Two weeks ago we finished reading the Old Testament with Noah and Paige.
Time to begin the New Testament with the birth of Christ and reading the only tidbits of his boyhood. We have not read many of the stories about the life and ministry of Jesus to our children. We have read so much of the Old Testament that I just realized in the last month that we haven't shared a lot of the New Testament with them.
Of course we have shared about the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus, but we have left out a very important piece--His life on earth.
My children and I have much to learn from His life. He was the greatest missionary and we want to live like Him.
We need to read about His life so that we know how to love, how to be content, how to pray, so we know who we are following and where are we going and why? We need to know how to be a good friend and how to turn the other cheek with others hurt us, how do we forgive, do we really have the power of God dwelling in us through the Holy Spirit?
We need to know when to go to the crowds and when to withdraw with the Father. We need the Bread of Life and the Living Water because we can't be good enough for God. We can't earn our salvation by memorizing enough verses, going to church enough, tithing enough. We can't earn salvation. It is a free gift of God--Grace!
So two weeks ago we start reading the New Testament and I am truly giddy inside that we are finally telling our children the TRUE stories of when the Christ child grew into a man like their father. I can't stop smiling as we start to read about the first miracle of turning water into wine and the stories and the miracles go on and on. I feel like a little kid inside as we share these stories of what Jesus really did! Reading about John baptizing Jesus and it finally clicking with Noah that John is Elizabeth and Zechariah's son. He remembered how God made Zechariah mute in the temple because he didn't believe Elizabeth would have a baby. Noah realizes that this is the same John that leapt in the womb of Elizabeth when Mary came to see her, pregnant with the Savior of the world. Maybe I am a nerd, but this excites me when the Holy Spirit is helping our son connect the dots of who is who in the Bible.
Last week, I get an email from a friend saying she knows of a Lenten devotional we can get our hands on. We have never observed Lent until this year. We are doing a very simple family devotion for the 40 days leading up to the the Resurrection Sunday. Guess what? The devotional starts with the birth of Christ and goes through His life and ministry! God knew me and my kids needed this!
Easter is my favorite holiday! A time where we can celebrate that Christ paid our debt. He had to do everything for us. He had to be the perfect sacrifice because we simply can do none of it! Excited to spend my days remembering to be mindful of the Word becoming Flesh.
So go on and crack open the New Testament, whether it be your first time reading the captivating stories or your 100th time to reread the Good News, I pray that the Spirit would refresh your joy and thankfulness and put a desire in your heart to live for Him alone.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Friday, November 30, 2012
Re-think Gift Giving
Christmas season is upon us and so is the desire to SHOP!
Christmas gets a little crazy for some of us, but I have always desired a very simple Christmas and focus on what really matters.
Each year that desire gets greater and greater and each year we desire to get less and less for our children. We want to get a lot of things for them, but the truth is that they receive things all year long from us.
The truth is they are in need of NOTHING!
Steve and I are really trying to RE-THINK gift giving.
This year the kids are getting two gifts from us and a gift from each other.
Simple.
I likey!
It takes the focus off of us GETTING and allows us to focus on GIVING!
This year we are wanting to help those in Romania who are in desperate need and in pure poverty! When I say our kids are in need of nothing, I mean NOTHING! I bet your kids don't need a thing either! But, I actually KNOW people who need a window to keep a 20x20 house warm for four small girls and they need a new door. Their door and window are both broken and it is cold outside!
I actually know many many friends in Romania who need shoes this winter.
I know so many people who could use bread and food because as we speak their cupboards are BARE. They aren't quite sure where the next meal is coming from.
There are so many things we can do to truly make a difference and change someone's life! From buying a goat for someone, or shoes/boots, or helping buy a new window and door to keep them warm.
We have SO MUCH! Our money isn't our money. It comes from our Faithful Provider who has given us more than we need so we can bless others.
So my challenge to you is this....
What if you forego getting each of your children even just ONE gift LESS this year?
What if you used that money to GIVE AWAY to someone who was truly in need?
WORSHIP!
"It is better to give than to receive." We like to say it, but do we believe it? Do we practice it?
When you go to make your grocery list for your Christmas feast, try to sacrifice even one thing so that you can help feed those who have nothing to eat.
When you go to do your Christmas shopping remember how full your children's closets already are and choose to buy LESS so that you can help others and possibly help there be ONE LESS hungry or ONE LESS orphan or ONE LESS abandoned or ONE LESS shoeless child!
