A tool, not a toy!

The computer is a tool not a toy. I tell that to my kids often, and very often I fall in the trap as to use it as a toy. It gives me a way to "talk" and be heard. I've asked the Lord to help me to be more quiet, careful with my words and submissive to my husband, but often the blog, gives me a way of expressing .... which is good, but my intentions I need to guard, because my heart deceives me and this blog even , gives me a voice to express only what I want people to know about me. It could give an impression to someone of a life that I do not live fully yet. I have to be careful. My heart loves the praise, and yet the glory is being stolen from the One who deserves it. Let my right hand not know what my left hand does... and yet I feel the need to publish it?... why? to receive glory?, the applause of my friends? to get the reward here on earth?... Or should I really keep quiet, and let my life speak without me having to speak. Let my life be a witness of Jesus Christ, and my words few.

Do I write many times for my glory? or to glorify Him?... Will He be more glorified without words or with my quiet obedience?

The computer is a tool, not a toy, and often, I am using it as a toy, to entertain myself with self gratifying posts, with selfish motives and with the misuse of the time He has giving me.

Do my kids and my family, spend a lot of time in the computer? Not yet, but I do not want that to be my life, so trying to live by example, I have to use it as a tool ... not as a toy. So if I write here not so often.... please bear with me I am in a learning process.

15 YEARS!!

15 years have passed since I said "I DO". It has been an adventure. With all that comes with a marriage. But with all, I will marry him again. We have a great life together, with two wonderful kids, who celebrated with us yesterday making that day, a very special one with the help of "Abu". They gave us a very romantic dinner of cheese fondue with a beautifully decorated table, the "wedding march" as a background and for us to pretend to enter "the church" (or in this case the dining room), then we had to dance. We usually go out for a dinner on our anniversary, but this one, was a special one. They got out the very nice wine glasses and made us feel super special.. they too.. were SO excited to make everything perfect. My mom was a great treat to the celebration, since she was the one orchestrating all. It was really fun!. And since she is here, this Saturday, my husband and friend, is inviting me to see "The Nutcracker"!! . And we'll stay in Montreal for a night. This will be very special too.
15 years of marriage, and looking forward to many many more with him!

So cool!

We went this week to see the Olympic torch pass very close to my house. It was an amazing experience!, there was a party with music, flags, food, a parade, street artists blowing fire. People very excited to have a glimpse at the torch. It was super fun!. The runner passed by us really close. My camera of course ran out of batteries, but I'll post some pictures later from my mom's camera. Everyone wanted to touch it, but my boys, days before at the mall got to hold it and took a picture with it (which I do not know how to put in my computer!). It was a one in a lifetime experience... I do not know when we'll see something like this again..... and in my own little town!.. walking distance in the summer!. The kids LOVED IT!!!

mi historia! - My history!

"Por si no sabias tio, tu bisabuelo Chapman fue un 'Preacher' Methodist muy reconocido y querido en el Sur de USA que primero tuvo que viajar 'Spreading The Word Of The Lord' muy dedicado por varias ciudades y luego poniendo la primera iglesia en creo que Tara Texas en la parte de abajo de su casa donde luego fue creciendo .... Tu papa creció en una familia numerosa muy religiosa Metodist pero al ir a México y casarse con mi abuela, pues dejo que sus hijos fueran bautizados Catolicos y asi crecieron..."

This is my story... I just found out what says in the paragraph above: My dad's great grandfather was a well know and loved Methodist Preacher in the South of USA, who had to travel through many cities spreading the Word of The Lord, very dedicated in those cities establishing the first church in Tara Texas . He opened the lower level of his house and it started to grow. My dad's father, grew up in a numerous and religious family but when he went to Mexico and married, he married a Catholic lady and allowed his children to be baptized in the Roman Catholic church. My dad grew up not knowing his dad (his dad and mom were not married and there were MANY years between them), my dad grew up with no knowledge of the Lord until I was about 13 years old, the Lord saved him!. Today, he is a great man of God preaching and studying with a great hunger the Word of the Lord, just as his great grandfather probably did.

