Burdened for our teens

Oh how Satan tries to destroy our teenagers. This past week I have dealt with some serious issues in two girls lives. My heart is so broken. These girls are on dangerous paths. I am praying that God will break through the walls of their heart and change their direction. What can we do to reach these young people? How can we help them realize that serving God and living for Him is the best thing for their lives? That void in their heart can always be filled with God. Whatever the need He can help. Once again, this year I am going to coach cheerleading. My prayer is that God will use me to influence them to be better Christians than when the season started. Satan is smart but God is Almighty. God can always have the victory. So I will keep praying, loving, encouraging and helping the young people.

My Favorite High School Teacher

My favorite teacher and mentor, Mr. Dave Cook, is leaving the school that I graduated from and the church which I work. Heritage Christian School is a ministry of Cleveland Baptist Church. I graduated from Heritage in 1985 and have been working at the church for the past five years. Mr. Cook and his wife have been teaching at Heritage for 28 years and attending the church for as long. He taught Bible, History, Government, Civics; he coached and served as vice-principal. Mrs. Cook was the Home Economics and Home Management teacher. Both were involved in many ministries of Cleveland Baptist including choir and discipleship.

Besides being a teacher, Mr. Cook helped counsel me through problems. There were many times he took the time to pray and read Scripture and give me advice to help me along life's way. He always had time to listen. Many times I was broken and crying because of family problems. He was compassionate and kind. I have come to trust and rely on his advice. He is a godly man and loves the Lord.

The reason they are leaving is because he has accepted the position of principal at one of our rival schools in Mansfield, Ohio. It is such a shock. Mr. and Mrs. Cook have always been here faithfully serving the Lord. I know them and know that they have prayed diligently about this and truly feel that it is God's will for their lives. As much as I want them to stay, I have to hold on to the fact that they are doing God's will. I would never want them to stay and be out of God's plan for them. So I will just have to pray for them, pray for the school, and lean on the Lord for comfort when I miss them.

God bless you Mr. and Mrs. Cook. I will be praying for you as you begin this new adventure.

My Birthday

My birthday has come and gone. Boy, did it come and go so quickly. It was such a special day. So many people made a point to make my day special.

When I got to work, my "sissy", Shell, had decorated my desk. I had to cut through streamers to get to my desk. The Males girls, missionaries to Scotland who are staying with Shell, came with her to help decorate. They had a blast and it made it seem like it was my birthday.

Then one of the ladies in the office made a cake for me and the office sang happy birthday. It was so nice. Shell had a present sitting on my desk. It was a beautiful sister bracelet.

For lunch, one of my best friends, Lori, took me to eat at Lonestar Steakhouse. I had mentioned to her that I was craving a big steak so she suggested we go there on lunch. It was very nice to be able to spend time with her. Usually we spend time talking at church (which can be very distracting at times with all the people). So I really enjoyed just hanging out with her. She is a very dear friend to me and I am so thankful that I was able to spend my birthday with her.

After work, my sister had my family over her house for a birthday party for me. She made ruebens and we had an ice cream cake (my favorite). My sister went to great lengths to make my birthday very special. She even conspired with Shell.

I received so many wonderful gifts. Poppy was very cute. I had asked for a MP3 player so here is what he gave me - a hillbilly MP3 player. I laughed so hard when I got it. How creative. He did get me a real one too but I got the hillbilly one first.

Lori bought me a book by Elizabeth George. I have some of her devotional books and really enjoy her writing. Shari got me new stuff for my bathroom. I absolutely love it. It really brightens up the room. Here is a picture:

Then Shell got me a beautiful bakers rack for my kitchen. She even surprised me and set it up for me without me knowing it. Tuesday afternoon she went to my house to rest and set it up. I was so surprised. It is so pretty and really frees up space in my kitchen. My sissys knew exactly what to get me. They are so awesome.

My mom bought me a beautiful blouse. Then one of my teenage friends, Kayla, got me a beautiful candle wall sconce and some votive candles.
There also were some other gifts but the best of all was spending my birthday with friends and loved ones who care about me. I am truly blessed.

My Daddy's War of the Worlds

This is a model of the original War of the Worlds that my daddy made. He built the house from scratch. It is made up of a bunch of sticks. I thought it was so very cool. He got the idea because he bought the War of the Worlds spaceship. After he got the spaceship, he thought it would be neat to make the house. So he worked and worked. When it was completed, he crashed the spaceship into it. Just like in the movie. Pretty cool huh? Way to go Poppy!

My Step Mommy Loves Me!

I am so thankful for my dad's wife. She is such a blessing to our family. After my parents got divorced, I began praying for someone for my dad. Patty is a Christian which makes us so relieved. She takes care of my dad and loves him very much. Patty is always doing little things for my family as well. This is a picture of something she made for me. Since I am the cheerleading coach, she knitted the outfit for this little doll. I was so touched. My sister said that she worked a long time on it. I absolutely love it. What a blessing to have a step mommy who loves me and cares for my dad. Thank you Lord for bringing Patty to us.

The HCS Drama

Last night I went to a high school drama. My church, Cleveland Baptist Church, has a Christian school, Heritage Christian School. For the past few years, they have been able to perform a drama. This year they did a comedy called "A Ready Made Family." Oh my word. It was funny. I was able to sit right up front. The cast said after that they could hear me laughing. Four of my cheerleaders were able to be in the play. It was nice to see them perform. I was so proud of them. When I went to HCS, we weren't fortunate enough to have a Drama Dept. I am so thankful they have one now. Some of the kids in the school aren't athletic or musical; so it is nice that there is something else for them to do. Well done kids. You were awesome!

