Encouraging Gifts, Talents, Passions and Abilities

I have memories of our now 13-year-old daughter as a toddler trying to plant every seed she could find or come across in our yard. She could  barely talk and was digging holes planting seeds.  She seemed to have a spot (or two)  cleared out in the flowerbed waiting and watching for something to spring up. I had no idea at the time this interest would continue to grow and the Lord would develop in her a deep passion for self-sustaining farming and homesteading. I am thankful we allowed those holes to be dug. Two moves later it really doesn't matter one bit that it wasn't a perfectly maintained flowerbed however it does matter that her passion was nurtured and encouraged. 

I recall having the kids pull weeds as a disciplinary activity when they were younger. It always seemed to work for Logan; you would clearly see his misery with each and every second that passed.  (There were great Biblical lessons to tie into our talks after the activity was complete) I attempted this activity once and only once for Maddy. I sent her out to weed the beds and she enjoyed every single second and even asked to stay longer when her time was up. It gave me insight into her unique passion, not to mention the understanding that this wasn't a successful technique for discipline. 

Now at 13 years old she is constantly learning and sharing her passion with others. I wasn't thrilled when we decided to rent a plot of land at the community garden three years ago. I thought I was sacrificing time I didn't have but little did I know how The Lord would use the dirt, weeds and harvest to teach us some valuable lessons.  Maddy's interest exploded and her passion was shared with many others and us over the past few years. We added an additional plot of land each year and now have 3 plots, a 30x90 area now.  I am thankful  the Lord gave her (and all of our children) passions beyond our own interests as parents.  We continue to learn many things through our children's gifts/talents/passions and we have the privilege of encouraging, affirming and praying they will use everything to advance the gospel.  

1st big harvest in the garden (last week)  

It brings me so much joy to listen to the sweet conversations between these two at the garden. I have overheard them talking as they pull weeds sharing their dreams with one another. 

We enlisted Billy's help this week picking beans and peas! We picked over 8 pounds of beans!  Many hours are spent in the garden weeding since we don't use chemicals on the plants. Madelyn saves many of her seeds and almost everything is organic, heirloom and Non-GMO. 

This tough time of the season is when you can look around at the other plots and see who has given up because of the weeds or lack of time.

This is the second harvest. Can you imagine how much all this organic produce would be at the grocery store?!

The work continues after harvesting. We spent several hours' together washing, drying, snapping, shelling, blanching, freezing, cutting and storing the produce. So many great conversations were had and Madelyn works diligently with so much joy and contentment. Also, I am thankful that our work helps tremendously with our grocery budget and they enjoy sharing the harvest with others.

Little by little our picky eater is attempting to try new food as she helps in the garden. 

Stay tuned our harvesting season has just begun! 

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10 

In the comments below please share some of your childrens' gifts, talents, passions and abilities and how you are encouraging them to use them to serve others.

Whiteout- Are you in one now?

Last week one evening I found myself driving in a "snow squall/whiteout" with two of my kids in the car only a few short miles from our home. The snow happened suddenly and it was extremely unnerving as we were on a busy road unable to pull over in a safe place. I quickly tried the high beams in order to gain some sort visibility and it only took a split second to realize it made the situation worse.  So, with a deep breath and determination I cautiously proceeded keeping my gaze in front of me as far as I was able to see which was only a few feet. I kept driving forward in an uncomfortable situation trusting there would be time to maneuver the vehicle in the case of a sudden change. I noticed headlights in the median from a few cars that had veered off the road nearly hitting one another. This gave me further assurance it was best not to stop or pull over so that we too would not become a target. We missed the first entrance to our neighborhood even though we have taken it numerous times. It was  hidden and unrecognizable so we made the next turn and made it safely to our home. We all let out a deep sigh of relief and a sense of victory with a fist bump as we pulled into the driveway. We were all relieved and thankful the storm had passed and we made it safely through. We were not eager to jump back into the truck but we knew we had learned a couple things through the experience that would help if we found ourselves in a similar situation.  As the days passed I couldn't help but think when sudden trials and circumstances hit our lives and the storm rages without warning we should keep the same gaze during the storm on Jesus.

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left turn your foot away from evil. 
Proverbs 4:25-27

A friend of ours describes this passage as "aggressively holding the position." Just like in the whiteout while gripping the wheel trusting my path would be illuminated in time I held the position and proceeded forward. The same is true with personal trials when we have surrendered to Jesus and to His sanctification process in our lives. When we find ourselves in a difficult circumstance we can trust our steps will be illuminated despite the apparent darkness. It's difficult in these moments to aggressively hold the position without desiring our own control, self reliance and comfort that may lead us to veer off the path. (Colossians 3:2) Swerving to the right or to the left during a storm often places us in danger. During a trail this is a playground for the enemy to prowl with doubts, confusion and lies. This leads to a lost gaze from our goal, Jesus. 

