Proud to be a CHILD of the KING!

I am proud to be an American but most importantly today I'm proud to be a CHILD of the KING!

^{Ephesians 3:12} In Christ we can come before God with freedom and without fear. We can do this through faith in Christ.¹³ So I ask you not to become discouraged because of the sufferings I am having for you. My sufferings are for your glory.


Are you PROUD to be a CHILD of the KING! After just celebrating INDEPENDENCE Day I want to talk about our FREEDOM to come to CHRIST and what that FREEDOM can be like.  


I struggled as a child wanting to know where I belonged,  I knew there had to be something I was missing in this thing called life.  I didn't fit in!  My last name was STOVER, so my nickname became ROVER, the dog!  I could have very easily turned to drugs and alcohol to cover up my  hurts because I was hurting!  However, God kept me from all that!  I have no clue as to why he kept me from that because believe me I was tempted.  I  am so thankful that when I was 20 years old I was given the opportunity to accept Christ through faith as my personal savior!  Romans 10:9 "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."


Do I still struggle?  Yes at times, but not everyday like I did before I had this FREEDOM!  Am I still tempted?  Yes, but so thankful I can turn to my DADDY and ask him to help me, and he hears me!  I'm so thankful to be a Child of the KING!  


Do you have FREEDOM today?  If not, take this time to Confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead and you will be saved!  Then your everyday sufferings will be for HIS GLORY!  


If you need to talk, I'm here for you.....just email me!  You can have FREEDOM even in the midst of suffering!

Speak up with what?

I'm BACK after 3 1/2 years!  When I read the last post I have posted on this blog I'm amazed at the words I chose.  When I wrote "Mom and Grandma" I had no idea that just 2 short weeks later my life as Mom and Grandma was going to take a different road from a one night choice.

I just came back from a "SPEAK UP with CONFIDENCE" seminar in Grand Rapids Michigan and it gave me the courage to start blogging on this personal blog again after all this time.  I'm so excited to put into practice everything I learned at SPEAK UP but I'm a little confused about the CONFIDENCE thing!  Is it speak up with Convenience?  Consonants? Continuance? Consequences?  I hope that I figured it out.  I'm so glad that we were SPARKED up with the excitement to share HIS story through OUR story!

So stay tuned if you want to hear HIS amazing story through MY story as wife, MOM, Nana, and Fill in Mom to several hurting boys.

I am so thankful for this woman, the leader of the seminar I just participated in.  She encouraged me as a "far away" mentor and "seasonal" mentor when she didn't even know she was helping me.

Me and Carol Kent!

A week before my life changing day, I signed up for a E-Women Conference out by my friend, Amy, whom lived in North Carolina.  I wanted to do something special for her.  Her birthday was coming up and she had just lost her 25 year old daughter through complications after a surgery on January 1st.  When I signed us up I asked her, "Have you ever heard of Carol Kent?"  She responded with, "No, I haven't but I've heard of all the other speakers!"  I didn't research Carol's testimony at the time, however, the day after my son's arrest someone told me I needed to read a book called "When I lay my Isaac Down" by Carol Kent.  I couldn't sleep that night so I got on the internet was reading every devotion, articles, or Bible verses I could find on Hope and Encouragement.  Then I remembered the book mentioned to me, so I looked it up.  Her picture and name sounded familiar so I pulled up my conference info and sure enough it was that lady I had never heard anything about before.  I started reading everything I could find about Carol, then I was trying to decide if I should buy her book or not that night online.  The thought came into my head do you really think you will have time or want to read her book at this time in your life?  So I didn't order it.  Did I ever tell you that Our God is a BIG GOD?  The next day while in the shower, I decided that I was going to tackle this day with out crying all day and TRUST that HE was going to carry me through this.  I walked out to my kitchen and from far away I could see a book with a bow wrapped around it and a card covering the whole top of the book.  But I knew that MY GOD showed up because I saw the color of the binder on the book.  Here came the tears, but different tears.  If this woman of God can continue on going through what she was going through in life then I could do this too.  She gave me confidence!

Three and a half years later I wrote on her facebook wall thanking her for encouraging me because I finally shared my son's story in front of 100 women at a Mother's Day talk.  She encouraged me to come to "SPEAK UP with CONFIDENCE" seminar and I'm so thankful I listened to God and went!  I'm also thankful that I asked my BEST FRIEND, Brenda, to go with.  We had a GREAT time with other women of God and God HIMSELF!  It was AMAZING!

Hebrews 3:1-6  "Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,”bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future.  But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory."

Mom and Grandma!

As I wrote when I first started this blog it is not easy being a parent. After the joy of having my little grandbaby, I had to watch my good friend say good bye to her beautiful daughter after complications from a surgery. Then a couple days after they left, our daughter ended up in the hospital with an infection and had to be on IV for 4 days with 3 different antibiotics. I was having a hard time, knowing what my role was suppose to be. I wanted to be with my baby girl at the hospital, all the time, but she has a husband to be there with her, and I was needed as a Nana most the time here at home.

We got through that, and Colton is doing well, he is growing like a weed. Here is a picture of him from last night. He will be 3 weeks old already Friday. Wow, where does the time go?