Please visit http://www.beliefinmotion.org/Pages/MakeADonation.aspx to find so many ways to give! Or e-mail me at vanhornfam05@gmail.com if you want to help!
We lived here for 7 months and worked with these missionaries and know they are legit! They give of themselves daily to spread the Gospel and make Jesus Christ known!
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
our heaviest loss thus far
Exactly seven days ago I excitedly typed up a little post and tried to slyly reveal that we were expecting our third baby.
Now seven days later I write to you regretting that I ever wrote that last post. Because three days later I went into very premature labor....water breaking, contractions....followed by more blood than I have ever seen in my entire life.
The Lord saw it best to take our sweet Scout home. He does all things for our good, but this didn't feel good.
This doesn't feel good.
As I type my stomach is in knots and my eyes are filled with tears. We had already began dreaming and imagining our life with this little one. We couldn't have been more excited and neither could our children.
But, on Friday night as Steve and I sat in the emergency room looking at what remained of our baby on an ultrasound picture and wondering how we explain this to Noah and Paige. I couldn't help but say that this is a great opportunity to teach our children that God is constant and He is always good. Always.
Even when it doesn't feel good or look good or makes us angry and sad. That's okay. But He is still good. He will never change.
God has reminded me that I am not in control of one ounce of my life.
"For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things and in Him all things hold together." ~Colossians 1:16-17
God has also reminded me that this child was never really mine. God allowed me to carry this baby and care for it as best as I could for three short months, but that little life was always His.
And Heaven is all our little Scout will ever know!
So, if you are hurting and feeling hollow...remember that all we have are God's promises & truths found in His holy Word and that is all we really need--He is more than enough!
Now seven days later I write to you regretting that I ever wrote that last post. Because three days later I went into very premature labor....water breaking, contractions....followed by more blood than I have ever seen in my entire life.
The Lord saw it best to take our sweet Scout home. He does all things for our good, but this didn't feel good.
This doesn't feel good.
As I type my stomach is in knots and my eyes are filled with tears. We had already began dreaming and imagining our life with this little one. We couldn't have been more excited and neither could our children.
But, on Friday night as Steve and I sat in the emergency room looking at what remained of our baby on an ultrasound picture and wondering how we explain this to Noah and Paige. I couldn't help but say that this is a great opportunity to teach our children that God is constant and He is always good. Always.
Even when it doesn't feel good or look good or makes us angry and sad. That's okay. But He is still good. He will never change.
God has reminded me that I am not in control of one ounce of my life.
"For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things and in Him all things hold together." ~Colossians 1:16-17
God has also reminded me that this child was never really mine. God allowed me to carry this baby and care for it as best as I could for three short months, but that little life was always His.
And Heaven is all our little Scout will ever know!
So, if you are hurting and feeling hollow...remember that all we have are God's promises & truths found in His holy Word and that is all we really need--He is more than enough!
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
it's been a while...
Hey stranger!
I haven't been on here in a looonnnnggggg time! I just saw that my last blog post was about two months ago, almost to the day. A lot has changed for us in the last couple of months.
Noah started kindergarten at a home school co-op that is a University Model and I got a new very part time job as a teacher at his school. Paige is in pre-school there in my class. And there is a three month old human growing in my belly causing me to, at times feel sick, but mostly just tired. I have slept a lot the last couple of months. I am starting to feel a little more "normal" and think I will begin blogging again, at least for a few more months. I kinda miss it.
I'll write more soon. :)
I haven't been on here in a looonnnnggggg time! I just saw that my last blog post was about two months ago, almost to the day. A lot has changed for us in the last couple of months.
Noah started kindergarten at a home school co-op that is a University Model and I got a new very part time job as a teacher at his school. Paige is in pre-school there in my class. And there is a three month old human growing in my belly causing me to, at times feel sick, but mostly just tired. I have slept a lot the last couple of months. I am starting to feel a little more "normal" and think I will begin blogging again, at least for a few more months. I kinda miss it.
I'll write more soon. :)
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
more cancer?
The laundry room was flooded in soiled clothes and towels. I hadn't been in that room all weekend and it showed. The children were all tucked in bed and the only sound I could now hear was the rushing of water filling up the washing machine.
My husband leaned against the door frame as I sorted through darks, whites, towels.
"What did she say?"
"It's not good," he told me.
"Is it her or her husband."
"Her."
"Well, what is it?" I said, knowing that it was something deadly.
"Pancreatic Cancer."
There it was. That feeling when your heart just sinks in your stomach and your gut feels sick and your heart aches. Tear-filled eyes, loving this woman in our church and feeling guilty that I had not seen her in a month and yet I had not even called to check in on her. Now I know why I hadn't seen her.
