Monday, January 28, 2008
Refreshing Honesty
I have a little girl in my class who is always "in the know." She seems to make it her business to know everyone else's business. If ever I have a question of what's going on, she is always quick to fill me in. One day, we were all sitting up in front of the room on the carpet. My little "reporter" was turned around intently watching two boys behind her. When I asked her what she was doing, she replied quite honestly, "I am watching to see what they are doing so I can tell on them."
Beautiful Snow
Three days after Christmas we had the most beautiful snowfall! Husband's parents were supposed to come down for a visit that day, and it delayed them, but other than that, it was the perfect snowfall. It was the kind of snow that just made everything look like a Christmas card. It even packed nicely so the kids made a snowman. Husband shoveled, the kids played outside, and I took pictures (from inside where it was warm and dry!). 
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Glory
I went off the road this morning on the way to work. I hit a patch of ice on the Interstate, fish-tailed all over the road, and ended up about 35' down the ditch. The roads were terrible, every school around me was on a two hour late start (except, of course, the one I work at) and my daughter was home sick with strep throat. I should never have attempted to go to work. But I did. So, why the "Glory" title? I was really feeling horrible today, and rightly so. It was a horrible day! I still feel shaky and nauseous. But then I got to thinking.....am I going to be a victim or a victor? Am I going to give glory to the one who brought on the calamity, or am I going to give glory to the one who brought me through the calamity? And I made a choice. I will give glory to the One who brought me through the calamity.
I can certainly see how God was with me every step of the way. Why did He allow this to happen if He was right with me? I don't know. What I do know is that I was not harmed in any way. What I do know is that what Satan meant for bad, God can use for good. Romans 8:28 And we know that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him who have been called according to His purpose. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I am able to see God's hand protecting me. Don't get me wrong, I was SCARED! Like I said, I am still kind of shaky and it's been 13 hours since it happened. BUT, I will not wallow in self pity. I will celebrate the victory!
When I hit the ice, there were cars near me in front of me and behind me. I didn't hit any of them, and I was sliding all over the road. I went flying into the ditch, hit and took out one of those poles with the reflector on top, and yet didn't have so much as a bumped head or a scratch on me.
When I went off the road, I did not even need to call for help. There was a sheriff right behind me who saw the whole thing. He pulled over right behind me, and was out of his car before I was even out of mine. He was very nice, and never even questioned my speed or anything. (I wasn't going fast at all. I just hit a patch of ice and it sent me careening all over the road.) He had me get my things out of the car and drove me to a nearby Hardee's.
When I got into Hardee's and reached for my cell phone, I discovered that I must have left it in the car. I asked the lady at the counter if I could use their phone and she informed me that they did not have a public phone. This was the point that the tears almost came. I guess it was obvious by the look on my face that I was about to cry, so she asked, "What's wrong? Are you stranded or something?" When I said yes that my car was in the ditch about a mile up the road, she was like, "Oh, sorry. That's too bad." Helpful. Thanks. Anyway, I went to the back of the restaurant where the old guys were gathered drinking their coffee and asked if any of them had a phone I could borrow. One of them lent me his right away. Of course I was so flustered all of a sudden I couldn't remember if my work number was 319 or 391! The guy was so nice! He told me not to worry about it, just to dial 411 and let them dial it for me. I didn't have to do that, I finally remembered the right number, but just the fact that he was so kind really made me feel better. After I called work, let them know where I was, and had the arrangements made for my principal to come pick me up (yes, the principal drove 20 minutes to pick me up), the man offered to buy me some breakfast at Hardee's. I was too upset to eat, but again, the kindness this man showed me will always stick with me.
My principal was just glad to see that I wasn't hurt, and was very understanding. I work with a great bunch of people, and they were so nice to me all day. They gave me hugs, taught my class while I tried to get things in order, and let me borrow their cell phones to make calls to my husband, my mom (who was taking care of my daughter) and my insurance agent.
