I sat in wonder the other day. I was reading the words of women from all over who were sharing their thoughts on just one word. One word brought out so many things in so many people and this time spent reading was beautiful.

But it gave me pause as I was challenged. Yes. God reaffirmed some things to me as I wondered and day dreamed and took those thoughts to Him. "Tell your story, Amy. Share everything."

Oh, how that challenge filled my heart in a new way. "Yes, God. I will tell my story..."

But what about you? Yes, you. You who found yourself reading these words today. You who have your very own story to tell. Will you tell your story?

No, you don't have to start a blog. You don't have to write these things out. If you're not a person who loves to write, why would you? But maybe you're a talker...or a singer...or a crafter, a painter, a gardener... These things, these talents that God makes us born with? These are the ways we tell the story.

And we must tell the story.

If each of us shared our life experiences and testimonies, imagine the fullness of God that would be revealed!

Tell your story because people need to hear it. They need to know of the God who gives and takes away. They need to know of the God who is love, who loves perfectly, but who is also just. They need to see the picture of God embracing us where we are and calling us to something better. They need to see God work in depression and joy, in death and life, in reaping and sewing, in sunrises and sunsets, in the deep dark and on the mountain top, in the crippling fear and in the freedom of flying. They need to see the fullness of who He is.

Sisters, share your story. For if you do, the message of "You are not alone" will find everyone. The shapes of each, individual life will join together and as all of us begin to tell the stories we know, others will begin to see angles of His face that they've never before seen. The many different angles of who He is...these are the stories people need to hear.

Oh, let us paint the picture of who He is together.

How have you experienced God in your life? How has he shown Himself to be faithful to you? And what are the talents He has given you? Let each of us take our talents and offer them up to Him, finding ways to use each of them to bring Him glory. So that when someone stops to see, hear, smell, taste, or touch the fruits of those talents, they never see our faces but only the bit of God's face that we see and know so intimately.

Tell The Story

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...and it's completely and utterly my fault. However, it is pretty hilarious how this all came to be.

Toddler's don't get lost all by themselves, you know.

Well, at least not in my home.


So, here's the story. Earlier this evening, Alex was having a hard time settling into bed. He kept wanting to get up and cause a ruckus when the hubster and I just wanted to watch (what turned out to be) a completely horrible movie. Is that too much to ask on a Friday night? I think not.

I decided enough was enough. So off I went to Alex's room to have a long talk about why obedience is important.

"Ah-HA!" I thought to myself. "I'll just see what his little Bible has to say about THIS."

I whipped open his little boy-themed Bible and found the first reference to the word "obedience".

"OK, buddy. The Bible is going to explain why listening to mommy and daddy is super important. Ready?"

Alex eagerly stared at me and waited for the story I was about to tell.

It turns out, his Bible seemed to think that using a war explanation was a great idea. I found myself reading things like "When you obey it's like being in an armored tank. You're safe in God's protection. But when you disobey, you're not in the tank and you're an open target."

I know. I KNOW. That makes NO sense if you have very little Bible knowledge and you're a 3 year old boy. I kept thinking to myself, "great! How in the world can I explain this?"

Alex chimed in. "It's a tank? Is it at the quarry?"

"Um. Sure, buddy. The tank could be at a quarry. The important thing is that you need to obey."

"But where is the tank, mommy? I don't see it."

"It's in your imagination, Alex. It's pretend. Get it?"

(I knew I was losing him so I decided to make the big point I was trying to make.)

"Alex, it's time for you to stay in bed and get some sleep. Until you fall asleep, you can tell your lion what the Bible says about obeying. 'If you listen to mommy and daddy, it will keep you safe.'"

"OK, mommy." (he turned to his lion and said) "Lion, the Bible says there's an imaginary tank that keeps us safe. If you're not in the tank, you're gonna get a boo-boo."

At this point, I just burst out with laughter.

(sigh)

I was trying to teach my son a real lesson about obedience. I wanted to teach him from the Bible. I think it's important enough to try and show him where I get my ideas and rules from.