A new game

Well I have jumped on the Suduko bandwagon. Cingular has it for a mobile game download. I am totally addicted. Although I am still on the easy ones. HeeHee. I had always wondered about that game and now I know. It is a blackhole that you can never get out of. Well, it keeps me busy.

Speaking of being busy, I have been helping my sister and her husband. They are moving into the house we grew up in. The actual move date is Saturday, March 25, but we have been painting and cleaning and moving some things over early. My brother and his family lived their but they have moved out which left the house vacant. The blessing is that my sister's lease was up on her place so she is able to move into the house. It will be so nice for Gabey. The house has a big backyard. He will have a blast. There are three bedrooms which will help them out. The place they are in now only has two rooms. I am excited for them.

We had revival last week at our church, Cleveland Baptist Church. What a blessing the evangelist was. His name is Dwight Smith. I know that I needed what he shared with us. I bought three of the tapes. One was on Joseph called Just serve God anyway. It talks about just serving no matter the excuse not to serve. Another one was about making the Bible a priority in your life. I know I needed that one too. The last one was the best assurace of salvation messages I have ever heard. I am so thankful that God brought Bro. Smith to preach for us.

The Two Days After Christmas

Boy do the days fly by. It is now December 27. Christmas was a little different this year. My brother and his wife, Kris, usually have the family over on Christmas Day. This year, however, we didn't do that. They are separated and probably getting a divorce. So instead of going to their house, we went over to my sister's. It was very nice. We had birthday cake (for Jesus), sang Christmas carols and read the Christmas story in the Bible. There was a house full of family. My dad and his wife, Patty were there. Mommy and her husband, Paul came also. There was me and my brother and his son, Andrew. Of course, Jeff, Shari and Gabey were there too. It was a wonderful time. I did miss Kris and Jess, Kris' daughter. I am just praying that God will watch over Bob and his family. I know that God can use the awful things in our lives to bring us closer to Him. That is my prayer for them.

The Final Decision

Boy, I didn't realize that choosing a cheerleading squad would be so difficult. It is not just cheering ability but grades, attitude and spirituality. So, I now have my cheerleading squad. There are seven girls on the squad (four new girls). I have a lot of work ahead of me but am excited about the potential. I really prayed and sought God about who should be on the squad. I know there are several problems with the girls that I will have to address but on a whole, this is a great group of girls. Just keep praying that we will have safety and be able to learn the cheers and work together as a team.

Cheerleading Fun

Well, we have had the first two days of tryout practice. I am having such a good time working with them. There seems to be excitement with the girls. I have been praying for the squad. My prayer has been that I will have wisdom, discernment, compassion, knowledge, a good group of girls. Lori Schweitzer and Dary Gajewski have been helping me. That has been a huge help since I have been teaching the girls the cheer and chant I made. They have been a blessing and I enjoy having them there. It brings back a lot of memories since Lori, Dary and I were on the HCS Cheerleading squad together. Thank you Lord for allowing me to coach. It is an honor and I will do my best to help these girls love and serve You.

This is Isabelle. She was my mommy's doll when she was growing up. Last Friday she gave her to me to love and care for. What a special gift. She gave my sister her Sally doll. These two dolls were part of our childhood too. My mom would let us hold and dress them. That was such a special time. Mommy, I will care for Isabelle and give her a wonderful home.

Babysitting my little friends

Boy did I have a nice time watching Ryan and Jenna. They are the children of my dear friends Lori and Doug Schweitzer. Saturday I was able to spend the evening playing with Ryan and Jenna. Ryan and I make cookies and watched a movie. Jenna was such a good girl. I love spending time with them. Lori and Doug are doing a great job with the kids. I am very proud to be friends with them and that their children enjoy spending time with me.

Ever wonder about Sweetest Day!!

I have found some information on how Sweetest Day was started. It was very interesting to find out why this holiday was originated. Here is the website I found. http://pressroom.hallmark.com/sweetest_day.html

always a child - My sister's blog

always a child

Just watching the football game. A guy after daddy's own heart. 

What a sweetheart 

Struggles Within

Why must the Christian life be so hard at times? Satan works very hard to put a kink in serving God. I am thankful that this is not the end for a Christian. We have the hope of eternal life. A life rid of temptation, sin, hurt, sorrow, disappointment and evil. What a glorious time that will be. I am so thankful that God doesn't just leave us here without helping us through this life. He is ever present. "Lord, please be near to me. Guide me and sustain me. Help me to stay true and close to your side."

My New Adventure

Only five more weeks til my new adventure begins. I am now the cheerleading coach for Heritage Christian School. What an honor. I cheered for HCS when I was in high school (don't ask how long ago). Being a cheerleader at a Christian school is a lot different than a public school. We do not incorporate dance or music into any of our routines. Our goal is to cheer the team on while still being Christ-like. We use stunting and motions in our cheers. Although I am nervous, I am very excited. Our try-outs are the week of October 31-November 4. My prayer is that I will be a positive and godly example for these girls. I want them to grow into fine christian ladies who serve the Lord. I have found a Bible verse that I would like to use as a type of theme verse. It is Deuteronomy 10:12 & 13 - "And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?" I used these verses at teen camp this past summer and had the girls replace Israel with their name. Try rereading it and do that. Put your name in place of Israel. What powerful verses. That encompasses all that a Christian should be. That is my goal for these girls. To have fun while living for the Lord.

It is time.

Well, I am now officially on the bandwagon. A few of my friends have a blog so I thought I would give it a try too. I will try to keep up with it so that it isn't too boring.