Cosette

April 1995

June 2006


Savannah says she can’t remember her life without her. Cosette has been in our family for eleven years. We have grown, moved, had financial crisis and windfalls, she has seen kids grow up and move out and kids be born. Cats, hamsters and rabbits have all come and gone while she remained. She got up with me every morning and was always happy to see me. She has been, for a good long time, a constant in our lives. Sometimes we looked at her and thought “good dog” other times we did not feel so full of affection. She had her issues. She loved to get in the trash, bark if we left her out, and she fought with other dogs. She never really got the “heel” command when we went on walks, and her puppy years were simply a nightmare. After she lost her eye I never got much praise from other dog lovers saying how beautiful she was. Close friends called her “winky” or even the “one eyed monster”. She never seemed to mind. She was always happy to see them. She was a family dog through and through. She barked at the girls if she thought they were getting too high on the playground set. She barked at Jason if she thought he was wrestling too hard with Chris. Cosette is in almost every Christmas and birthday picture we have. (Never mind she was always moving, and we can only see a tail, nose, or ear.) She was always under foot. She was a companion. She was my curly tailed, one eyed, dumpster diving dog.

Lola

I did it! I joined the ranks of soccer moms everywhere. Friday afternoon Jason bought me a minivan. It has power doors, locks, windows and separate climate control for everyone. After going to the grocery store and pushing a button to open the back hatch the question “Why did I fight this for so many years?” came flooding into my mind. As I drive along the road I now see why every other car is a minivan. Convenience, and comfort just may be more important than forever being labeled dorky parents. What may make us even goofier than owning a minivan is the fact that we named her Lola. We hope she does not disappoint. Only time will tell if she was honest about how much gas she eats, and how long she will last. We have (as with every car) promised to care for her with the utmost concern. Here are a few pictures of Lola we hope you love her as much as we do.

Christian perfection???

I have had a really hard time this quarter getting teachers for the weekend services. Just when I think I have enough someone drops out or is disqualified because of background checks or personal issues. The disqualification is what I need to talk about. I cannot explain how difficult it is to tell someone they are not able to teach because of life issues. I see these people working hard to change their lives and wanting to serve. They may even want to teach their own child's class. I find something in their recent past or they share an emotional issue and I make the decision that they simply can't teach. Don't get me wrong some of the things I find out definitely take them out of the running. Life choices before we meet the Lord never disqualify us from heaven but can disqualify us from certain ministries in the church. I stand on an incredibly narrow line in knowing that serving can give us a reason to be stronger. Serving can grow us up and bring us to a point of maturity. When we feel used and know that we are something important to God's plan many times we step up and do the right thing. We find our lives do have a purpose and what we do matters. We come to an understanding that the whole world does not revolve around us. I know there are other ways to serve and I always give those options as I deliver the blow. It still feels to me that I am saying they are not good enough to work in the kingdom. I imagine the thoughts in their minds saying "if I am not good enough to work then I am not good enough for HIM." I speak this from experience. When I was a young teen my mother was not able to be a table leader in a Christian woman's group she belonged to because she had once been divorced. Never mind that it was years before, never mind that he was a womanizer, an alcoholic, and abusive. She was disqualified, and dismissed as having nothing to say to women, and worse yet not being a "good example". My mom simply worked with the children (I guess that was o.k.) and never seemed to be angry. I on the other hand felt that my mom and the women she would have served had something stolen from them all in the name of Christian perfection. A facade acted out and fiercely protected in churches all across our country. As I lead this thing it is hard to stand in the balance of serving the kids I am called to protect, and assisting the growing process of those who feel called to serve them. Pray for me that I don't fall on either side of this tightrope I walk!