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An INCREDIBLE Blessing Good Morning! Mmm... this morning is just delicious. I am savoring it right now... it is still quiet and still and I just finished reading my most favorite blog and now am writing to you dear friends. I wanted to share with you an incredible blessing that has taken place in our lives.My family believes in the power of prayer, we believe that God is ready and waiting for us to 'make our requests known to Him'. We also believe that prayer is not just for Moma's and Daddy's but for children also. A couple of months ago we shared with the children that we had a burden... one being that we desperately wanted to pay off any debt that we owed... (and were trying when Shannon got sick, then hurt and then lost his job). Well, we sat down with the children and shared with them that we got Shannon's hospital bill in and it was VERY expensive. For the week he was in the hospital it was in excess of $12,000... our insurance covered a some and they wrote a little off and the amount was down to around $4000. Still! We honestly didn't know how we were going to be able to pay it all... and then Shannon lost his job. Well, we all took turns praying, asking the Lord to bless. We knew that He had a plan for all of this and we just asked that He take this burden from us... and we expected His answer, whether it be that the amount was lessoned, whether it be that He sent the money, or whether the hospital set us up some smallish monthly payments. The next day I talked with the hospital and asked if anything could be done, shared with them the problem and waited for God to work. After a month or so of correspondence back and forth we received a letter in the mail saying that the hospital cleared ALL of the balance! Praise the Lord!!!! What a blessing!!! What was even more of a blessing was that Shannon and I were able to share this with the children. They were with us when we prayed... they knew of our circumstances, they were praying and they were able to witness God's answer!!! We desire for our children to know God, not just know about God. This blessing was not only shared between Shannon and I but between our entire family. It will be something that they will likely remember their entire lives... they serve a God who is real, who is true and who hears the cry of His people. Praise the Lord from who all blessings flow. Thank you Jesus! I was eager to share this with you... I believe sometimes we are worried about sharing our burdens with our children... now don't get me wrong, some things are not meant for their little ears, but there are blessings that are waiting to be had, faith that is waiting to be strengthened, hearts that are waiting to be touched. I am so grateful to have been able to experience this with my family and we are so thankful to the Lord for His incredible blessings this day and every day! My Cup Runneth Over... 
07:29 - Wednesday, October 8, 2008 - comments {18} - post commentOverwhelmed... Yes, I believe that is the perfect term... overwhelmed...Just a bit of insight... we had to go to the doctor for Shannon yesterday. He has a swollen, red, hot forearm. A bad infection, from who knows where has set up in his arm, from his wrist to his elbow. He was given a shot and two prescriptions. If the infection does not go down, he has to go to the ER. All of this with no insurance, no job, no income... all on top of the list of things that already has happened. I am not trying to be a whiner. I am just a bit overwhelmed at the moment. I'll be alright... I just need to have a little time to pray and maybe cry too. Love to you, friends.
06:55 - Wednesday, October 1, 2008 - comments {23} - post commentThankfulnessGood Morning my friends!! Oh, what a happy day. The Lord has blessed us with a brand new beautiful morning. Joy. Jubilation. Breathe it in, savor its loveliness. Enjoy its newness, be excited for what the day holds. Be thankful.Thankfulness... yes, it is so important. We all are blessed so much. Each minute we have, it is a blessing. How we need to be thankful. I am realizing it... during such a time as this I can let myself be negative, I can be bitter or indifferent but I CHOOSE joy! I CHOOSE to be positive. It is so easy to not... it is so easy to let ourselves fall off onto the path of bitterness. It is a conscious decision. The more we choose joy, the more we choose gladness, the more we see God's blessings ALL around us. Join with me, look at the good, look for the positive, smile... SMILE! Really, it is GOOD for you! :D ~Speaking of being thankful... I have been wanting a few raised beds for our garden and yesterday my men built my first one. It was such a sweet gesture, I had to go and take a few pictures. :)  You can't be too careful, you know. :)  Enjoy your day. Choose Joy!My Cup Runneth Over...