I guess I just need to be sure to read what his Bible says before I read it to him as a lesson. That way, I can know what's coming up and maybe...just maybe...I can really teach him something someday.

LOL

P.S. After all of that, Alex STILL got out of his bed. The hubster decided to "put me on the bench" and he went to take care of Alex himself.  (Apparently they could hear me cracking up as they were supposed to be having a "serious chat.") The first thing Alex said when his dad came to put him to bed was, "There's a tank. It's in my imagination..." I missed the rest since I couldn't hear him over my own laughter.

Apparently, poor Alex wasn't feeling too safe since he couldn't see the tank and therefore couldn't possibly be safely inside of it. He was concerned he was going to get a boo-boo.

BAH-HA-HA-HA! What in the world have I done?

Have you ever completely failed at teaching a lesson?

I think I'm going to leave the Bible teaching to Sunday School and just back-up what they say. ;)

Toddler Lost In Translation...

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Sami, Me, and Christine

Please excuse the poor quality of the photo posted above. I, unfortunately, decided to leave my Canon at home when I traveled to New York City and brought my "point-and-shoot" instead. Excuses aside, I have a wonderful story to share.

I was blessed enough to meet a dear friend who I've only known through e-mails, skype chats, and reading blog posts. She has been such a wonderful part of my life for over a year now and even talked me through my early contractions when I was in labor with Eliana. 

Even though she was not feeling well, she made the trip to the big city with her lovely daughter to see me. I could barely contain my excitement when I heard her knock on my door. And when we saw each other in person for the very first time, I saw that she was the very same person I had always known...just a little bit sweeter in person. ;) 

We hopped in a cab and headed down to Little Italy and had dinner at Giovanni's (that's where the picture was taken). I have never and I mean never experienced Italian food the way I did there. I'm talking "OMG, YUM!", people! Seriously AMAZING food.

But you know what? 

That meal would never have been as good had it not been shared with the friends I was able to share it with. 

We ran through the rain after that meal and tried to get a Coach bag for me. (No luck) We even survived the single craziest car ride I've ever taken. Yes, I'm referring to a taxi. I was freaking out. No, seriously. I was. Fa-Reaking out. But, all I could do was laugh. 

It makes me giggle even thinking of it now. I felt like I was going to die but being with Christine and Sami made me feel so safe that I could only laugh at the chaos of the moment. 

I owe Christine and Sami a HUGE "thank you" for taking me out that night. It was amazing to meet you gals and to get the chance to give you a hug. I appreciate everything.

This is where words frustrate me. There is no way for me to rightly say "thank you". I will forever remember that amazing time, though. It will always be etched on my heart as a treasured memory. 

Friends Across The Miles ~ Memories Etched On My Heart

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My favorite Christmas Song is 'O Holy Night'. This song always lifts my spirits and makes me grateful for the message of the first Christmas.

I thought it would be fun to share the song with you and also tell you the story behind the song.

Have a Blessed and Merry Christmas!

The Amazing Story of 'O Holy Night'

By: Ace Collins

Declared 'unfit for church services' in France and later embraced by U.S. abolitionists, the song continues to inspire.

The strange and fascinating story of "O Holy Night" began in France, yet eventually made its way around the world. This seemingly simple song, inspired by a request from a clergyman, would not only become one of the most beloved anthems of all time, it would mark a technological revolution that would forever change the way people were introduced to music.
In 1847, Placide Cappeau de Roquemaure was the commissionaire of wines in a small French town. Known more for his poetry than his church attendance, it probably shocked Placide when his parish priest asked the commissionaire to pen a poem for Christmas mass. Nevertheless, the poet was honored to share his talents with the church.

In a dusty coach traveling down a bumpy road to France's capital city, Placide Cappeau considered the priest's request. Using the gospel of Luke as his guide, Cappeau imagined witnessing the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Thoughts of being present on the blessed night inspired him. By the time he arrived in Paris, "Cantique de Noel" had been completed.
Moved by his own work, Cappeau decided that his "Cantique de Noel" was not just a poem, but a song in need of a master musician's hand. Not musically inclined himself, the poet turned to one of his friends, Adolphe-Charles Adam, for help.