This is exciting news for me, because it shows me how gracious God is, and what an honor to have such a heritage behind me. I am so thankful to the Lord. In His 10 commandments He says: I will show mercy to a thousand generations to those who love me and keep my commandments. And if this man loved the Lord, and if he could only see God's faithfulness and how his great grandson is walking in the Truth and how he taught his 2 daughters to walk in the Truth and how we are teaching our children to walk in the Truth... What a blessing!.

I am so happy to hear this of "my" past.

The prosperity Gospel by John Piper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTc_FoELt8s

The Supremacy of Christ by John Piper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsT6JLTx68o

last night..

1 Timothy 3:1-13
"Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task. 2Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. 5(If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?) 6He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. 7He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil's trap.
8Deacons, likewise, are to be men worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. 9They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. 10They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons.
11In the same way, their wives are to be women worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.
12A deacon must be the husband of but one wife and must manage his children and his household well. 13Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus."
------------------------

Last night my dear husband, was voted Deacon of our church. The luck belongs to the Lord. There are no such things as accidents, since all is in the hands of our Sovereign Lord. All good things and all that looks bad from the outside. There is NOTHING in the entire universe that God has no control over. Every action and every sin, every glory and every fall, every thought and every deed, everything that goes on in this world whether we like to acknowledge it or not, is under God, and that is why we serve Him. The ALL Mighty God.

Yesterday, was an act of God's sovereignty. By unanimous vote, V was elected deacon of our church. With it, comes a big joy and responsibility to follow the directions given by God in His holy word according to the deacon and for the wife and his children. It is not a matter of him serving, but it involves us immediately. As for me, the weight of the "job" is heavy... I am expected to help him. I must be temperate!! -no extreme in behaviour- (if you know me, you know it will be hard for asking to be temperate to a character like mine,where my emotions are very easily exposed.... hmmm... I am appreciating more and more my husband's "temperate" character, because I know how hard it is to achieve it...!!). I am to be worthy of respect ( I like to think that of myself, but I will see as I'm tested by the Lord in this).... by the way I speak, talk, dress, care for others,...

My children... obey with the proper respect. They also are to act in a way that reflects the position of their father at home and that will either speak well of him or not. The same way, we are to behave to reflect Jesus Christ to extend His fame.

Any how... we are excited of this new time in our lives, and looking forward to the work of the Lord in our lives though this. Please pray for us. That we will achieve through Him the character of a servant, because as in today, we fall VERY short to the standard of a deacon. And it humbles us to think how high we are measured against... and how impossible it will be for us to ever get to those standards.. and that is why I say that Luck belongs to the Lord... because if those are the standards, there is no way we fit in them. It is only by the grace of God that we will be an acceptable offering of service to Him.

May God help my dear husband in this task, and the boys and myself to be of good testimony and help to him.

Amazing Story: The Director of Planned Parenthood

Amazing Story: The Director of Planned Parenthood

God answered our prayers!

I did not think that I was going to write a post on this..... This past week I was heart broken, and there was in my opinion nothing good in it. It happened once and then it happened again.. yesterday.

One of my sons (and out of respect I will leave it like that), sinned. I know they sin often, but this time it was a bigger sin, the kind that I knew I had to deal with him way more severely. For the last 4 months or so, this son, has been faithfully asking the Lord to help him resist temptation. It is a very noble prayer. Last week I realized sin was happening. He was caught. After a big discipline, talk, cry,.... I though it was learned and over..... But, it happened again. My world fell. Did he learn nothing out of last time?!. Was all that in vane?!... I was devastated. My wise husband came after work, and talked to him in a loving but strong talk. And the Lord opened my eyes today, though his wise advice, and this is what he showed me:

I always pray for them. That the Lord will use them at a very young age, that the Lord will speak to them and to discipline them. Well, He in His so great and wonderful mercy, listened to our cries. To my son, He answered by training him to resist temptation. I have the opportunity now, to teach him how to cope with temptation. To give him tools so that next time he is tempted, he has a way out. A way that glorifies the Lord. This teaching, will be great practice for when he is older and recognizes his own weaknesses and can ask for help, prayer and accountability. He also answered his prayer, because, how is God going to train him to resist temptation if he is never tempted?!... He allowed him to be tempted so that he can recognize that sin in his life, that weakness, and deal with his self control. And to me, He was merciful by allowing me to see what was happening soon enough. Not too late, when a habit is established, when the heart is hardened and the conscience asleep. My other son, was also blessed and learn by it. My dear husband, was blessed , because he practiced his leadership in a very loving and wise way, and helped me to trust in his wisdom.