06:00 - Thursday, September 18, 2008 - comments {3} - post commentSomewhere over the rainbow... The other evening while I was tidying up my kitchen, the children were playing soccer outside. They came in shrieking "MOM! Come outside quick and bring your camera!" Of course I did and for a brief moment there was this gorgeous rainbow across the lovely pink sky. It was beautiful. One of those moments you thank God and you remember His promises. I am thankful for those promises, they are the reason we can rest in His Word, the reason we can go from day to day without fear of what is to come. We still have no word on a job for Shannon... all the while my flesh wants to wring my hands, wants to worry, to fret. But, deep down inside me I have a peace, a peace that only comes from the Father that I KNOW He is going to be there for us, He is going to take care of us, He has something planned for Shannon. I don't know if I shared this with you or not, but we have been trying to count our blessings through this trial. One, time with us... We have been so blessed by having him home. We love seeing him in the morning and having a family devotion before we begin school. We are getting some things done around the homestead that have been needing to get done. With this crazy gas situation we would be spending a FORTUNE in gas to get him to and from work... we are not having to do that right now. God has a plan... we just need to be submissive to that plan and be aware of His hand in the matter. In one of my favorite movies, White Christmas, there is a song. When I'm worried and I can't sleep
I adore that movie, and that song is such a truth... you start looking at all you do have and all you don't have seems to fade. I count my blessings instead of sheep And I fall asleep counting my blessings When my bankroll is getting small I think of when I had none at all And I fall asleep counting my blessings There is so much in this world today that wants to pull our focus off of Christ and on to other things, on to self, on to materialism, on to *Love*, on to feel good... I want to be a light, I want to let His light shine through me, I want to be able to show others that HE is what you are looking for, He is what you need to feel fulfilled... HE is the way the truth and the life!!! Jesus, Jesus, there is just something about that name. My Cup Runneth Over and Over...
06:47 - Wednesday, September 17, 2008 - comments {5} - post commentEnjoying the simple things in life... Hello my dear, dear friends... I hope this evening finds you all well. I have had some things on my heart that I want to share with you tonight, some news from my husband that makes these things even more real to me. On this roller coaster ride of life we don't know what the next turn will hold... whether we will be plummeting into a valley or climbing a high mountain... It is uncertain, it is sometimes frightening... but we as children of the Living God have a safe and secure end to all of this twisting and turning. My husband has just informed me that he may be losing his job come Tuesday. It is a sudden blow to our family. It is scary, but it is not something that our God, Jehovah-Jireh, The One who Provides, can't handle. He is able. So my mind is how we can be even more frugal minded than we already are. Suppers can be made a bit more cheaply and stretched a bit farther, I have my website that I am trying to sale some things and my Etsy. We don't do a whole lot of extra-curricular activities so that is not a big thing. I try and limit my trips to run errands... maybe instead of once a week I could make it once every two weeks. And these things are well and good... BUT... I don't want them to cloud my focus. I don't want them to dampen my spirit and choke my joy. Things that are precious to me, things that are simple and lovely and good... I am going to focus on those... God's sweet promises A good morning kiss from my husband The early morning snuggle time with my children The rain on the roof Freshly picked vegetables from the garden Hearing my children pray Seeing kindness from my kids to their siblings or others The strong arms of my husband Snowflakes Beautiful skies painted by God's own hand Piano Music Laughter Open windows and a gentle breeze Candlelight Church hymns sung acapella Warm soup on a cold and dreary day My husband reading the Bible to our family Homemade gifts Flowers Smiles Hearing, I love you Moma These things and more are the real and true things, the things to be treasuring... not the material, not the temporal... We trust that through this valley God will be glorified... that He will be lifted up. That He holds us with His Almighty Hand and we can be at peace knowing He will never let us fall. God be with you dear ones.
10:30 - Thursday, August 28, 2008 - comments {18} - post commentCount it all joy Lately... things have been tough... on more than one level. It reminds me of a song that I hear on Moody Broadcasting. I pray that through this time of testing that I can, "Count it all Joy" Have a beautiful weekend friends... Count it all Joy Blessed is the one for the sake of the Son who stands through the fire and the flood he will receive a reward from the King a crown for a victory won so let's make a choice to stand up and rejoice steadfast whatever may come to stand and believe that the Lord will complete the wonderful work He's begun Count it all joy When we face many trials When we suffer for righteousness sake Count it all joy For like gold in the fire Every test is refining our faith Count it all joy Count it all joy Blessed is the one who says Gods will be done running the race faithfully his feet are sure finding strength to endure keeping his eyes on the King he's not tossed like the waves of the sea and strong winds continue to blow so let us trust let us hope and believe as our faith continues to grow Count it all joy When we face many trials When we suffer for righteousness sake Count it all joy For like gold in the fire Every test is refining our faith Count it all joy Count it all joy For God has not promised a path that is not marked with pain but He has promised the joy of His presence for those who will trust in His name Count it all joy When we face many trials When we suffer for righteousness sake Count it all joy For like gold in the fire Every test is refining our faith Count it all joy When we face many trials When we suffer for righteousness sake Count it all joy For like gold in the fire Every test is refining our faith Count it all joy Count it all joy Count it all joy Count it all joy Oh, we count it all joy My Cup Runneth Over...Chas
