It has been awhile since I last posted. So much has been happening my head spins trying to keep up! Andrew and I traveled to Oklahoma to watch our oldest Son Jesse graduate with high honors from College. Not only was it a proud moment in time it was also a very impactful time for us.
From the time our Son was three years old he has said he wanted to be a preacher. While most kids change their vocational desires at least 50 times during their formative years, Jesse never wavered. Much like his older sister, he was very single minded in his goals and has s
pent his whole life focused on this goal and preparing himself for this moment in time when he received his degree and steps into the beginning of living his dream. To see him receive his degree and hear the words that were being spoken about our Son of many hats (reference to his many changes and transformation, hair, hats etc) was an incredible experience. Just a mere 4 years ago we sat in the exact same place, experiencing the same thing as we watched our oldest daughter Meghan take that amazing walk and accept her degree, graduating with high honors and stepping into those things that God had been preparing her for. It took our breath away, to think that another of our children had moved out of transformers and football and into adulthood. It was also humbling to hear these words of honor spoken over him and realize that we had so little to do with his success but all glory went to our God who had carried him and protected him all these years. We were just the guiding hands and loving hearts that poured all that God gave us into him, training him up in the way that he should go.
That in itself is such a huge thing, being responsible for the training up of your children, making sure that all their needs are met, physical, emotionally and most importantly spiritually. It is such an enormous responsibility and can be overwhelming at times. The wonderful thing about parenting, and also maybe the hardest is being able to witness this moment. The moment that all of your struggles, sacrifices, sleepless nights and sore knees all seems worth it. What is hard, is letting them go and be the adults that they were meant to be, usually it is apart from you. That is tough, letting go but it is part of the joys of parenting. I still have to do this 6 more times and although “they” say it gets easier with each one, I haven’t experience that as of yet. I am just so grateful to see my children step into those things that they have believed and worked so hard for. It is a pretty great feeling.God has been working something inside Andrew and myself as well. We didn’t go on this trip expecting. We left with the thought to go to graduation, meet our son’s wonderful girlfriend Suzie and get to know her, and get a little respite from what has been a very grueling long two years. While all of that happened and we had a wonderful time God was doing something in us too. We had both been feeling almost defeated, like our life was coming to some sort of end. Not in a death kind of way, just in a "where do we go from here" kind of way. We both, without realizing it, had been looking at things changing and ending. We were wondering what was next. Was this the way it was going to play out for the rest of our lives? Admittedly, my husband is usually content with the status quo. I, on the other hand, having always been one that needs change and movement, was pretty much dissatisfied and discontent with the status quo.
From the time our Son was three years old he has said he wanted to be a preacher. While most kids change their vocational desires at least 50 times during their formative years, Jesse never wavered. Much like his older sister, he was very single minded in his goals and has s
pent his whole life focused on this goal and preparing himself for this moment in time when he received his degree and steps into the beginning of living his dream. To see him receive his degree and hear the words that were being spoken about our Son of many hats (reference to his many changes and transformation, hair, hats etc) was an incredible experience. Just a mere 4 years ago we sat in the exact same place, experiencing the same thing as we watched our oldest daughter Meghan take that amazing walk and accept her degree, graduating with high honors and stepping into those things that God had been preparing her for. It took our breath away, to think that another of our children had moved out of transformers and football and into adulthood. It was also humbling to hear these words of honor spoken over him and realize that we had so little to do with his success but all glory went to our God who had carried him and protected him all these years. We were just the guiding hands and loving hearts that poured all that God gave us into him, training him up in the way that he should go.That in itself is such a huge thing, being responsible for the training up of your children, making sure that all their needs are met, physical, emotionally and most importantly spiritually. It is such an enormous responsibility and can be overwhelming at times. The wonderful thing about parenting, and also maybe the hardest is being able to witness this moment. The moment that all of your struggles, sacrifices, sleepless nights and sore knees all seems worth it. What is hard, is letting them go and be the adults that they were meant to be, usually it is apart from you. That is tough, letting go but it is part of the joys of parenting. I still have to do this 6 more times and although “they” say it gets easier with each one, I haven’t experience that as of yet. I am just so grateful to see my children step into those things that they have believed and worked so hard for. It is a pretty great feeling.God has been working something inside Andrew and myself as well. We didn’t go on this trip expecting. We left with the thought to go to graduation, meet our son’s wonderful girlfriend Suzie and get to know her, and get a little respite from what has been a very grueling long two years. While all of that happened and we had a wonderful time God was doing something in us too. We had both been feeling almost defeated, like our life was coming to some sort of end. Not in a death kind of way, just in a "where do we go from here" kind of way. We both, without realizing it, had been looking at things changing and ending. We were wondering what was next. Was this the way it was going to play out for the rest of our lives? Admittedly, my husband is usually content with the status quo. I, on the other hand, having always been one that needs change and movement, was pretty much dissatisfied and discontent with the status quo.
The good news is that God isn’t so content with status quo either, and he has been speaking new life into our dreams and desires, many of which we thought were long ago buried and dead. Our pastor even had a sermon speaking about God breathing life into old, dead, smelly dreams, talk about confirmation! Can’t really share much, mainly because we are still trying to figure it all out ourselves but the exciting thing is that we aren’t at the end, we are at a new beginning. Some things will be ending but those
are doors that need to close in order for us to walk through the new ones that God intends to open for us. So we are waiting, anticipating and moving in what we know God is speaking. We still have many adventures ahead of us, with 5 high need kids, the fun never ends. But I am so happy that God give us the grace to get through those crazy times and loves us so much that there is always a new trail to blaze for him