Cassie is doing better, she has a nasty virus right now, can't hardly talk but doing much better than she was.
My son, Cory is going to come home for a late Christmas, the 1st of February so looking forward to seeing him and his wife Charly. It will be the first time we have seen them since last August for me, and last April for Jim.
My son, Curtis, could use some prayer about a relationship he is just starting. I just ask you to pray for God's will to be in this relationship. He made me proud with something he told me today. Then I wanted to turn around and tell him what he should do, but I didn't. He is an adult and I just need to trust God to finish raising him, but did I ever tell you that this part of parenting is the hardest.
I love being a mom though, I would never want to change the fact that I am a mom, because I love my children with all my heart, I just wish I could still tell them not to do that or this, because it might hurt them down the road. The best part of being a mom now though is being a NANA, I love being NANA it is so much fun.

Discipline

As I was looking at pictures to show off our new little grandson, I couldn't help but laugh thinking about how this little guy



wanted to hold his little brother right away but when we put him in his arms it was 30 seconds and he was ready to get down. Then it was please..... baby...... back up on the chair or bed..... with his arms held out. He couldn't get enough of him but he can't sit still because he might fall asleep. Dylan is so jealous of our new little grandson; Colton Bryce who weighed in at 7 lbs 11 oz and was 21 in. long on January 4th. But even though he is jealous you can still see the love he has already for him in this picture here:
It is so tiring chasing after Dylan and watching him act out because this new little guy has taken away some of his thunder. It seems like we are constantly having to discipline him because he is so jealous. When I think of this and how tired Cassie, my daughter, must get when no one is home to help her it makes me think of this; God looking down "thinking, that is nothing, what do you think I go through looking out after all my children?" Our God is so awesome, he is so loving, so forgiving, so powerful, that he can love us all unconditionally at the sametime. He sometimes has to Discipline us also. Deuteronomy 8:5-6 "Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you. Observe the commands of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and revering him." Lord help me to walk in your way and revere you so my walk will be an example to these little grandchildren you have blessed me with. Isn't he precious?
Oh, I forgot to add something about this grandma posting this is having a hard time fitting her head through the door these days. While visiting this precious bundle of joy at the hospital, I was ask if I was my daughter's sister, then when I told them no I'm her mom, they came back with you can't be you are too young to be a grandma.

Time to weep, Time to mourn

Ecclesiastes 3:4 "a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,"

It is so hard to understand sometimes. Why God? Why would you take a beautiful young girl who only wanted to serve you at such a young age. It is so hard. I weep, for this family, I hurt for this family. It is time to mourn. But why for this?

I know that you are in control and you see the whole picture, but sometimes it is just so hard.

Our close friends of several year are going to have to say good bye to their daughter as she has gone home to her heavenly home. A beautiful home, one like nothing what her earthly father could give her here. But oh, it is so hard, to let go.

Please pray for our friends as they go through a very long week, waiting to lay their daughters body to rest, they know her soul has already gone to be with Jesus, but they will still weep and they will still mourn. We mourn with them. Thank you for praying for this family and helping us stand in the gap holding this family up in prayer.

Relaxing! or Worrying?

Christmas is over and my hubby and I are having a great time of just sitting back, doing a whole lot of nothing, while the boys are home with their families. All though we are sitting on the edge of our seat waiting for the CALL........ Our daughter is due January 11th but the doctor said on Wednesday that she probably will see her in the hospital before her next appointment on the 2nd of January. So we are waiting........ waiting............. wondering.............. maybe a little of worrying......No I didn't just say that, did I? Well tonight, at about 5:00 my daughter wouldn't answer her phone, her husband is at work, and I tried again and again and again but no answer. So I took off with our SUV because there was several inches of snow on the ground and our dead end road still hadn't been plowed to go 4 miles to her house to check on her. She had her phone on silent in the afternoon when she was holding her sleeping, little 19 month old who has ear infection. She forgot to change the ring, so she missed my 10 calls I made to her. She just laughed and her husband told her over the phone that I needed to take a chill pill. Okay mothers out there, would you have done the same thing? Come on I need some help out there. I know God's word says Matthew 6:25 "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ?" But I truly am human is there any other human out there? Especially a mom. I sure hope Dylan's medicine kicks in for that ear infection before she has to go have his baby brother, because he will be pretty cranky without him mommy for a couple days. I sure hope the weather cooperates when that little guy decides to join us. I.......... oh there I am doing it again. Sorry, I guess I really am human. If you can, please say a little prayer for me while I'm sitting back relaxing doing a whole lot of nothing but thinking about when this little guy is going to join us. Thanks hope you all have a Happy New Year! If I don't come back before the new year to show off our little bundle of joy.

What would you put in the box?

This little guy just loves to get inside the toy box and play with the toys inside the box, isn't he so cute?

Looking at this picture tonight reminded me of a new tradition I want to try to start this year for Christmas. Why do we celebrate Christmas? Jesus is the Reason for the Season. Do I give Jesus a birthday present since it is his birthday? We used to make a birthday cake when our children were little, but I think we need to start doing something differently. I am going to wrap up a beautiful box and put it under the tree and before opening up presents we are going to write on a peace of paper what we are going to give Jesus for HIS PRESENT and put them in the box! Then we can go on with our tradition of finding baby Jesus, the Christmas Story and then open presents. Then maybe it will seem more like Jesus' Birthday. What about you do you have any Christmas traditions you would like to share with me? I would love to hear about them.