VBC

Weird Animal Habitat~

This week is the week of Vacation Bible Camp at our church.  Oh, how I love this week!  There is just something magical about gathering all of God's children together and "camping."

There are many people who have spent many many hours putting the camp together from decorations, to games, to crafts, to drama, to food (we feed 150 people supper each night)!  There are so many willing hearts to share the great message of the love Jesus has for each of his children!  This year we have over 90 children we are serving!  

Tonight is night 4, and the sighs and groans the children let out at the end of each night when Miss Shari asks if they are ready to go home, tells us that we are doing something right;-)  I'm getting tired (I try to corral 3 year olds for 2 and a half hours), but the fact that my own children want to put their VBC shirt on right when they get up, tells me we are creating an amazing experience for many children who do not attend church on a regular basis!  Love it!

Weird Animal Habitat Entrance~

The week will be over like that, but my hope is that we have at least shared the amazingness of our God and the love he has for each and everyone of his children every single day.  That alone is worth all of the work~

My own little camper singing~

A good portion of the crew~

Love him~

Easter~

The week started off a little rough with Isla running a 103.5 degree fever.  I stayed home with her and snuggled a sleeping child for most of the day.

Alex encouraged me to take her to the doctor, so I relented.  They said they could find nothing visibly wrong with her, so they sent us home with the idea that it was viral.  Alex stayed home on Tuesday with her, and she woke up fever free.  Yippee!  He and Isla had a Daddy day, and they got all sorts of household chores accomplished!

We hit the weekend with the church Easter Celebration.  We had great attendance, and the kids had fun crafting, snacking, and hunting!

 We colored Easter eggs on Saturday night.  The weather was beautiful, and the kids had played outside a great deal of the afternoon.  Hence the haggard look;-)

Rowan got up early on Sunday (5:10 to be exact), so we were off and running with our own Easter egg hunt.  The Easter Bunny planted 20 eggs in our yard last night, but this morning after our hunt, the kids each had 19!  We think we have a secret neighbor Easter Bunny that plants eggs in the wee hours of the morning.  This is the third year we have awoken to a few extra eggs!

Oh, the anticipation!

We tried to take a selfie all dressed up, and this is what we ended up with!

Then a neighbor came bounding out of his house and across the street to help us out, and he took this!

We are so blessed by the community we live in, and the amazing support they provide!  

We were off to church to hear the great news of Jesus rising from the tomb.  The music was amazing, the atmosphere festive, and we had a relaxing day celebrating the one who gave his life for our sins.  

We ate Easter lunch with Alex's family and played outside until the children were each a dirty mess;-)  

Happy Easter!

Bible in a Year~ April

Whew!  It is hard to believe that March is behind us.  I feel like it just started, and it is long gone now!

 I'm going to be real and say that I have fallen a few days behind on my reading.  Spring is crazy busy at home and at work.  Our family calendar looks abhorrent, and we are having to have sitters fill in several holes to make sure our little ones are watched over.  This is stressful to say the least, so my Bible reading has not been at the level it should be.  I keep telling myself that I will get caught up over summer;-)  I'm goal oriented enough that I think I really will!

Here is the list for those that are joining in on the challenge for April!

April 1: Psalms 119: 1-88
April 2: Psalms 119: 89-176
April 3: Judges 1-2; Psalms 50
April 4: Judges 3-4; Psalms 20
April 5: Judges 5-6; Psalms 121
April 6: Judges 7-8; Psalms 83
April 7: Judges 9; Psalms 120
April 8: Judges 10; Psalms 44; Judges 11
April 9: Judges 12-14; Psalms 143
April 10: Judges 15-17; 2 Peter 1
April 11: Judges 18-19; 2 Peter 2
April 12: Judges 20-21; 2 Peter 3
April 13: 1 Samuel 1-2; Psalms 113
April 14: 1 Samuel 3-6; Psalms 97
April 15: Psalms 124; 1 Samuel 7-9
April 16: 1 Samuel 10-12; Titus 1
April 17: 1 Samuel 13-14; Titus 2
April 18: 1 Samuel 15-16; Titus 3
April 19: 1 Samuel 17; Psalms 27
April 20: Psalms 55; 1 Samuel 18-19; Psalms 42-43
April 21: 1 Samuel 20-22; Psalms 52
April 22: Psalms 54; 1 Samuel 23-24; Psalms 63
April 23: 1 Samuel 25-26; Psalms 7
April 24: Psalms 57; 1 Samuel 27-29; Psalms 31
April 25: 1 Samuel 30-31; Psalms 18
April 26: 2 Samuel 1-3; Psalms 141
April 27: Psalms 58; 2 Samuel 4-6
April 28: Psalms 21; 2 Samuel 7-9
April 29: 1 Samuel 10-12: Psalms 51
April 30: Psalms 36; 2 Samuel 13-14