The son of a well-known classical musician, Adam had studied in the Paris conservatoire. His talent and fame brought requests to write works for orchestras and ballets all over the world. Yet the lyrics that his friend Cappeau gave him must have challenged the composer in a fashion unlike anything he received from London, Berlin, or St. Petersburg.

As a man of Jewish ancestry, for Adam the words of "Cantique de Noel" represented a day he didn't celebrate and a man he did not view as the son of God. Nevertheless, Adam quickly went to work, attempting to marry an original score to Cappeau's beautiful words. The finished work of Adam pleased both poet and priest. The song was performed just three weeks later at a Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.

Initially, "Cantique de Noel" was wholeheartedly accepted by the church in France and the song quickly found its way into various Catholic Christmas services. But when Placide Cappeau walked away from the church and became a part of the socialist movement, and church leaders discovered that Adam was a Jew, the song--which had quickly grown to be one of the most beloved Christmas songs in France--was suddenly and uniformly denounced by the church. The heads of the French Catholic church of the time deemed "Cantique de Noel" as unfit for church services because of its lack of musical taste and "total absence of the spirit of religion." Yet even as the church tried to bury the Christmas song, the French people continued to sing it, and a decade later a reclusive American writer brought it to a whole new audience halfway around the world.

Not only did this American writer--John Sullivan Dwight--feel that this wonderful Christmas song needed to be introduced to America, he saw something else in the song that moved him beyond the story of the birth of Christ. An ardent abolitionist, Dwight strongly identified with the lines of the third verse: "Truly he taught us to love one another; his law is love and his gospel is peace. Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother; and in his name all oppression shall cease." The text supported Dwight's own view of slavery in the South. Published in his magazine, Dwight's English translation of "O Holy Night" quickly found favor in America, especially in the North during the Civil War.

Back in France, even though the song had been banned from the church for almost two decades, many commoners still sang "Cantique de Noel" at home. Legend has it that on Christmas Eve 1871, in the midst of fierce fighting between the armies of Germany and France, during the Franco-Prussian War, a French soldier suddenly jumped out of his muddy trench. Both sides stared at the seemingly crazed man. Boldly standing with no weapon in his hand or at his side, he lifted his eyes to the heavens and sang, "Minuit, Chretiens, c'est l'heure solennelle ou L'Homme Dieu descendit jusqu'a nous," the beginning of "Cantique de Noel."After completing all three verses, a German infantryman climbed out his hiding place and answered with, "Vom Himmel noch, da komm' ich her. Ich bring' euch gute neue Mar, Der guten Mar bring' ich so viel, Davon ich sing'n und sagen will," the beginning of Martin Luther's robust "From Heaven Above to Earth I Come."

The story goes that the fighting stopped for the next twenty-four hours while the men on both sides observed a temporary peace in honor of Christmas day. Perhaps this story had a part in the French church once again embracing "Cantique de Noel" in holiday services.

In 1906, Reginald Fessenden--a 33-year-old university professor and former chief chemist for Thomas Edison--did something long thought impossible. Using a new type of generator, Fessenden spoke into a microphone and, for the first time in history, a man's voice was broadcast over the airwaves: "And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed," he began in a clear, strong voice, hoping he was reaching across the distances he supposed he would.

Shocked radio operators on ships and astonished wireless owners at newspapers sat slack-jawed as their normal, coded impulses, heard over tiny speakers, were interrupted by a professor reading from the gospel of Luke. To the few who caught this broadcast, it must have seemed like a miracle--hearing a voice somehow transmitted to those far away. Some might have believed they were hearing the voice of an angel.

Fessenden was probably unaware of the sensation he was causing on ships and in offices; he couldn't have known that men and women were rushing to their wireless units to catch this Christmas Eve miracle. After finishing his recitation of the birth of Christ, Fessenden picked up his violin and played "O Holy Night," the first song ever sent through the air via radio waves. When the carol ended, so did the broadcast--but not before music had found a new medium that would take it around the world.