That nasty C-word!
Cancer.
Right now, I just know too many people, young and old, mothers and sons, who are battling cancer. Some will die from their cancer and some will not. Regardless, even this cancer is from the hand of God. I have to remember that what satan intends for bad, God makes for good.
His good and their good...our good! His good is our good.
Each time we discover a friend has cancer we are shocked, but God is never surprised. He knows everything about our friends and He allowed this to happen.
"Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail." ~Luke 22:31
We shall be sifted, whether it be cancer or burying a child or the loss of a job or divorce or depression. Jesus didn't say He would prevent satan from sifting us. He said that He has prayed for us during this sifting that our faith may NOT fail!
He will keep us.
Don't be deceived in thinking that when hard times come, God has forsaken you. He knows it. He allowed it. He wants to see you cling to Him in your darkest moments, remembering our purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
My husband leaned against the door frame as I sorted through darks, whites, towels.
"What did she say?"
"It's not good," he told me.
"Is it her or her husband."
"Her."
"Well, what is it?" I said, knowing that it was something deadly.
"Pancreatic Cancer."
There it was. That feeling when your heart just sinks in your stomach and your gut feels sick and your heart aches. Tear-filled eyes, loving this woman in our church and feeling guilty that I had not seen her in a month and yet I had not even called to check in on her. Now I know why I hadn't seen her.
That nasty C-word!
Cancer.
Right now, I just know too many people, young and old, mothers and sons, who are battling cancer. Some will die from their cancer and some will not. Regardless, even this cancer is from the hand of God. I have to remember that what satan intends for bad, God makes for good.
His good and their good...our good! His good is our good.
Each time we discover a friend has cancer we are shocked, but God is never surprised. He knows everything about our friends and He allowed this to happen.
"Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail." ~Luke 22:31
We shall be sifted, whether it be cancer or burying a child or the loss of a job or divorce or depression. Jesus didn't say He would prevent satan from sifting us. He said that He has prayed for us during this sifting that our faith may NOT fail!
He will keep us.
Don't be deceived in thinking that when hard times come, God has forsaken you. He knows it. He allowed it. He wants to see you cling to Him in your darkest moments, remembering our purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
Monday, July 9, 2012
He brings restoration
The house is quiet at 6:14am.
Everyone is asleep.
I have been awake for three hours. My body thinking it is in the middle of the day still because three days ago during this hour it was.
The Lord is good and faithful and allowed me to return to Romania for one week.
One week.
It's almost a tease; but I am thankful for this one week.
The Lord can do a lot in one's heart in a week. For me this one week offered healing that I desperately needed. The Lord made sense of things for me that hadn't made sense in ten months. I don't know how to explain it all, but I will try.
If you know our story then you know that last August we returned from Romania, but not because I wanted to. I returned because my husband believed the Lord wanted to use us here. I returned with him out of submission. Not too much later what I feared happened. I became a little resentful and a little angry. Feeling as if I had to compromise what I felt the Lord leading me to do eleven years before.
Things are different now then they were eleven years ago. I am a wife and a mother and life is different.
How does what God told me 11 years ago about missions fit with my life now?
Well, over the last six weeks God has been healing my heart. Taking away resentment and anger and making sense of it all in my head and in my heart. It started with an apology and a much needed conversation that my husband initiated. There are a lot of personal details that don't belong on a blog, but all I need to say is that this was step #1 to me accepting where God has placed us and giving up my dreams and trying to see a glimpse of God's bigger picture....and forgiveness. O, how important it is to forgive and be forgiven.
Emptying myself, dying to my dreams, so that I can live fully to the glory of God.
Steve, thank you for this conversation that we needed! Thank you for leading us well! You were never "the bad guy" because we left Romania and I knew that all along. Thank you for having honest conversations with me over the last ten months and being so very patient with me.
Before leaving for Romania a little over a week ago the Lord just told me that Steve's passion for pastoring and North Knox and my passion for missions do not have to be in conflict with each other. That God can combine our passions for maximum effectiveness in spreading the Gospel locally and globally.
Sounds like common sense doesn't it?
Well, this was earth-shattering news to me! It has changed everything. My heart attitude, my perspective, expectations. And it was delivered at a perfect time. Just days before I left for Romania.
While in Romania a friend was there who also felt the Lord leading her into missions around the same time as me. We both have married since then and we didn't marry an international missionary. We had a chance to stay up late one night talking and sharing about our experiences and what God has taught us.