Bible in a Year-March

 

 The month of March is days 91-121. At the end of this month we will be almost one third of the way through the Bible.  How's that for progress!

I'm going to number them according to the days in March to help you track your progress.  We get to start Proverbs this month, and I am excited about that one!

1~ Deuteronomy 5-6; Proverbs 1
2~ Deuteronomy 7-9; Proverbs 2
3~ Deuteronomy 10; Provers 3; Psalms 37
4~ Deuteronomy 11-12; Proverbs 4
5~ Deuteronomy 13-14; Proverbs 5
6~ Deuteronomy 15-16; Proverbs 6
7~ Deuteronomy 17-18; Proverbs 7
8~ Deuteronomy 19-20; Proverbs 8; Psalms 128
9~Deuteronomy 21-22; Proverbs 9
10~ Deuteronomy 23; Philemon;  Proverbs 10
11~ Deuteronomy 24-25; Proverbs 11; Psalms 49
12~ Deuteronomy 26-27; Proverbs 12; Psalms 19
13~ Deuteronomy 28; Proverbs 13
14~ Deuteronomy 29-30; Proverbs 14
15~ Deuteronomy 31; Proverbs 15; Psalms 139
16~ Deuteronomy 32; Proverbs 16
17~ Deuteronomy 33-34; Proverbs 17
18~ Psalms 1; Joshua 1-2; Proverbs 18
19~ Joshua 3-5; Proverbs 19
20~ Joshua 6-7; Proverbs 20
21~ Joshua 8; Proverbs 21; Psalms 33
22~ Joshua 9-10; Proverbs 22
23~ Joshua 11-12; Proverbs 23; Psalms 149
24~ Joshua 13-14; Proverbs 24
25~ Joshua 15; Proverbs 25
26~ Joshua 16-18; Proverbs 26
27~ Joshua 19-20; Proverbs 27
28~ Joshua 21-22; Proverbs 28
29~ Joshua 23-24; Proverbs 29; Psalms 115
30~ Ruth 1-2; Psalms 129; Proverbs 30
31~ Ruth 3-4; Proverbs 31

The Bible in a Year-February

Another month behind us on the 365 Day challenge.  I've kept up, but January was much harder than December Perhaps, it was the reading of Leviticus.  Ugh.  I really think my life could have been complete without knowing exactly how I was supposed to sacrifice various creatures!!  I just can't fathom that people actually did that.

We are moving on, and I'm posting the schedule for February.  I'm thinking maybe this will be the month for rainbows and butterflies in the Bible;-)  I have numbered it according to the days of the month. I found it really hard to keep track of the reading when I was following the total number of days in the 365 day challenge instead of just the date of the month.  Happy Reading!

1~ Numbers 3-4; Psalms 134
2~ Numbers 5-6; Psalms 61
3~ Numbers 7; Psalms 99
4~ Numbers 8-10; 2 Timothy 1
5~ Numbers 11-12; 2 Timothy 2
6~ Numbers 13-14; 2 Timothy 3
7~ Numbers 15-16; 2 Timothy 4
8~ Numbers 17-18; John 1
9~ Numbers 19-20; Psalms 90; John 2
10~ Numbers 21; John 3; Psalms 135
11~ Numbers 22; John 4
12~ Numbers 23; John 5
13~ Numbers 24; John 6
14~ Numbers 25; John 7
15~ Numbers 26; John 8
16~ Numbers 27; John 9
17~ Numbers 28; John 10
18~ Numbers 29; John 11
19~ Numbers 30; John 12
20~ Numbers 31; John 13
21~ Numbers 32; John 14
22~ Numbers 33; John 15
23~ Numbers 34; John 16
24~ Numbers 35-36; John 17
25~ Deuteronomy 1; John 18
26~ Deuteronomy 2; John 19; Psalms 22
27~ Deuteronomy 3; John 20; Psalms 133
28~ Deuteronomy 4: John 21

