hard to believe....

Yes, go ahead and let it be known, Robin has a daughter who is an LSU college student. I refuse to believe that I am old enough to have a child in college. How can it seem as though you just left campus and truly that was 20 years ago. Twenty years, you've got to be kiddin' me. Where has the time gone. I guess that is what happens while we are living life, ----time is passing. I think that is why the Bible tells us to redeem our time because the days are evil. I think part of redeeming our time is acknowledging that, like it or not it is continuing to pass and it will stop for no man. My gray hair is evidence of that.

God continues to amaze me with how He will give us divine appointments if we will keep our eyes open for them. I was in a furniture store with a friend of mine this weekend, and ended up in a conversation with the sales lady about George and the faith journey we have been on. It was awesome watching God come on the scene. She then expressed how she would have loved to have known George and how blessed she was that we came in the store yesterday. WOW God just do what you want to do. She gave us her cell phone and email address so we could stay in touch with her.

Keep the fire burning and let the trials in our lives prove God as faithful and then tell others about our awesome God and how He will see us through.

RW

God continues to do....

God continues to do what only He can do. As we surrender our lives to Him, He promises to lead and direct our paths. However, we must not lean on our own understanding. As I begin this new phase of life, I look forward with great anticipation to what God has in store. As we step out and seek to obey Him, He meets us and gives us light for the next step.

Lauren is officially employed now at Target. She is so excited and will be starting college (LSU) on the 25th. I have a daughter in college. There is nothing ok about that. Where has the time gone. I think I blinked and someone sped the time forward on me.

For those of you that read this blog and go to Hosanna, I want to encourage all of us to get on board with the vision Pastor has for us. We need to all dare to believe God and expect Him to refresh and revive us and speak this to those around us. Life is not about work, school, church and repeating that week after week. Life is about searching for the eternal purpose for the lives we come across on a daily basis. Life is about seeking the Lord and the way He would have us conduct ourselves in the midst of the circumstances we find ourselves in. Press into the things of the Lord and expect Him to answer and show the way. Love ya, RW

faith, hope, and love...

I watched the video of George the other night. He set up the camera and for over 40 minutes he read different scriptures to us. He skipped around the Bible reading out loud. It was great seeing him on the video. Much of what he read had to do with faith and love. The Lord began ministering to me as George was reading. If we settle the issues of faith and love hope will take care of itself. As we live expecting God to honor His word and being faithful to what He has promised and loving those around us then we will live with hope in our lives.

Lauren has gone with Becca, a friend of hers, to move her into her dorm in Cleveland, TN. She will be coming home with Becca's mom on Sunday. She is growing up and it is different working through the releasing her to go and do things without me. It's all part of the process and the passage of time.

I encourage you all to keep your heart open to God. There is constantly things He is trying to teach us. Our hearts need to be pliable in His hands. We need to be quick to obey and the Lord leads us. more later, RW

school started.....,

Well today was the first day of school for Bryan. It was his first day of school in his life that didn't include Lauren and I being there. Real different for me to drop him off and not stick around. God has faithfully shown me some things about myself. It is not always nice seeing things about yourself that God wants to change. He wants to change my way of thinking and looking a things, people and situations. I have seemed to allow myself to be distracted in a couple of areas getting my mind and heart off of HIS purposes and set on my own. However, God in His gentle way can get our attention and redirect and focus us on what is ultimately important. It never fails when we get ourselves on our minds too much God has to get our attention and let us know it is NOT about us.

Today I have officially started the process of making this blog into a book. Please pray for God's direction and that I will have the mind of Christ in all that I do. I want to know what He wants.

I have had to surrender, resurrender, and surrender again. RW

pics..

Here are a couple of pics of Lauren and I, one from prom the other from graduation. I am finally learning how to post pictures. We have been pretty busy trying to get ourselves ready for the new school year. Lauren and Bryan along with Nana's assitance have been rearranging their rooms. So the house is upside down but it will soon be coming together.

I am finding myself in constan surrender mode. Surrendering plans, surrendering emotions, surrendering it all. The process of dying to self is not easy, but quite necessary. I will start working on publishing the blog Monday. Compiling it all together and writing a synopsis of what was happening along the way. I can't wait to get going with this because I feel it is the calling to the Lord to get this done. I go into this next phase of life with mych anticipation of what God wants to do IN and through me.

Oh, while mom was cleaning out a drawer for Lauren to have the chest of drawers she found a video tape left behind by George. It was in the back of his underwear drawer, labeled GEORGE--HIMSELF 1/26/06. I have not watched it yet but will watch tonight. I am sure he will start by saying, "You have just now cleaned out my underwear drawer!!" Can't wait to hear from him. Lately, I have been missing him in a new way. Missing his insightful comments, missing his humor, missing his wisdom, missing the decisions he would be making.

More after church tomorrow, RW

school soon to start...

Well we bought Bryan school uniforms the other day. Trying to get ready for the new school year. Lauren is steady preparing for LSU. I have been helping a friend of mine out at his business four or five hours a day. He owns a printing company and it has been interesting learning how that business works.

You know the Lord is ever wanting to teach us things. I have begun learning more and more about the love of Christ. I Corinthians 13 is such a wonderful passage. I want a more in depth understanding of this love. I want to see myself operating in this love in all of my relationships. As we read this passage we realize how sacrificial this love truly is. It holds no record of wrong, it does not seek its own, it is patient and kind. WOW!!!! Jesus must love like this through us because we are totally incapable of such love. As pastor Ralph preached Wednesday we need to clean our loves out of the dust that collects so that times of refreshing my come. We get so bogged down in the act of living that we forget about the most precious thing around us---people. Lord open our eyes to those around us. Those that are in need of an encouraging word, a smile of peace and joy. Let us realize that if we stay consumed with ourselves we miss opportunities to exhibit the love of God. more later RW