After school, I looked in the phone book for a towing company. There are literally two or three pages of towing companies. I wanted to call a few to get an idea of a price range, but I didn't have time to call 2 or 3 pages worth! I picked 4 and started calling. It seemed like it was going to cost me well over $100 just to get the car pulled up out of the ditch. More if I needed any other services. The fourth one I called said he's easily half the price of other towing companies. He charged $40 to come pull me out. A coincidence that his number was one of the four I wrote down? I don't think so! Unfortunately, my front passenger tire was flat, so he had to tow the car to a gas station. He only charged another $40 to tow it there. He took it to a place where he knew they wouldn't charge an arm and a leg to fix the tire if there was something wrong with it. The tire didn't have a hole in it, but it had been knocked off the rim a bit. The tire was fixed for $10.
While at the gas station, Husband and I searched the car for my missing cell phone. No cell phone. I felt sick as I thought that it must have fallen out into the snow when I got out of the car this morning. We took his truck back to the place where my car went in the ditch, and began to search. Husband thought we were crazy for even trying, but I told him, "I prayed we would find it." He called my phone, and we heard it ringing!! How it managed to stay in one piece while the car was towed out of the ditch, and still was working after being outside in the snow, in single digit temps all day long is nothing short of miraculous! My only explanation? Jesus loves me! :)
So on my way home, 12 hours after I left my house this morning, as I'm thinking what a horrible, rotten, no good, very bad day (just call me Alexander) I had today, I felt God speak to me and say, "But I was with you. I protected you. I gave you favor. Now what are going to choose? to give Me glory and be a victor, or overlook all of these things and be a victim?" It's kind of like the choice the Israelites had in Deuteronomy 30 I guess. Verses 19-20 say, "This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life, and He will give you many years in the land He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."
My mom was doing her devotions this morning and felt like God wanted her to give me some verses. II Corinthians 4: 7-15. It pretty much sums up my day.
But we have the treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake so that His life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the One who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
And finally, verse 17
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
I can certainly see how God was with me every step of the way. Why did He allow this to happen if He was right with me? I don't know. What I do know is that I was not harmed in any way. What I do know is that what Satan meant for bad, God can use for good. Romans 8:28 And we know that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him who have been called according to His purpose. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I am able to see God's hand protecting me. Don't get me wrong, I was SCARED! Like I said, I am still kind of shaky and it's been 13 hours since it happened. BUT, I will not wallow in self pity. I will celebrate the victory!
When I hit the ice, there were cars near me in front of me and behind me. I didn't hit any of them, and I was sliding all over the road. I went flying into the ditch, hit and took out one of those poles with the reflector on top, and yet didn't have so much as a bumped head or a scratch on me.
When I went off the road, I did not even need to call for help. There was a sheriff right behind me who saw the whole thing. He pulled over right behind me, and was out of his car before I was even out of mine. He was very nice, and never even questioned my speed or anything. (I wasn't going fast at all. I just hit a patch of ice and it sent me careening all over the road.) He had me get my things out of the car and drove me to a nearby Hardee's.
When I got into Hardee's and reached for my cell phone, I discovered that I must have left it in the car. I asked the lady at the counter if I could use their phone and she informed me that they did not have a public phone. This was the point that the tears almost came. I guess it was obvious by the look on my face that I was about to cry, so she asked, "What's wrong? Are you stranded or something?" When I said yes that my car was in the ditch about a mile up the road, she was like, "Oh, sorry. That's too bad." Helpful. Thanks. Anyway, I went to the back of the restaurant where the old guys were gathered drinking their coffee and asked if any of them had a phone I could borrow. One of them lent me his right away. Of course I was so flustered all of a sudden I couldn't remember if my work number was 319 or 391! The guy was so nice! He told me not to worry about it, just to dial 411 and let them dial it for me. I didn't have to do that, I finally remembered the right number, but just the fact that he was so kind really made me feel better. After I called work, let them know where I was, and had the arrangements made for my principal to come pick me up (yes, the principal drove 20 minutes to pick me up), the man offered to buy me some breakfast at Hardee's. I was too upset to eat, but again, the kindness this man showed me will always stick with me.
My principal was just glad to see that I wasn't hurt, and was very understanding. I work with a great bunch of people, and they were so nice to me all day. They gave me hugs, taught my class while I tried to get things in order, and let me borrow their cell phones to make calls to my husband, my mom (who was taking care of my daughter) and my insurance agent.
