Time, from the beginning
Filling the moments and days
I have a lifetime before me
And I will take the time that remains
And I will praise the God of all the ages
For giving the meaning to life
And by God’s grace, my moment in history
Will help to build the kingdom of Christ

And I’m having the time of my life
Making the most of every moment
Knowing the future lies before me
Living today to give God glory
And I’m having the time of my life
Knowing my times are in His hands
And with the saints who’ve gone before me
On His word I stand

For from Him, and through Him
And to Him, are all things
To Him be the glory forever and ever
For from Him, and through Him
And to Him, are all things
To Him be the glory forever
Amen, Amen

It’s a ten minute commute to my work. Sometimes when I have an early shift I just sit quietly and drive, savoring the stillness and fresh beauty of the morning. Sometimes I turn up the radio really loud, crank down my windows, and sing. And sometimes, I pop in a CD and listen to the music. I remember very clearly a few weeks ago listening to this song above by Judy Rogers. It almost brought me to tears because it summed up perfectly what I have been pondering lately.

This past season has been one of great blessing, but also challenges. I’ve been humbled and brought to the realization of how very far I have yet to grow and to learn. Many times I have failed to be the daughter at home that I want to be. I’ve let trivial things take priority over precious time and communion with the Lord. I have worried over the future and whether I’ll get into nursing school and where that road will take me. At the core, I am far too centered on myself.

For me it’s a continual, humbling realization that my life isn’t about me. Not in the least. It’s about our awesome God. It’s about the marvelous things He has done. Through and through, it’s about Him. When I attempt to comprehend of the vastness of who God is, my mind is boggled. That the mighty One who set the universe in motion would be interested in me and even want to have a personal relationship with me is almost unthinkable. It’s almost too good to be true. I’ve most certainly done nothing to deserve His wondrous love! He has made me, given me all I have, and is writing my story. He has been so patient and gentle with me. He has loved me when I am so un-lovable. His tenderness has melted my cold, stony heart. His love has faithfully surrounded me, bringing peace to my dry and weary soul.

I love the last verse to these lyrics because it really draw the focus back to the Lord. By His grace, our lives will be a reflection of His work in us. This makes me ask myself: am I taking the time that remains to help build the kingdom of Christ? Am identifying and acting on the opportunities God has given me to serve and minister? I pray for the grace to take my eyes off of myself and seek His will with a passion. Only there we will find true contentment and joy.

My heart is full and I wish I could write more, but I don’t know exactly how to put it into words. :) I hope, though, that you might be able to unscramble a few of my scrambled thoughts and be encouraged by Judy’s song as I was. More importantly, it’s my prayer that God will meet you wherever you are today and overwhelm you with His love. May He fill you to overflowing and may you find lasting joy in His presence.

Hello again! I considered titling this post “There and Back Again” but decided against it, as Tolkien fans may consider that sacrilegious. ;) Anyway, I have some pictures to share with y’all! As I have mentioned in this post, every year our family likes to take a small trip somewhere in the dead of winter to ward off cabin fever and enjoy some time together. Although last weekend happened to be a few days after spring, we still called it our 2014 Merry Midwinter Getaway. Mom had a doctor appointment in St. Louis (a follow-up after her hip surgery), so we decided to turn it into a family overnight outing. That weekend turn out to be c-c-cold, so we packed our warmest winter clothing.

During every Noble road trip, we have a habit of stopping at various Walmarts along the way to buy various items that were either forgotten or would add some fun to the trip. These are things such as Swiss cake rolls, gum, swimsuits, gallons of water, antibacterial wipes, caffiene-loaded drinks, etc. But this time we added something new: a PEZ candy thingamajigger for Jonathan. Turns out, he never had one when he was little like the rest of us; therefore, he didn’t know what one was! He was pretty intrigued by the idea of loading candy into a slot and dispensing it whenever he pleased. Yes, he did share. ;)

Upon arriving in St. Louis, we first stopped at the zoo. Lovely times! All of the photo credit goes to Mom and Wesley, as they used their phones to take these….

The butterfly exhibit was Mom’s favorite.

I couldn’t resist including this one….a Bobcat in a black rhino exhibit. I think someone got seriously confused. ;p

Jonathan found Mom’s wheelchair to be quite comfortable.

This little lemur seemed very interested in Austin, hence the google-eyed stare.

There was a darling little English shop down the street from our hotel. After a nice breakfast the next morning, WC and I went over to investigate. You could find all things British…books, teacups, “real” loose tea, Dr. Who shirts…ahh! A British-lover’s dream! I thought of my British-loving friends and longed to buy them all a treasure.

During Mom’s appt. we kids hung out at the St. Louis botanical center. It was lovely to sit in the warm, misty air and enjoy the greenery around us.

As a grand finale to our trip, we went visited the arch. It was very cool. WC, Austin, and I rode to the top in a tiny little capsule. Here’s what it looked like getting out of the capsules at the top:

A breathtaking view indeed!

This one’s my favorite because you can see both sides of the arch looking downward in the center.

Well folks, thus concludes this post on our merry midwinter getaway.  Thanks a bunch for stopping by and come again soon! :)