Plenty to Share

Sorry it has been so long since our last post, but we have been busy, busy, busy...Let's see...where to start?...After family health issues began to resolve, we were both back to work and the schedule as usual. Our church class had a game night that next weekend where we were able to unwind and meet some new people. We also watched Blindside in the park behind our apartment, which was just as good as people said. With Chris' week off from work, we spent a couple days with Nanny and a couple days in Houston. While in Houston, we got to attend the MLS All-Star soccer game and visit the museum, which was a great time. The next week Katie had her follow up dermatologist appointment, at which they removed the entire area of concern and confirmed that it was all clear. She also finished her last summer school class and even tested out of one of her fall classes!

Now to the biggest news: WE BOUGHT OUR FIRST VEHICLE!!! After years of talking about it, months of research and test drives, and weeks of negotiating, we drove home in our new 2010 Toyota 4Runner! We can honestly say, days and thousands of dollars later, we love it! If you are ever around, we would be more than happy to take you for a spin - We are always looking for reasons to take a drive now :)

To wrap out our eventful month, we spent last night at the Jack Johnson concert. It was awesome! We heard all of our favorites and lots of great new songs too. Best of all, not only did he play "our song" that we danced our first dance to, but he closed out the concert to it as his encore. Perfection! As the closing thought for this post, we thought we'd leave you with a taste of our concert experience:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWVnZAJaq4Q

Tough Week

We'd like to say that this week was more of the same, we're both doing well, etc, but sadly it's not true. Last week we found out that Chris' PawPaw passed away which was difficult for us both. Of course we are sad to not have him around anymore, but we are relieved that he is in a better place and his health has been restored. The past two years had not been easy for him or the family, so at last peace and healing can begin. We love and miss you PawPaw - Rest assured that you have made an unforgettable impact on our lives...

Upon returning to Dallas, we discovered that Katie's grandmother had been taken to the hospital in Waco, resulting in our heading right back out of town to be with her. She was not in good shape, but has since been tended to and hopes to go home today. Please continue to pray for her to regain both physical and psychological strength...

Seeing as this has not been the best of weeks for us, I feel it even more important to end on a positive note. We finished our book this past week, and here are some encouraging insights:

"...those most conscious of another world have made the most effective Christians in this one."

"Of one hundred men, one will read the Bible; the ninety-nine will read the Christian."

"Our wounds and defects are the very fissures through which grace might pass. It is our human destiny on earth to be imperfect, incomplete, weak, and mortal, and only by accepting that destiny can we escape the force of gravity and receive grace. Only then can we grow close to God. Strangely, God is closer to sinners than to 'saints'. (By saints I mean those people renowned for their piety - true saints never lose sight of their sinfulness.) As one lecturer in spirituality explains it, God in heaven holds each person by a string. When you sin, you cut the string. Then God ties it up again, making a knot - and thereby bringing you a little closer to Him. Again and again your sins cut the string - and with each further knot God keeps drawing you closer and closer."

4th of July

It was so nice to have a long holiday weekend - We hope you enjoyed your July 4th as well! Our celebrations started on the 3rd, as the fireworks in our town go off the night before the holiday. We watched from the top of our garage and ate some watermelon, just like last year. Katie also baked some homemade cupcakes and icing to share, although we ate a few too many on our own...The next day, we went to a wonderful churchwide service before Katie had to head off to work. There's not much new to report, but we're both doing well.

We're both a bit behind in our reading, so the last set of book quotes will have to wait until next time. In the mean time, here are some lyrics to a good song on Christian radio right now:

"I will trust in You

Even in the moments I can't find You

I will hold on to Your promises, oh Lord

You've never failed before
I know that You can hear me

When the silence is deafening

Even though You seem far away

I know You're here with me

But I just need the faith to see

Nothing can separate me from Your love"

Can Anybody Hear Me by Meredith Andrews

Quick Update

The past couple of weeks have been good, but busy for us, thus the reason for no post in awhile. Chris is in the process of becoming an official government employee, but is really most excited about the World Cup. We are renting a DVR for the month just so he doesn't have to miss any games (or quit his job to watch them). The most exciting would definitely have to be the USA game this past Wednesday. As last Wednesday was also our 3rd anniversary, he was lucky to be able to take the day off from work so we could watch the game together. It was a great anniversary present to both of us! Later that day, to celebrate the occasion, we went to our first really nice dinner as a married couple. We enjoy watching the TV show Top Chef together, so when we heard that one of our favorite past contestants was going to be the chef at a restaurant near us, we knew we had to go. It was so much fun getting dressed up and being able to watch him cook from our table, not to mention the food was AMAZING! Chris had lamb with jalapeno augratin, roasted apples, and a shiner reduction. Katie had grilled salmon with jalapeno jack cheese grits, iceberg and apple slaw, and a tequila lime sauce. We treated ourselves to dessert also - a mocha tart with peanut-bacon brittle. If you're ever in the Dallas area for a special occasion, try Chef Tre Wilcox at Loft 610 in Plano.

As far as Katie's new job goes, she loves it! There is definitely a learning curve, which is never fun, but it has only been a week on the floor and she is starting to feel like she's got the hang of it. The staff are helpful and nice, and the patients are too cute. She even got to rock a 4 month old to sleep to round out her last 12 hour shift this week...not bad to get paid for that :) When school isn't in session full time, she will be working 20-30 hours each week and in the fall she will fall back to about 20 (unless there is an exam that week). We are so blessed to have this opportunity.