We all do it, we all lose our gaze.  We are human bent toward sin and there would be no point in the cross if we could walk through life perfectly without being pruned and the opportunity to be in awe of grace.  Besides, if we never struggled or wrestled with sin or fell short we might be tempted to believe we are not weak, in constant need of a Savior. If you are currently in a storm, coming out of a storm or getting ready to go into one we can glance in our rear view mirror to remember the Lord's faithfulness in the past. Then we can turn our gaze directly in front of us recalling His promises and knowing God is sovereign, God is good and He loves you in the midst of the storm.  If and when you have veered off, grieve over your sin, repent and reset your gaze toward Jesus while resting in the finished work of Christ. 

My sisters and brothers, on the other side of this journey I envision giving you a fist bump (like the one we gave one another once we made it home after the whiteout). If you are reading this and haven't surrendered your heart to Jesus, I pray you will.  You too will go through storms and there is hope that you can know that nothing in your life is wasted. It all has a purpose and will produce an unexplainable joy. This can only come by surrendering your heart to our Creator. I hope if your reading this post we can give one another a victory fist bump one day when we are home in eternity. 

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

(Picture taken a few weeks ago)
Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your  feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left turn your foot away from evil. Proverbs 4:25-27

How Great....

How Great is Our God continues to ring in my ears as I think about this past Sunday. We were surrounded by a sweet church congregation and several families that came to celebrate and witness Olivia's Baptism. We are thankful for each one of you.  Olivia was extremely eager, persistent and ready to take this step of obedience. She is confident her life is sealed in Christ and was excited to share her decision to follow Christ publicly.  

It has been a very long time since I have blogged and I just recently started to journal again. Why? There had been some dark days and words escaped my deep thoughts in the valley.  I am thankful those days are hopefully in the rear view mirror and I pray that the rawness's will continue to fade into thankfulness for the opportunity of growth.

It was the first time in months that I couldn't resist but to belt out in my off tune voice How Great Is Our God with knowing, without a shadow of doubt, with confidence the Lord continues to move and His plans are still unfolding. A sense of.... hope after months of trails, heartache, uncertainty and transitions.  

God is sovereign,
God is good,

His love never ends,

How Great Is Our God

The splendor of the King, clothed in majesty

Let all the earth rejoice

All the earth rejoice

He wraps Himself in light

And darkenss tries to hide

It trembles at His voice

Trembles at His voice

How great is our God, sing with me

How great is our God and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Age to age, He stands

And time is in His hands

Breginning and the end

Beginning and the end

The Godhead Three in One 

Father, Spirit, Son

Lion and the Lamb

Lion and the Lamb

How great, how great is our God

How great is our God, sing with me

How great is our God and all will see

How great, how great is our God

Thank you for celebrating with us! 

(It takes special friends for Olivia to be her silly self that she is at home in public!)

Love!  

Thank you for celebrating with us!

(You guys are special even if Olivia changes Jose's name to keep him on his toes) 

Love!

Thank you for celebrating with us!

(I just love how she is leaning against Sandy...she has a way of doing that doesn't she?)

Love!

Thank you for celebrating with us!

(wish we would have snagged all your kiddos even though Olivia likes to karate chop Dillian's legs!)

Love! 

Thank you, for all those who watched and have participated by investing into Olivia's life. Ask her about her decison to be Baptized and her testimony of surrendering her heart to Jesus. Would you consider praying as your investment in her walk with the Lord. Besides the heavy lifting is done interceding in prayer. Please pray for her as she continues to grow and mature in her walk with the Lord. 

Read more:  Chris Tomlin - How Great Is Our God Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

Broken BUT made new

Recently, I was dusting Logan's book shelf and I dropped one of his trophies. It shattered into several pieces all over his floor. I collected the pieces and set them in a neat pile in Billy's office. Olivia, passed through the office shortly after and glanced down to see the pile of broken trophy pieces. She stopped and stared at the pieces and asked what happened. After explaining the situation she appeared concerned but accepted that it was an accident. Tim and Teri (our friends from NC) were on their way to the house for a visit and everyone was eager for their arrival and perhaps a bit distracted as we were not thinking about the trophy any longer.