God answered our prayers !. It took two times, one after the other.... we did not get it the first time,and gave us a second call...so that we can understand and do His will.. How grateful I am to see God's hand in our training, We are not alone!, God is with us, I can trust in Him and He will guide us!. What a blessing for him, experience God's mercy and God's perfect love. Not that sin will not happen ever again, but that next time he is tempted, he will know that he can talk to us, and we'll help him conquer.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, the Lord who rules over all!.

October 31

Reformation Night. We celebrated the reformation night on October 31st. While the rest of our neighbours were celebrating the death, we celebrated life!, the life we have in Christ!. We remembered a man (Martin Luther) who had so much influence in our reformed faith today, and celebrated the fact that God did not leave us in ignorance and darkness about Him, but gave us light so that we might see. Friends came over to our house and we had a time of fellowship together remembering Jesus Christ. It was a blessed night.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48j4pguwuFw

dad and son

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rk3daLQJ8LA
This is an amazing video!! enjoy.

love, love and more love... what a nice heritage!

My lovely grand-parents "Bis y Abuelito".

Happy birthday dear "Is.".

My OH so dear and silly niece!!!...... how I miss you!

Today is my youngest neice's birthday..... She is 6!!

Not everything so sweet, but God's merciful patience!

Do you know those days that end not in the best note?... those days that you go to bed and you are upset at your words and the way your day ended with your kids?.. The other day, was one of them for me.. One of my boys misbehaved, I was upset, the boys and husband, all seemed like a big stir of emotions, and not necessarily the best of all or the ones I'm proud to write about. The condition of my heart and my son's heart.. the attitudes and the rest. We ended our day, not with our heart giving God all the glory and living the witness that we were called to. Well, par of me was happy that in a way, I could just close my eyes and say good night to that end of the day. even though there was repentance and forgiveness before going to bed.. it just seemed that I was not happy with the way it ended. The next morning, we had breakfast, had our Bible study and prayed together after breakfast. The son that was disrespectful the night before, prayed saying: "....Thank you God, that my life did not end yesterday when I was being disrespectful to my parents, and that You are giving me another day to repent and change, please help me to obey you in all I do today, Amen".
I was quiet, and then prayed God for the same thing. Thank You for your new mercies every morning. It is clear in my life and in my son's life, that God's purposes are wonderful! even when we sin, God is patient with us and merciful!. There is hope in Christ every morning, not that our salvation was lost because we sinned, but that we have a new day by God's grace to live a life in a way that is glorifying to Him.

Lead by example

I always wanted to know how to play the piano. My two boys of course are taking piano lessons because I see how good it would be for them to know how to play it properly and one day "thank me" for making them practice faithfully every day. Well, practice time, is not the most exciting time of the day here at my house.... They practice, because they must (usually one is more interested than the other, but both of them would rather play outside!). I have been trying to help them find a motivation to get excited about it and well...... I asked my well educated kids, to teach their mother to play the piano. They know enough theory and have enough ability, to teach their mother. It will be great to anchor that knowledge in their minds by teaching someone, it will be good to make teachers out of these boys. Now I need to persevere and practice, practice and practice. They are SO excited to teach me, to see me practice, when I ask them questions, being faithful even when I find the homework they give me is not that exciting, like memorizing scales, memorizing where the notes are on the keyboard and the "lines" when you read the music sheet. It is all hard work for me, it is not easy to find the time to practice every day for half an hour besides my daily work of school, house keeping, taxi services, ... it is not exciting some days.... but I hope that in my perseverance and with God's help I will learn from my kids to play the piano.

I'll keep you posted on my progress!...