Since that first rendition at a small Christmas mass in 1847, "O Holy Night" has been sung millions of times in churches in every corner of the world. And since the moment a handful of people first heard it played over the radio, the carol has gone on to become one of the entertainment industry's most recorded and played spiritual songs. This incredible work--requested by a forgotten parish priest, written by a poet who would later split from the church, given soaring music by a Jewish composer, and brought to Americans to serve as much as a tool to spotlight the sinful nature of slavery as tell the story of the birth of a Savior--has become one of the most beautiful, inspired pieces of music ever created.

Reprinted from "Stories Behind the Best-Loved Songs of Christmas" for educational purposes only, from Zondervan.

House Blend ~ Christmas Edition

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It’s not my birthday yet. Technically, my birthday isn’t until Monday. But if you ask me, my birthday was yesterday. 

What you don’t know is that the hubster was on the other side of the state yesterday. He had to stay there overnight due to the wonderful, winter weather. Also, you may not know that my toddler woke up with a cold yesterday. Actually, he was up quite a few times in the night crying “I want my mommy.”

So, the hubster is away, the toddler is definitely not feeling well, and I’m exhausted after being alone with my little ones for hours upon hours. Oh yah…and I’m starting to get a migraine.

Early in the afternoon yesterday, my mom called and asked how things were going. I complained about my sick son, my lack of sleep, my migraine and she asked if she could stop by after work to encourage me.

Am I going to turn my mother down? Nope. I really was looking forward to having her here for a bit of a break from the mundane activities.

K…now that I’ve set up my day yesterday, let me back up a bit. I was able to go visit with my parents earlier this week to give my dad his birthday present. Before I left their house, my mom asked if I wanted to come over for her jewelry party on Thursday (yesterday). First I said I couldn’t because of the hubster having to be away for work. Then, I remembered that Alex would be spending that evening at my in-laws so I was happy to say I’d be there with Eliana in tow.

Well, those plans quickly changed when my mother-in-law came down with a very bad chest cold and I pouted as I called my mom to tell her I wouldn’t be able to come over after all.

OK…go back to yesterday with me now. LOL ( I hope your head isn’t spinning yet). My mom called me to let me know she would be over in a few minutes and I said “OK”. Meanwhile, Alex was not being agreeable with his nap and I discovered that it was because he needed a clean diaper.

Half-way through changing Alex’s diaper, I hear my mom knocking on the door. I left Alex on the table and told him I would be right back and ran to the door to let my mom in. When I opened the door, my mom said, “Your dad wants to show you something he picked up for your birthday.”

I was very confused. I was thinking,  “My dad? I thought my mom was coming over after work. What does that have to do with my dad…who should also be at work?”

Then, I saw my mom waving her hand at something or someone. I looked out the door and into the hallway and suddenly  jumped back about 3 feet when I saw what she was talking about. In the hallway was my dad. My dad AND my big sister!!!

My big sister flew in from out of state to meet my little Eliana and celebrate my birthday with me!!! Can you believe that???

Well, I know I couldn’t believe it. I cried and cried and said “I hate you guys! I have a half-naked toddler on the changing table.” Then I started laughing.

I hope you know I don’t really hate my family. I just didn’t know what to say to such a huge surprise. And MAN was I surprised.

Sure, I was in my lounge clothes. My house was a wreck. I had no makeup on. None of that matters, though. I wouldn’t have changed anything about that moment.

Thankfully, there were no cameras; no Paparazzo waiting to post the ugly/surprised look on my face to their blogs.

HOORAY FOR SURPRISES!

P.S. Alex’s diaper did get changed. I didn’t just leave him there. lol

P.P.S. The hubster was gooooooooooooooood at helping this surprise come to life. …scary good. I love him for it, though!!!

 

The Crazy Story Of My Birthday Surprise

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