The Grays arrived and we spent time talking and catching up and at some point during their visit  Olivia whispered something to Mrs. Teri and off they went into the another room. Little did we know that Olivia had collected the pieces of the trophy and she had attempted to put it back together with an Elmer's glue stick. She had been working diligently, with good intentions attempting to put it together but without success so she asked Mr. Tim and Mrs. Teri for help. The pieces were collected, the Elmer's glue was cleaned off and another type of glue was used as Tim, Teri and Olivia sat at the dining room table putting Logan's trophy together.

I would have never chosen or wanted Logan's trophy to break BUT the opportunity for his sister to show compassion, care and love for him was worth the broken trophy pieces. Also, Tim quickly reminded me that it was an opportunity for he and Teri to bond with Olivia. Olivia was so thankful that she had help, she was tired and wasn't making much progress (perhaps making it messier) by attempting to do it all on her own. I couldn't resist thinking of all the learning lessons and illustrations that were unfolding before my eyes.

That little trophy was broken BUT it has been made new and has a new story. It was special before BUT now it holds a deeper, more significant story. When I look at that trophy now, it's not perfect BUT its a treasure. We all have a time in our life when the pieces are shattered, circumstances are difficult and we can attempt to put it back together with our own efforts (perhaps making it messier) or surrender to our Savior and allow Him to restore, redeem and transform our lives with significant purpose. Surrendering and being transformed doesn't mean a perfect life but one that allows the flaws to be used for His purpose and to point others to the redeeming power of our Savior.

.......BUT^[c] God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, ⁵ even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— ⁶ and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, ⁷ so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. ⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast. ¹⁰ For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them Ephesians 2

Olivia wrapped up Logan's trophy, a note and some chocolate that was given to her in a small box. Here is a small clip....

Stop and smell the flowers

Spring tends to ramp up our family calendar and it is fast paced with a variety of activities. The days seem to fly by as we turn the calendar pages quickly. Even in the busyness of life I am thankful for the sweet moments the Lord weaves into our lives that slow the pace.

Last Wednesday was beyond busy with Billy out of town and the kids had a number of commitments. Despite all the busyness Olivia had a moment to bounce through the yard and she brought a flower over to the porch and asked me to look at all the bumps and colors. As I took a deep breath to slow my pace I peered down in between her tiny hands and noticed how detailed, intricate, precise and beautiful it was. As her hands clutched the flower and those little brown eyes looked up I cupped my hands around hers and whispered "God made it, it's beautiful, just beautiful Olivia, do you see all the detail?"
We took a moment to inspect all the lines, bumps, colors, details and took a few sniffs (very strong fragrant smell)  then she dropped the cut off flower in a bucket and bounced through the yard once more.

Although many things needed to get accomplished before the sun went down I was Thankful God gave me little ones that slow me down in my tracks. I cringe at the thought of how many times I have missed the sweetness of these opportunities but I am thankful this time (by His grace)  it was not overlooked. This flower was a sweet reminder that God created, grows, and cares for the details on the flower and He cares about every single detail in our lives. Nothing is overlooked, nothing thrown together, nothing un-noticed, nothing out of His grip and control. He already knows what the day and future hold. Despite changing circumstances and trials that we face in this fallen world, God never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever.(Hebrews 13:8)  He cares about all the details in our lives and can use all things to mature us in our faith and point others to the hope and unchangeable Jesus Christ.

" Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these" Luke 12:27

 

 

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. Romans 8:28

One year, One year ago today

One year ago today...

A Reflection of God's Faithfulness

My Cup Runneth Over

I recall pulling out of Brewers Glynn neighborhood the night before moving saying one last goodbye. With a broken voice in between sniffling saying  "Lord this has got to be a big work you have ahead, this is going to be big....just got to be, its just got to be" clenching my steering wheel trying to drive with tears filling up in my eyes.

pouring out, filling up, pouring out, filling up

 the cup remains full

reading scripture, praying, serving...... 

Today,  I am celebrating at least 7 lives that have been changed for eternity and many special friendships that have begun.  God is faithful and I am in awe of His plan as my cup runneth over with His goodness. It is a privilege to be part of God's work in PA.  Too much even to sum up, however it certainly has been and continues to be much pruning & growing, many heartaches, and many celebrations.

pouring out, filling up, pouring out, filling up

My cup runneth over

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.

For what is seen is temporary,

but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably

more than all we ask or imagine,

  according to his power that is at

 work within us, Ephesians 3:20

Here is the link to the post the week we moved to PA one year ago here

We will miss you Popi

While on our road trip we received news that Billy's grandfather had been taken to the ER and admitted to ICU. He suffered sudden heart failure and now after a few long days the family is waiting for medical staff to locate recipients for organs. Please pray for the family as Popi is on machines at this time. Pray the family will draw comfort and peace in the Lord. Here are a few pictures of our visit in May with Popi.