All is a gift

All is a gift, I have come to learn, I earned nothing, No one owes me anything!, My family, my house, my clothes, my friends, all is a gift from God. For all of these gifts I am forever grateful to God. Anything good that happens, a great family, a godly husband, kids that love the Lord, any kind word, any hug, any help, a good friend, a time alone, a visit from family from Mexico, a nice meal, a date with my husband, a good laugh, nice weather, home school, .. all are gifts from God, all the rest is extra . and yet, all of it, nothing comes even close to the salvation that He has given me and His precious Word renewing my mind with His truth every day. How blessed I am! How blessed I am to have Him!. All the rest..... are undeserved gifts.

Our Thanks giving wekend...

A very nice meal of organic turkey with cranberry sauce, home made bread, vegetable dishes, apple pie, pumpkin pie, apple sauce, MMM! and table after table of godly people from our church thanking God for His great provision throughout the year.

A great hike! a real hike!, no path to follow, just climbing up the rocky mountain.. how much fun we had!. It was also with our friends from church... we are so blessed to have a church like this!

Time

My kids are growing up faster than I would like them to. They are able to stay at home alone for a short period of time, they are busy with school but in a more independent way every year, they can bike to a library, they can play for many hours without my assistance... they are growing up!. I feel happy when I see them, when I see them as great boys, kind to each other (most of the time), fearful of God, and respectful to their parents. I am proud of them, I'm happy who they are turning into.

At the same time, it brings me a whole lot of different emotions that I feel very nervous about. I have more time for other things.. I have the time to do my necklaces and to use that time wisely or idle. I have those thoughts coming often lately, a little concerned about WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WHEN THEY NEED ME NO MORE!... what am I going to do!!. I have a career that I am no longer up to date, I'll have free time...I need to start focusing now in the things I want to do after they are gone. What are my abilities, what can I do to keep my mind occupied, I really fear "not having things to do", I want my years to be industrious and busy, I do not want to waste my life.

All those things that also bring me to the thoughts of: how do I install that passion in my kids to help them to start to focus on what they are good at and what they enjoy... so they can be industrious men too. How do I teach them that, so that they won't be idle teens and adults.

There is so much ahead of my life, challenges and training of my mind and my kids, learning and praying, trusting instead of being anxious, being wise instead of foolish, and .. did I mention praying?, praying... that is what my life needs to become more and more.. a praying mother.

Prov. 16:6

"Through truth and mercy sin is atoned for; through the fear of the Lord, a man avoids evil." Prov. 16:6

When I was a teenager, I did not get into too much trouble, I was a "good girl", not so much for the desire to want to please God and wanting to live a holy life for Him, but for the fear of the consequences I would get when I get home and my parents would found out. That fear, stopped me from doing many things.

Now a mom of 2 boys more mature than I was then, older spiritually, and hopefully wiser, I am stopped from sinning because I do want to live a holy life, I do want to please Him. But also I am still moved by that fear, fear not to be caught by my parents or my husband but by God. The fear that I do not want to offend my Father, the fear that I do not want to experience God's anger but His mercy.

When I am disciplining my kids, I need every day to discipline them in a way that is pleasing to Him, in a way that He demands from me. So that I will not be a stumbling block for them or my husband. But that I will follow the model given by Him for me.

"Through truth and mercy, sin is atoned for"..I need to have mercy , the same way God had mercy on me. So how do I correct sin?. By speaking truth and showing mercy!. By being patient, repeating a lesson many times, showing compassion when they struggle, and speaking truth to their lives. Reminding them how to walk in God's way and how to persevere. The fear of the Lord will be given to them so that they will avoid evil.

In my life, reading God's word faithfully, showing mercy and speaking truth, must be a priority, or a second priority but first always!. My so treasured sins, the ones I am so used to living with and those that a fear so much to let go, instead of fearing God alone and believe Him and His goodness and mercy than my own comfort. Fear the Lord and I will avoid evil. Fear Him only, the One who is slow to anger but great in mercies.

Fall is here!

FALL IS HERE!!!

I love the sound of the geese leaving .....where I would like to follow;

I love that special smell in the air telling you is time to eat pumpkin pie .....so you can hibernate comfortably. Apple picking time, making apple sauce, apple pie fillings, ...

I love the beautiful colors on the trees and I love when I see them shedding their leaves. That sounds when I step in my backyard ......which reminds me that I need to rake before the snow starts falling.