How we both have had moments where we wondered where we had gone wrong? Did we disobey God? Did we marry the wrong person?
God has shown me that these are doubts and thoughts that satan wants me to have. I didn't disobey and I definitely didn't marry the wrong person.
My vision was very narrow. I had tunnel vision where I believed that if I was going to be in missions then that meant I was going to live in a little hut in Calcutta, India forever amongst the people in a tiny village.
Eleven years later and God is showing me that he planned it perfectly for Steve and I to be in ministry together, with combined passions of pastoring and missions.
Perhaps we can support missions better by motivating and teaching an entire church campus the importance of missions!?! By leading teams over to help teach the people the Word of God and encourage and love on missionaries in Romania!?! Maybe we can help more this way!?!
My vision was just too narrow.
I am reminded that God's ways are higher and bigger than our own. And I am reminded that we can make plans, but it is God who directs our steps. Thankfully!
This trip was perfect in timing and God knew it.
This trip has brought healing, forgiveness, wiping away of resentment and frustration.
This trip has brought excitement, not only on my part, but Steve seems the most excited about helping in Romania than ever before. He is ready to get over there.
This trip has brought closure in a sense to me. Closure to a season of hurt and questioning and doubt. Closure to a season of grieving.
It probably doesn't make sense to anyone reading this, but not staying in Romania has seriously been a grieving process for me. It was a death to my dreams and it has taken a long time to get over it. That may sound so silly and juvenile, but this is where my heart has been.
I can honestly say that the grieving is over. There is excitement, there is joy, there is hope for the future.
Only God can do this for us!
There is a lot more that came out of this trip, but I wanted to blog about what God has done in my heart!
So often we go on mission trips to help people, but we are the ones most effected and changed. I knew that God was going to do this for me. I knew it!
It makes me think of this song:
You take our mourning, turn it into dancing.
You take our weeping, turn it into laughing.
You take our mourning, turn it into dancing.
You take our sadness, turn it into joy.
You bring restoration.
You bring restoration.
You bring restoration, to my soul.
This is my prayer for the people of Romania and North Knoxville!
Everyone is asleep.
I have been awake for three hours. My body thinking it is in the middle of the day still because three days ago during this hour it was.
The Lord is good and faithful and allowed me to return to Romania for one week.
One week.
It's almost a tease; but I am thankful for this one week.
The Lord can do a lot in one's heart in a week. For me this one week offered healing that I desperately needed. The Lord made sense of things for me that hadn't made sense in ten months. I don't know how to explain it all, but I will try.
If you know our story then you know that last August we returned from Romania, but not because I wanted to. I returned because my husband believed the Lord wanted to use us here. I returned with him out of submission. Not too much later what I feared happened. I became a little resentful and a little angry. Feeling as if I had to compromise what I felt the Lord leading me to do eleven years before.
Things are different now then they were eleven years ago. I am a wife and a mother and life is different.
How does what God told me 11 years ago about missions fit with my life now?
Well, over the last six weeks God has been healing my heart. Taking away resentment and anger and making sense of it all in my head and in my heart. It started with an apology and a much needed conversation that my husband initiated. There are a lot of personal details that don't belong on a blog, but all I need to say is that this was step #1 to me accepting where God has placed us and giving up my dreams and trying to see a glimpse of God's bigger picture....and forgiveness. O, how important it is to forgive and be forgiven.
Emptying myself, dying to my dreams, so that I can live fully to the glory of God.
Steve, thank you for this conversation that we needed! Thank you for leading us well! You were never "the bad guy" because we left Romania and I knew that all along. Thank you for having honest conversations with me over the last ten months and being so very patient with me.
Before leaving for Romania a little over a week ago the Lord just told me that Steve's passion for pastoring and North Knox and my passion for missions do not have to be in conflict with each other. That God can combine our passions for maximum effectiveness in spreading the Gospel locally and globally.
Sounds like common sense doesn't it?
Well, this was earth-shattering news to me! It has changed everything. My heart attitude, my perspective, expectations. And it was delivered at a perfect time. Just days before I left for Romania.
While in Romania a friend was there who also felt the Lord leading her into missions around the same time as me. We both have married since then and we didn't marry an international missionary. We had a chance to stay up late one night talking and sharing about our experiences and what God has taught us.
How we both have had moments where we wondered where we had gone wrong? Did we disobey God? Did we marry the wrong person?
God has shown me that these are doubts and thoughts that satan wants me to have. I didn't disobey and I definitely didn't marry the wrong person.