Our kids have lots of questions and all were in tears. Maddy sobbed for at least an hour when we gave the children the news. Pray for wisdom as we walk through the next few days with our kids and extend Christ's love to the family.

Psalm 23

A psalm of David.

¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
² He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
³ he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
⁴ Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,^[a]
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
⁶ Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

From the Vault and New Thoughts

I just noticed that I started this blog a year ago.  I looked at a few of the first post and I am blown away with how the Lord has been so faithful in this journey. This post in particular floods my thoughts with emotions. http://the6morrisons.blogspot.com/2010/09/cup-of-sugar.html   You see on this side of the move, now in another zip code, many miles away,some relationships have changed and many relationships are deeper. New friends have been added and will continue to grow in depth because


God knows........
God knows how many hairs are on your head (Matt 10:27, Luke 12:7)
God knows the number of stars in the sky and has named each one of them (Psalm 147:4)
God knows and loves my neighbors/friends much more than I ever could (Psalm 139:13,14)


A few weeks ago my neighbor from Wake Forest who became a life long friend came to visit us in Harrisburg PA.  We gave a tour of our new town and shared stories about how the Lord is moving in here. We stayed up talking, sharing and catching up on stories until our eyes were fuzzy. Sure, it's hard not to skip across the street to borrow a cup of sugar  BUT we serve a big God who deeply loves our friends more than we ever could.  Agape love,  perfect, unconditional love, unfailing love, that only comes from Him. There are times that I  get a lump in my throat thinking about people we miss or not worshiping at Faith. However even in those moments God is faithful in reminding me of our purpose here on this side of heaven. I was reading in James this week about not just being forgetful hearers but effectual doers of His word. Not by works to earn salvation nor does it mean that we only ask Jesus to come into our hearts to get our ticket punched for heaven . Accepting Christ as your personal Savior  provokes a deep longing to know God more and to follow Him.  Giving up comfort for the sake of the gospel is daily, not just moving to PA.


There are days that we are beyond tired and fall out in the bed at night. At times our plan to rest doesn't happen quite the way that we thought it would. The Lord has graciously filled us up in ways only He can.  I can recall a day when I was worn out, I stayed home from football to hang out at the house. When Billy came home he found Maddy and I in the alley talking with some neighbors. As I started telling Billy of how the Lord crossed our paths with this particular neighbor at His perfect timing I forgot I was tired. I was filled up, excited and praising God for His plan. God continues to weave new people in our lives on a daily basis.  Relationships continue to deepen and we are blown away at how this plan is so much bigger than us and beyond thankful to be part of His work.


Settling into Harrisburg, PA  I will say my purpose and prayer is much the same as it was a year ago when I posted "a cup of sugar"as I wrote these words;
     "I am overwhelmed by the privilege to be where I am now (today), in this community, this neighborhood, a new church, our family. My prayer is God will show me daily how to love the people around me by being  real, transparent, compassionate, giving, available and vulnerable. Even though our time appears limited in this zip code it doesn't mean that we stop developing new friendships as well as deepening the ones that already exist.  We truly are only a vapor in this life, time here on earth goes by fast.(James 4:14) This is evident in how we reflect how quickly our kids grow or how the years seem to be moving at a faster pace. It certainly does matter what we do everyday for His kingdom. It does matter giving up daily comforts in order to share the good news of Jesus."


We have been encouraged by many of you praying on our behalf. God has been faithful to hear your prayers and we ask that you continue to do so, for that is where the work begins. Thank you for your cards, emails, texts, fb messages and visits. We know that it takes sacrifice and planing to pray and to keep in touch, YOU are part of the eternal work in Harrisburg PA.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-22