All that fall brings with it, all the emotions that the seasons share, the work that it brings, all the exciting activities to look ahead, and that after being caught in the every day routine and the duties of life, I have to stop to be amazed every year at the wonderful world that God created.
"You are worthy O Lord to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things and by Your will they exist and were created!".

My dear nephew drew this!!!

I am so proud of my dear nephew "N" who drew this so inspiring drawing!.

A nice weekend with friends!

This is my dear friend S and her beautiful family. We had a visit yesterday with them after church and I'm always thankful for the time we spend together.. I come back with new challenges and encouraged of all that I learn from her. I love being with godly woman that teach without preaching, but by the way they live their lives. Thank you S!, It was a blessing being with you.

Turkish tiles

More on Turkey... the boys had to make a tile, but how we did it? we used paint that you can make stickers for the window.. (that by the way we had for a long time!!), they did a very nice work and we decorated our kitchen window with it. I'm liking Turkey more than I thought!, soon we'll try some of their food, like "Turkish delight", "Noah's pudding", and other yummy things, I'll keep you posted!

kilim Turkey

We are studying Turkey and the boys made this "Kilim" as a project. It is a Turkisk carpet and it was an incredible fun job to do, plus the benefits of patience training... I love homeschooling!

I'm not alone!

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

"To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 1That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

His grace is sufficient!!, His power is made great in my weakness!, I will boast gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me... so there it is.. yes I am weak, I need Him.

Prov. 3, 19

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's eyes. Prov. 3:3-4

Houses and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the Lord. Prov. 19:14

Oh how I wish to have that quiet and gentle spirit!, How I need to have the gift of being prudent with my words and my attitudes. What a blessing to have those gifts!. I am the model my boys are learning of what it is to be a godly wife and mother. What an incredible responsibility I have before me. When they grow up and someone say: you remind me of your mother!, will that be a compliment?, when they grow up, will they remember their mother worrying about what to wear in the morning, or their mother praying on her knees?. Will they understand obedience and submission from me the way I obey and submit to my husband?.

I need Him, Oh I need Him, every hour I need Him, Oh bless me Lord my Saviour, I come to You.

proud, proud, proud!

The pride of being granparents...

caught the fish!

My son S, caught this fish in Ixtapa and he got to eat it!! he was very proud and happy to try for the first time this delicatessen. It was fried in garlic and everyone tasted a VERY small portion of it... He ate it with a great big smile on his face!

To my sons

May they have the faith of Abraham,

May they have the boldness of Paul,

May they have a heart like David, always seeking God.

May they have the wisdom of Salomon,

May they have the patience of Job,

May they be a leader like Joshua, always full of hope.

May they have the courage of Daniel,

May they have the love of John,
May they know Your voice like Samuel and always obey God .

Father God, bless my sons, May they grow to be men of God.

(from a song I learned when I was expecting my first son M.)

We once were slaves!

I love how the Lord teaches us things.. after reading for many years something in His word it does not make an impact as one day without anything different in it, you read it and changes your view on many things!

The Israelites, were reminded constantly that at one time in their lives, they were slaves, and how God rescued them. They had to think of that often and not forget it. Nor their children or grandchildren, even though they were born free.

Kids that are born in a Christian home (like me in a way since I was saved very young in my life, or my kids for instance) were born with the blessing of loving the Lord since a young age, not experience many sins of the youth and lived our life very differently than our parents did. But we are to be reminded often and remind our children that it was not like that always. That our parents were not saved once, that they were slaves and that God in His mercy rescued them. That they were slaves and that is our history, therefore, WE were slaves. That we need to remember every day, how relatives before us, lived once and were rescued, and the blessings of being born in a family that teaches God's word freely and fully. That it is a great privilege to be part of this and that anything else outside this blessing of protection over our families is nothing but a great honor!.

We are to remind or kids and be reminded of the past, not because of the condemnation that brings, but because of the blessing that represents. We need to speak often of that past that we were delivered from and how our lives could have been if it wasn't for God's grace.

What a blessing it is to be adopted in God's family, to have that undeserved grace and just like the Israelites we often forget our past and desire what slaves have instead of enjoying the freedom that we have. May we never forget what we have been rescued from.