After school, I looked in the phone book for a towing company. There are literally two or three pages of towing companies. I wanted to call a few to get an idea of a price range, but I didn't have time to call 2 or 3 pages worth! I picked 4 and started calling. It seemed like it was going to cost me well over $100 just to get the car pulled up out of the ditch. More if I needed any other services. The fourth one I called said he's easily half the price of other towing companies. He charged $40 to come pull me out. A coincidence that his number was one of the four I wrote down? I don't think so! Unfortunately, my front passenger tire was flat, so he had to tow the car to a gas station. He only charged another $40 to tow it there. He took it to a place where he knew they wouldn't charge an arm and a leg to fix the tire if there was something wrong with it. The tire didn't have a hole in it, but it had been knocked off the rim a bit. The tire was fixed for $10.
While at the gas station, Husband and I searched the car for my missing cell phone. No cell phone. I felt sick as I thought that it must have fallen out into the snow when I got out of the car this morning. We took his truck back to the place where my car went in the ditch, and began to search. Husband thought we were crazy for even trying, but I told him, "I prayed we would find it." He called my phone, and we heard it ringing!! How it managed to stay in one piece while the car was towed out of the ditch, and still was working after being outside in the snow, in single digit temps all day long is nothing short of miraculous! My only explanation? Jesus loves me! :)
So on my way home, 12 hours after I left my house this morning, as I'm thinking what a horrible, rotten, no good, very bad day (just call me Alexander) I had today, I felt God speak to me and say, "But I was with you. I protected you. I gave you favor. Now what are going to choose? to give Me glory and be a victor, or overlook all of these things and be a victim?" It's kind of like the choice the Israelites had in Deuteronomy 30 I guess. Verses 19-20 say, "This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life, and He will give you many years in the land He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."
My mom was doing her devotions this morning and felt like God wanted her to give me some verses. II Corinthians 4: 7-15. It pretty much sums up my day.
But we have the treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake so that His life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the One who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
And finally, verse 17
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
My Kasey
One of my best friends has a little boy that is 2 1/2. He is SO adorable!! He and I are VERY good buds. I just LOVE him! I was over at his house briefly the other day, and he must not have realized that I had left. His mommy told me that some time later he went looking around the house and then said, "Where's my Kasey?!" Doesn't that just melt your heart?
Another day, his mommy and daddy were talking in one room while my buddy was playing in another room. My name entered the conversation, and he came running into the room asking, "Kasey?! Where Kasey?!"
Still another day, my little buddy was talking to another friend of his family. She asked him if he was her buddy. He answered, "No! I Kasey's buddy!" He's such a little cutie! Yes, he does have his Kasey wrapped around his little finger! But look at this face! How could I not be???
Another day, his mommy and daddy were talking in one room while my buddy was playing in another room. My name entered the conversation, and he came running into the room asking, "Kasey?! Where Kasey?!"
Still another day, my little buddy was talking to another friend of his family. She asked him if he was her buddy. He answered, "No! I Kasey's buddy!" He's such a little cutie! Yes, he does have his Kasey wrapped around his little finger! But look at this face! How could I not be???
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Cheap Entertainment
What do you get when you have 1 empty plastic bag, one glass with a few drips of milk left in the bottom, and two adorable kittens?
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
More on the Way
I am still trying to get things all updated before I go back to work & time is running short! AIY-YI-YI!!! We had a really nice Christmas, or three, or five, as we celebrate with our family, with both kids and without, and both sets of grandparents. It gets interesting on the years that The Boy is with his mom for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Two gifts that we got that are of particular interest to the blog are a digital camera and new computer! I have lots of pictures on the new camera that I'm excited to get downloaded on the computer so I can include them in the blog. The only problem is that our current computer can't handle downloading the pictures, and we can't hook up the new computer until we get a monitor to go with it. We can't get the new monitor until the gift card for a hundred dollars off comes in. Boy, it gets complicated, doesn't it?! I tried using our current monitor with the new computer, but it's too old and was not compatible. Hopefully by this weekend we'll be able to have the new one up and running. I can't wait!! Until then, I'm afraid I won't have many posts, as I have pictures I want to include with most of them. Anyway....until then, have a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!
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