All in a Day

Just when I think one day can't be any fuller than the day before, I wake up and begin a new one.  I was surprised at how full yesterday was for our family; emotionally, physically and spiritually. We started off the day with Logan's football pictures. It's always more than just going to take pictures or another practice. Its about people, being available to talk, recognizing hurt, caring for the brokenness, and just plain hanging out with some new friends.  Everyone has a story and I pray that I am available when someone is ready to share theirs.  After the pictures we cruised quickly to Hershey to pick up a dresser that I have been looking for since the move. We dropped Logan off at the house then Billy and I went to meet Janice a sweet lady who has contacted us through emails about wanting to know more about our ministry and Redeeming Grace.
Billy and I spent a little over an hour talking with Janice and my heart ached as this woman of God shared with us the depravity of spiritual presence in the area she lives (about 20 minutes away from us).  Her testimony of reading the bible for hours each day and not having a sound church to plug into throughout her life was heart wrenching. Although we are here in Harrisburg, PA my mind struggles to comprehend that someone in the US does not have a solid biblical church to attend. Janice shared a story about asking her husband to take her to Washington, DC (about an hour or two away) to church for her birthday....this was her gift. Her gift was to attend a church that had sound doctrine while worshiping with like minded people. (we are very thankful to have support locally with a few area churches)  I realized at this meeting that the people who are here and desire a solid bible teaching church to attend need encouragement, they need prayer, they need support, they need people. They need more laborers.

After we left the meeting we headed home to prepare for our first home bible study. We hadn't anticipated starting a formal gathering so soon but we felt The Lord was leading us to begin now.  We certainly felt the Lord's leading and prompting when we had  people asking and making comments like "when do you meet"? "When is your bible study?"  "When is your first service?" "I don't have a bible", "I don't understand the bible", "my church closed it's doors", "I haven't been to church in years". Billy and I prayed and decided that we would start a bible study in our home for our family and invite people to come along with us to study. It never hurts to study the bible as a family right? So we printed our little invitations and handed out about 3-4 to people that have specifically asked about coming. We had a few respond very positively and a neighbor and her daughter showed up to eat tacos and study the bible with our family.

We started studying the book of John inductively, verse by verse. The questions started and clarity filled the room with the gospel, the good news. We quickly realized that we had to adjust our wording on a number of things as we talked about what the scriptures said.  We didn't realize how we can complicate the simplicity of the gospel with such "churchy" words.

As I looked around the living room, I couldn't think of any other place I would rather be, to see our children taking notes, reading the scripture, praying for each other and to have a neighbor excited to take home a new bible, her very first one in a translation she could understand.

Maddy and Logan watching our neighbor walk over to our house.

We started in the book of John walking through  verse by verse. Many questions were asked and many words were defined. The gospel, the good news was presented. God has called us to share the good news. However, its not up to us who accepts the invitation to the bible studies or who chooses to make eternal decisions. We are called to sow and water, its The Lord that causes the growth. That part is out of our hands....praise the Lord!

The kids participated and followed along. We were asked to do another study this week before Maddy's friend goes back home to NY. 

When I woke up Sunday morning, I looked across my living room and I am so thankful for open bibles that were left all across the couch. I don't mind so much this kind of "mess" in my living room.

Never Replacing, But Adding

Our calendar continues to be filled with parties, cookouts, play dates, lunch appointments and sports activities. With a flip of a calender our time is coming to a close in Wake Forest. We realize that we will never spend "enough" time with the folks that we love and we continue to learn to be content and treasure the time we do have here each day.  An on going conversation in our home is that we are never replacing our relationships when we move because our friends are special, unique and God provided them in His perfect timing in our lives.  So as we move forward flipping our calendar with contentment we know we will miss our friends and church family. We are excited for what is ahead on our journey, we know our God is faithful and He has gone before us and has His perfect timing for the people we will meet in the days to come in PA. We are eternally grateful for your friendship and are never replacing but adding to as we move forward.

Here are a few pictures of some time with friends the past few days....wish we would have taken more pictures of all our get-togethers!

A cookout with some of our friends from the Brewers Glynn neighborhood. 

These kids have grown up together in the neighborhood. (we missed Charles at the cookout!)

Our friends gave us a going away ice cream cake...it didn't last long

Olivia loves her friend Chloe

Maddy and Logan passed out prayer cards and gave lots of hugs to the JDE staff on the last day of school

Maddy's crew

The girls stood in line to give Maddy good bye hugs

...and yes, I did tear up a bit

Leaving Jones Dairy for the last time. We have had a great experience at JDE.

Logan giving his principal, Mr. Chappell one of our prayer cards

Logan and his buddy Joshua from baseball. We spent the evening with the baseball team fishing. Good times, good times.

Our friend Dara  & the kids at Ocean Isle Beach, fun times at the beach. It was nice to be away with the family for a few days.

As for a few details, our move date is July 16th. We did find a home to rent in Harrisburg so we are all set and ready to roll in a few weeks. You can certainly pray for our transition and for Billy and I to encourage the kids to press into the Lord as they will deal with separation and the unknown. As for now, the kids are excited and this is an adventure.

"A friend loves at all times..." Proverbs 17:17a