The Bible in a Year January Update~

I'm almost a month into my Bible in a Year journey.  I'm happy to say that I have kept up on my Bible reading, and I've actually had a peace come over me as I have poured over the word closer than I ever have before.

I started the month reading out of my childhood bible that my mom gave to me when I was a young girl.  It was hard to read, and there weren't any notes to help me interpret what I was actually reading.

Alex had a study bible, and at the encouragement of a church friend, he purchased me a Quest study bible.  I love it!  Not because it is pink, but because it includes lots of study notes to really help me understand the context as well as mannerisms the people in The Old Testament used.  Alex has been reading nightly too, so I can always fall back on him when I don't understand it;-) 

I would never have guessed I could find time to read the Bible daily, but I not only read it, I look forward to it.

Here are the daily assignments for January if you are interested in taking this journey with me!

Day 32~Exodus 5; Matthew 26; Psalms 41

Day 33~Exodus 6; Matthew 27

Day 34~Exodus 7-8; Matthew 28; Psalms 67

Day 35~Exodus 9-10; Psalms 105

Day 36~Exodus 11-12; Psalms 91

Day 37~Exodus 13-15; Psalms 114

Day 38~Exodus 16-18; 1 Peter 1

Day 39~Exodus 19-20; 1 Peter 2

Day 40~ Exodus 21-22; 1 Peter 3

Day 41~ Exodus 23-24; 1 Peter 4

Day 42~ Exodus 25-26; 1 Peter 5

Day 43~Exodus 27-28; Psalms 96

Day 44~Exodus 29-30; 2 Corinthians 1

Day 45~ Exodus 31-32; 2 Corinthians 2

Day 46~ Exodus 33-34; 2 Corinthians 3

Day 47~ Exodus 35-36; 2 Corinthians 4

Day 48~Exodus 37-38; 2 Corinthians 5

Day 49~Exodus 39-40; 2 Corinthians 6

Day 50~ Leviticus 1-3; 2 Corinthians 7

Day 51~ Leviticus 4-5; 2 Corinthians 8

Day 52~ Leviticus 6-7; 2 Corinthians 9

Day 53~ Leviticus 8-10; 2 Corinthians 10

Day 54~ Leviticus 11; 2 Corinthians 11; Psalms 56

Day 55~ Leviticus 12-13; 2 Corinthians 12

Day 56~ Leviticus 14-15; 2 Corinthians 13

Day 57~ Leviticus 16-18; 1 John 1

Day 58~ Leviticus 19-21; 1 John 2

Day 59~ Leviticus 22-23; 1 John 3

Day 60~ Leviticus 24-25; 1 John 4

Day 61~ Leviticus 26-27; 1 John 5

Day 62~ Numbers 1-2; Psalms 68

The Plan~

Thanksgiving was fantastic as we headed out to my roots for 3 days with the kids.  The kids loved the farm, and my mom, as always, fed us until we were stuffed to the gills!  I am thankful for the quiet and the down time the break has given me.

Tomorrow starts Advent, and thus, our Bible in 365 Days Challenge.  Alex and I have both taken the challenge.  I'm not going to lie, I'm dreading this.  I think it will be sad, and I hate that it is "assigned."  I don't do well with assigned readings, but I'm hoping this will be so life changing that I will have no problem reading it nightly;-)

I'm posting our plan so that you can join me if you'd like.  It will be fun;-)