08:29 - Friday, August 22, 2008 - comments {2} - post commentSights of SummerA garden lined with Sunflowers.... beautiful. Major, the not so little foal behind my sisters new house. A boat deck in the afternoon, with the mountain in the distance... What a wonderful world God made.My Cup Runneth Over...Chas
07:56 - Thursday, August 14, 2008 - comments {5} - post commentVBS is Super Fun...Hello Dear Ones... I hope your week has been especially sweet. Lately things have been a bit crazy, but last night as I was teaching my class at Vacation Bible School I was just overwhelmed with God's goodness and mercy. I love teaching children about our Lord. VBS is super fun... here are a few pics from this week and the great thing is, we still have tonight and tomorrow!!!Our theme is Outrigger Island. And the motto is~ Know the Truth Speak the Truth Live the Truth So we are all dressed in Hawaiian clothes... Last night was Mu-mu night. I felt like Mrs. Roper... remember?  I didn't get a full body shot, but you can kinda get an idea from this picture Cameo and I took before we left... Here are some pictures from the first night...If it weren't for photobooth I would never have pictures of me.. haha  Here is my Carlie Jean and Logan... Here are the girls in my class... My Cameo is there on the far right.  I am excited for tonight and tomorrow and hopefully will have a bunch more pictures. Have a great Friday!My Cup Runneth Over...Chas
08:31 - Friday, July 25, 2008 - comments {6} - post commentPraise the Lord!Praise the Lord, we are officially home... we are so thankful to you our friends and family who have loved and prayed for us while we were in such a time of uncertainty... And even though we do not know what the future holds, we know Who holds the future! Thank you and God bless you for you love and prayers for our family.Shannon is very far from being "well". He is still recovering from such a fight... He was officially diagnosed with camplyobacteriosis and will remain home until next week when he hopefully will feel well enough to get back to normal... Again, thank you, thank you, thank you... I can't say it enough xoxo My Cup Runneth Over...Chas
06:23 - Thursday, July 10, 2008 - comments {10} - post commentA Quick Update on Shannon...Hey Everyone, I only have a minute, I am here with the children for a few minutes before I go back to the hospital.First off,  THANK YOU for praying for Shannon and checking on things. It is crazy.... They are still not sure what is going on with Shannon. Last Tuesday he came home from work not feeling his best, he went to visitation and came home, worked in the garden a little bit with me and then announced, I am going to bed. I thought he was irritated with me or something, I had no idea he was feeling so bad. Wednesday he went to work... he came home, said "I don't feel like going to church" (VERY unlike him) and went to bed. Thursday morning he couldn't even get out of bed. I thought he had the flu or something, he was almost in tears with a headache, a stomach ache, fever and chills. This continued to Friday morning when he got up and vomited. He said he felt much better after that, his head eased up and he felt better. We went over to a friends house and let the kids swim and we sat around and watched. He was SO pale and so weak. That night we watched some fireworks off the back deck and he still said he was improving. In the wee hours of Saturday things went back down, lots of stomach cramping, lots of pain. Saturday evening he was feeling a bit better... saying yet again, I am getting better. I stayed up watching him and tidying the house until 1 am Sunday morning. He was sleeping very soundly and looked like he might really be feeling better. I went to bed a little later... Sunday morning before 6 I hear him up... I wake up to find him lying in the floor and saying "Something is wrong, I am having bloody diarrhea... let's go to the hospital." We rushed to the ER. We walked right in and they started doing tests, kinda treating him like a 'no big deal' case because it sounded like a stomach virus... until he had bloody diarrhea again... After it happened again, they got serious about treating him and decided he needed to be admitted.... They did a CT scan and blood tests, a urine culture, and a stool culture... So here we are, in the hospital since Sunday morning, the children being shuffled between his parents and mine. Waiting and waiting and waiting for his culture to give us some answers. Today the on call doctor said it was campolybactera (spelling) which I looked up and it sounds like "We have no idea what is wrong so we are going to throw some general, fancy sounding term to you and give you and antibiotic." Which is basically what is happening. It doesn't look like we will be home for one to two more days at least. Please pray we can figure out what is going on, that the doctors will be wise in their diagnosis and he will get better... we have been out of work since last Thursday and he has no vacation time or sick time or of the like... (his job doesn't do that). That scares me to death... I know that God is going to take care of us, I know it... but it still scary to know that we have no income if he doesn't work... Our children are suffering, we are suffering without them, I feel torn in two, I need to be there with him because he is sick, but I need to be here to give my kids stability and love and they need their family... Thank you so much for praying and please continue to do so. I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!! My Cup Runneth Over...Chas
05:38 - Wednesday, July 9, 2008 - comments {22} - post comment
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 DescriptionWelcome to the Journey of our lives here at our place on this Mountain, our Heritage Acres Farm. My name is Chas and here you will find my thoughts, my ideas and my accomplishments of my life as a Christian wife to my Sweetheart of many years, and as a Homeschooling Moma to my 4 beautiful blessings. We are making the most out of what God has abundantly blessed us with! Truly, My Cup Runneth Over... I hope you enjoy your visit here and come back soon! 
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