Our section of the book this time focused on how the church can do damage by not showing grace. It was a very insightful section, and I only wish that every church had to explore this book. Seriously, if you have any opportunity to read, pick up this book (What's So Amazing About Grace by Philip Yancey). It is a very easy read and goes very quickly. If you know Chris and I well, you will know how special Chapter 13 is to us. Here are a few thoughts from the other chapters in that section, as there are too many to address in that chapter alone:

"Somehow, he (Jesus) gained the reputation as a lover of sinners, a reputation that his followers are in danger of losing today."

"In other words, the proof of spiritual maturity is not how 'pure' you are but awareness of your impurity. That very awareness opens the door to grace."

"Jesus did not fault the Pharisees for extemism in itself - I doubt he really cared what they ate or how many times they washed their hands. But he did care that they imposed extremism on others and that they focused on trivialities, neglecting more weighty matters (justice, mercy, faithfulness)."

"Jesus condemned that pride, and also condemned the tiered spirituality that ranked some sins as acceptable and others as unacceptable."

Memorial Day Weekend Trip

This past weekend, we were able to take a much needed trip to Houston to visit family and relax. On Friday, we spent most of the day at the beach where Chris fished, Katie read in the shade, and Dixie swam. We had a picnic on the sand, under Chris' amazing improvised tent - sorry, no pictures. It is still amazing to us that our precious dog that is scared of almost everything will run full speed into the crashing waves and swim back to shore on her own! Saturday was packed full of fun things to do. First, we started the day with a great brunch at a Mexican restaurant downtown. After that, we headed to the Natural Science Museum where we watched an IMAX film and visited many exhibits. To wrap up the day, we went to a Houston Dynamos (soccer) game. Before heading back Monday, we spent Sunday evening with Chris' family (including aunt, uncle, and cousins) eating good food and playing in the pool. It was such a fun weekend! One more quick note: our baby birds learned to fly and now we are officially empty-nesters. We're so happy and proud, but so sad to see them go. It's not a great picture, but the one below is the last one we could snap of them as they practiced flying.

We are about halfway through our book for our Bible study group, so we've got more little nuggets of wisdom to share with you all. Hope your June is off to a great start!

"We forgive not merely to fulfill some higher law of morality; we do it for ourselves...When we genuinely forgive, we set a prisoner free and then discover that the prisoner we set free was us...The only thing harder than forgiveness is the alternative."

"By forgiving another, I am trusting that God is a better justice-maker than I am. By forgiving, I release my own right to get even and leave all issues of fainess for God to work out. I leave in God's hands the scales that must balance justice and mercy...Though wrong does not disappear when I forgive, it loses its grip on me and is taken over by God, who knows what to do."

"...by denying forgiveness to others, we are in effect determining them unworthy of God's forgiveness, and thus so are we."

"No matter how it looks at any given point in history, the gates guarding the powers of evil will not withstand an assault by grace."

Happy Birthday Chris!

The past week has been spent celebrating Chris' 26th birthday, which has definitely made for a fun one! We started out last Monday with some ice cream cake and ended yesterday with some horseback riding. It was such a great time and surprisingly relaxing...One more thing to note: the two eggs in our balcony planter have become two adorable baby doves. We hope you enjoy the pictures!

Here are a few selections from the book we are reading for our Bible study group. We hope you find them hopeful, as we do:

"From nursery school onward we are taught how to succeed in the world of ungrace. The early bird gets the worm. No pain, no gain. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Demand your rights. Get what you pay for. I know these rules well because I live by them. I work for what I earn; I like to win; I insist on my rights. I want people to get what they deserve - nothing more, nothing less. Yet if I care to listen, I hear a loud whisper from the gospel that I did not get what I deserved. I deserved wrath and got love."

"Paul harped on grace because he knew what could happen if we believe we have earned God's love. In the dark times, if perhaps we badly fail God, or if for no good reason we simply feel unloved, we would stand on shaky ground. We would fear that God might stop loving us when he discovers the real truth about us. Paul - the chief of sinners he once called himself - knew beyond doubt that God loves people because of who God is, not because of who we are."

"In one of his last acts before death, Jesus forgave a theif dangling on a cross, knowing full well the thief had converted out of plain fear. That thief would never study the Bible, never attend synagogue or church, and never make amends to all those he had wronged. He simply said 'Jesus, remember me,' and Jesus promised, 'Today you will be with me in paradise.' It was another shocking reminder that grace does not depend on what we have done for God but rather what God has done for us."

"And grace means there is nothing I can do to make God love me more, and nothing I can do to make God love me less."

25% Nurse, 100% Author

This week has definitely been a week of accomplishments for us - Katie is officially done with her first semester of nursing school and Chris is officially published! Needless to say, we will be doing a lot of nothing the next few days and enjoying every minute of it :)

Despite a small setback, Katie came out with flying colors. One question on her Pharmacology final kept her from getting a 4.0 for the semester, but we'll settle for a 3.8 or so :) No rest for the weary - Summer school starts up Monday. She also begins her job at the Children's Hospital the next Monday. She can't wait!

Chris received the electronic version of his publication this week, and it looks great! We are so proud & would love to forward it on to anyone interested.

Now here are the lyrics of the week. They made us think of a book that we are beginning to read for our Bible study group about Grace. It is called 'What's So Amazing About Grace' by Philip Yancey, and it has great stories illustrating what so many Christians are forgetting about their faith:

If we are the body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing
them there is a way
Jesus is the way

"If We Are The Body" by Casting Crowns