Day 1: Psalms 148, Genesis 1-2, Ephesians 1
Day 2: Genesis 3-4, Ephesians 2
Day 3: Genesis 5-6, Psalms 12, Ephesians 3
Day 4: Genesis 7-8, Ephesians 4
Day 5: Psalms 8, Genesis 9-10, Ephesians 5
Day 6: Genesis 11-13,  Ephesians 6
Day 7: Psalms 47, Genesis 14-15, Matthew 1
Day 8: Genesis 16-18, Matthew 2
Day 9: Psalms 11, Genesis 19-20, Matthew 3
Day 10: Genesis 21-23, Matthew 4
Day 11: Genesis 24, Matthew 5
Day 12: Genesis 25, Matthew 6, Psalms 127
Day 13: Genesis 26-27, Matthew 7
Day 14: Genesis 28-29, Matthew 8
Day 15: Genesis 30, Matthew 9
Day 16: Genesis 31, Matthew 10
Day 17: Genesis 32-33, Matthew 11, Psalms 131
Day 18: Genesis 34, Matthew 12, Psalms 64
Day 19: Genesis 35, Matthew 13
Day 20: Genesis 36, Matthew 14
Day 21: Genesis 37-38, Matthew 15
Day 22: Genesis 39-40, Matthew 16
Day 23: Genesis 41, Psalms 40, Matthew 17
Day 24: Genesis 42, Matthew 18
Day 25: Genesis 43-44, Matthew 19
Day 26: Genesis 45-46, Matthew 20
Day 27: Genesis 47, Matthew 21
Day 28: Genesis 48-49, Matthew 22
Day 29: Genesis 50, Exodus 1, Matthew 23
Day 30: Exodus 2-3; Matthew 24
Day 31: Exodus 4, Matthew 25

I'll check back with a followup on how it is going as well as the next month of reading.  That's the plan at least;-)

The Bible in 365 Days~

Our church, SWUMC, has placed a new challenge.  The task is to read the Bible in 365 days-seems lofty, huh?

I grew up a devout Catholic who attended Church every Sunday and prayed the rosary on many occasions, but a Bible reader, I was not.  It was simply never a major component of our religion or our daily life through my beginnings.

Now, at the age of 31 and a Methodist, I am still not a regular Bible reader.  I will pick it up off and on and skim through the parts I know about, but I know there is a great deal of this story that I have no clue about!  I blame time for part of the problem for why I don't read the Bible, but I also blame the story itself.  You see, I really prefer to surround myself with stories of inspiration and happy endings.  I have a feeling over the next 365 days, I am going to read more than one story that does not leave me feeling good about it.   But I may be wrong.  I hope I am surprised;-)

Pastor Maria has created a guide, and it seems manageable, so I'm excited to see what I have been missing out on. Alex signed up too, so I'm hoping the accountability between the two of us will really help us both, and I will be able to say, "I've read the Bible!"

Easter!!

We are part of a 20s/30s bible study at our church.  We enjoy the fellowship but also the spiritual growth we are able to make.  I grew up Catholic, very Catholic, but I know very little about the Bible.  I don't know if I just didn't make the connection at a young age or if I really was never taught it, but I have learned a great deal in the last year!

As a group, we agreed to go through a Lenten study.  We ultimately decided upon Adam Hamilton's, 24 Hours That Changed the World.   Oh, my! is about all that I can say.

I believed I always knew Jesus's story, but I never fully knew Jesus's story until the completion of this study.  It was powerful, horrifying, and simply deplorable on so many levels.  I just have no understanding of how someone can treat another human being with such cruelty. I had nightmares, and I really had no desire to go to our study on at least one Sunday, but I did.  All I had to do was hear his story, but it was Jesus that had to endure the story.  There are just no words.

So, Easter had a whole new perspective for me this year.  The kids still dressed up, hunted Easter eggs, and went to Sunday school.  Alex and I went to church, and it was joyous after our study.  The music was beautiful, and I was reminded of how very blessed I am to be a child of God.

We colored eggs!

Sassy's Easter basket~

Rowan's Easter basket~

Rowan going through the goods~

We hunted eggs outside~

Isla was all over finding eggs for her basket~

The silly Easter Bunny even left one in the swing;-)

We were dashing to find one!

I just love this little girl~

Big smiles before church~

  We hosted Alex's parents over later that afternoon for Easter dinner and soccer playing outside.  It was peaceful, quiet, and a true celebration of our Savior!