My vision was very narrow. I had tunnel vision where I believed that if I was going to be in missions then that meant I was going to live in a little hut in Calcutta, India forever amongst the people in a tiny village.
Eleven years later and God is showing me that he planned it perfectly for Steve and I to be in ministry together, with combined passions of pastoring and missions.
Perhaps we can support missions better by motivating and teaching an entire church campus the importance of missions!?! By leading teams over to help teach the people the Word of God and encourage and love on missionaries in Romania!?! Maybe we can help more this way!?!
My vision was just too narrow.
I am reminded that God's ways are higher and bigger than our own. And I am reminded that we can make plans, but it is God who directs our steps. Thankfully!
This trip was perfect in timing and God knew it.
This trip has brought healing, forgiveness, wiping away of resentment and frustration.
This trip has brought excitement, not only on my part, but Steve seems the most excited about helping in Romania than ever before. He is ready to get over there.
This trip has brought closure in a sense to me. Closure to a season of hurt and questioning and doubt. Closure to a season of grieving.
It probably doesn't make sense to anyone reading this, but not staying in Romania has seriously been a grieving process for me. It was a death to my dreams and it has taken a long time to get over it. That may sound so silly and juvenile, but this is where my heart has been.
I can honestly say that the grieving is over. There is excitement, there is joy, there is hope for the future.
Only God can do this for us!
There is a lot more that came out of this trip, but I wanted to blog about what God has done in my heart!
So often we go on mission trips to help people, but we are the ones most effected and changed. I knew that God was going to do this for me. I knew it!
It makes me think of this song:
You take our mourning, turn it into dancing.
You take our weeping, turn it into laughing.
You take our mourning, turn it into dancing.
You take our sadness, turn it into joy.
You bring restoration.
You bring restoration.
You bring restoration, to my soul.
This is my prayer for the people of Romania and North Knoxville!
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
my second home
In three short days I will return to a place I wish was my second home. You know how some folks have a house or two on the coast, one in Europe, etc. If I could do that my home away from home would be in a village in Romania!
Even now I wish I could live part of the year in the States and part of the year in Romania. Maybe one day we will.
In three days I cross the ocean again and on the fourth day I will finally arrive to Romania.
I woke up with butterflies this morning I am so excited.
Even now I wish I could live part of the year in the States and part of the year in Romania. Maybe one day we will.
In three days I cross the ocean again and on the fourth day I will finally arrive to Romania.
I woke up with butterflies this morning I am so excited.
I get to stay at Matthew's Place and see the finished product.
The place my sweet husband served three days a week. His most favorite things,
building and sweating and digging with Aaron and the other men.
Laying a foundation for a home that would hopefully lay a foundation in the heart of so
many orphaned boys... a foundation of a hope and a future in Jesus Christ!
We can't describe to you the joy we have that we got to be a small part of all of this!
That Steve got to be a part of something for the Kingdom of God that will go on and on
for generations of orphaned boys becoming men of God! We pray!!!
The purpose of this trip is with different eyes.
We are now back in Knoxville, but can't shake this ministry, these people out of our hearts and minds.
Often, we talk of what we can do and how we can help them even while here in Knoxville.
We are now starting a church campus of Fellowship Church out in North Knoxville area.
Fellowship has four focus areas for missions. We are praying for Romania to be the missions focus area for the North Campus. There are two villages in particular that we are visiting more and praying about investing in long term: Salucea and Rontau.
I have a soft spot for Salucea. The family we support lives there and we spent a lot of our time there last year. I have already felt a pull to Salucea being the village, but I want to have clarity and discernment from the Lord about where!
Will you please pray with us about this?!!
We want to do the Father's will, not our own!
This morning I received an email from the missionaries there and Aaron went today
to buy a house in Salucea!!! Robin said she would give me all the God details when I get there!
I can hardly wait! God is such a faithful Provider!
We may have a house to stay in! How crazy would that be!!??!!
Please pray for the four of us:
Jennifer Wilson
Jessica Geist
Justin Geist
Cali VanHorn
Pray for our families and especially my two children and Jennifer's two boys and our husbands while we are away.
Please pray for:
-protection from the enemy
-safety in all travel
-pilots to be awake and alert while flying
-physical health--that no one would get sick
-that we would adjust to the time change quickly
-wisdom and discernment from the Holy Spirit on which village
we are to invest in long term and in what ways
-the Gospel to shared and heard very clearly and for many to
believe
-pray for our children and families
-missionaries
i could post a thousand pictures more, but i will stop. :)
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