” 

hey, it made us feel better… at least temporarily.

and then the kids’ homesickness kicked in, missing their own beds and space, and the los angeles traffic – which we are pretty sure is the equivalent of time spent in hell – seriously?! a few of the highways had 8 lanes. 8 lanes people!?! and the impatience…, and the kids moving slowly, the length of time it takes to herd kittens, err… i mean, our kids out the door every single day… it takes forever to pack lunches, extra clothes, toys, and books, for whatever adventures awaited us each day…

intertwined in the midst of the stains and pains, were the beautiful gains… 
the quality time spent as a family (we spent a lot of time getting along beautifully ;)). 
the time without television, video games, and videos on our road trips (although at times we were wishing we would’ve had a video player to minimize some of the car drama)…
the time spent without unnecessary shopping, not going into a target the entire trip (and we love target!), minimal responsibilities and material things to keep track of, less toys to fuss over, wearing the same outfits over and over again…  
the time spent hiking, waterfalls, the beach… everything outdoors!
experiencing church in different, unique places ~ the Portland Rose Garden, Crater Lake and the Santa Barbara Mission ~ on the sunday’s we were gone from our beloved home church. 
the time with adam’s parents. 
the coffee dates, and time to surf and boogie board while the grandparents watched the kids.
special memories our kids have made with their grandparents…
time with adam’s sister, our brother in law, and our neice and nephew. 
the squeals of joy when our kids and their cousins embraced each other yet again… after a year apart.
time with my aunt and uncle who had just moved from oklahoma to california the same week we arrived. 
visiting some of the area where adam grew up… the old Grananda hotel his grandfather owned… where rooms were once rented for a few dollars a night are now upwards of $400 a night.
time with adam’s aunt and uncle… whom we had not seen in over 12 years, and it was their first time meeting our kids. 
the kids running chasing enjoying uncle gilberts farm, the animals and adventures to be had.  
and hearing the wonderful family stories our aunts and uncles shared… history lessons of our family tree.
the laughter. the joy. our hearts swelled full of time with our loved ones… 
creating memories. priceless moments made. to be held forever in our hearts.

much of our travel time had a stain or pain ~ and ultimately a gain ~ attached… and we are learning this is all part of the reality of hard core traveling as a family: fighting, yelling, frustrations, miscommunication, impatience, difficult conversations, deep work thru some tough emotions…

it’s the reality of the fam~glam(orous) travel lifestyle.
and yea, we’re crazy… we survived our family road trip… and we’ll do it all again…

thank you for reading… as always feel free to comment, share and follow us our half written records. and be sure to visit the blog again soon for my next post about our experience on the second part of our Oregon / California journey when we attended the Vineyard Pastors conference in Anaheim!

In Him, Leslie