100 things about me:
1. Born May 16, 1976
2. My dad predicted that I would be a girl with blue eyes and blonde hair and would be named Rosalie Grace – and sure enough – (even if it was just hopeful thinking after having 4 boys).
3. My dad’s favorite song when my mom was pregnant with me – Give My Love to Rose – Johnny Cash
4. After finally getting their first girl, they went on to have 5 more girls!
5. and another boy – making 11 kids total.
6. I liked growing up in a big family.
7. One time we went dumpster diving and found dozen’s of boxes of Witman Samplers – still in the plastic – behind a store.
8. we gave them away to friends and ate a lot ourselves – (the friends were warned of their origin)
9. My dad did the grocery shopping – 2 carts full, once a week, never under $200, and that was 11 yrs ago.
10. There were only 9 kids in our household at once.
11. because a brother would get married before my parents were done, etc…
12. My mom had babies the same time my sister-in-laws had babies.
13. I worked as a secretary for my dad after high school, until I married.
14. We sold tombstones. (and other granite – but people were dying to do business with us – gag!)
15. My dad asked me if I would be his secretary when I grew up (I was 5), and I said, “no, I want to be your “first-a-tary”!
16. I met my future husband when I was 13.
17. He definitely made an impression on me! And vise versa.
18. He was 20 at that point, and was a well known for being unattached. (Who would be the lucky girl?)
19. He was GORGEOUS!
20. Still is GORGEOUS, in a different way.
21. It’s just a different look – his hair kind of left the position on the head, and rested on his chin. (wink)
22. The name for it, I think, is fu man chu. (or something like that).
23. I hope he will choose to remain married to me after seeing this.
24. He’s got a depth of character, and has only shown me unconditional love for 11 yrs. – His good looks go deeper than before.
25. We met up a few times in the remaining years until I was 20 – and the attraction was still there.
26. I played “hard to get”.
27. I think that’s what “got him”.
28. He wore black cowboy boots – and had a ranch growing up.
29. And only wore black jeans – mmmm
30. Right now, I think I miss him – he is gone skiing in Colorado.
31. With 4 other guys.
32. Next time I’m going.
33. We will probably bring the 4 oldest kids.
34. Once I was 20, Stu made it known he was seriously interested in me. (I’d been waiting!!!)
35. We set our wedding day for 3 wks later.
36. We married on my parent’s anniversary.
37. Only time I’d seen my dad’s face contort into tears was when I said goodbye.
38. Stu and I moved 21 hrs away – to his hometown.
39. I loved my new home.
40. but missed my 5 younger sisters
41. we used to sing together in the kitchen, while making food.
42. and sing together on the piano and guitars.
43. Missed my brothers too.
44. I moved from a city to a small town. (of 450)
45. I would miss the small town if I moved to a city now.
46. I do miss the donut shops in the cities.:)
47. My dad took me shopping into Amish country before I was married.
48. I bought a bedroom set
49. and a table with 10 leaves – fits 20 people.
50. Was the only day my dad and I spent together alone – with no other brothers and sisters.
51. Wow, did I feel special.
52. My dad was killed in a car accident at age 53.
53. He left my mom with 6 kids still at home.
54. Why is it when someone dies, you love them more?
55. I need to remember to love those still here now.
56. I know my dad is now enjoying things I don’t have the imagination to know.
57. I love God.
59. Jesus died for my sins.
59. I believe Heaven is more colorful, more glorious than the greatest thing we could ever concoct in our minds, and Jesus is preparing a place there for me.
60. I think if I really, really believed this all the time, I’d have no more anxiety, etc…
61. I believe I’ll be using the skills God gave me, in a complete, beautiful way, when I’m there.
62. I know I’ll be able to sit and converse with others who love God, without the misunderstandings, etc., that come along with this life.
63. I can’t wait sometimes!
64. but know that in the meantime, there is a work being done in my life, that isn’t complete.
65. The kids are home from school now, and there is a chorus of words being sounded out (by the time the last word is sounded out, you forget what the beginning of the sentence was) , and I’m supposed to be listening to them all, so I will have to get back to this later…
66. The 3 single most amazing physical experiences in my life, were the birth of my 3 birth children.
67. When #1 was born, the doctor asked what I was saying – I was saying “I love you my babe-ins!” over and over. (I was a little out of it!)68. The 1 most amazing, emotional, mind expanding, experience in my life, was adopting 2 great kids from Ethiopia.
69. The trip to Ethiopia fulfilled a dream for me of traveling to Africa, but also built a desire to get back there again –
70. As an American, we can give much materially to the poor, but can learn much from them too.
71. There are traits of the people there that are beautiful, and lost in the culture here, and my dream for our kids is to get to go back if they choose.
72. The single most life changing event in my life, was choosing to leave the only religion I’ve ever known – the Plymouth Brethren #4. (exclusive brethren)
73. I was born and raised to believe we were special Christians.
74. We kept careful rules – not cutting our hair, wearing dresses, no makeup, (for ladies), and no tv, radio, computers, etc.
75. We looked to a leader to direct our lives, and make decisions for us.
76. I was married and had children before I ever first doubted it was right to be Brethren.
77. Because of lies, etc., we decided we couldn’t go on there.
78. In leaving, we were shunned by family, and friends there.
79. Out of 11 kids in my family, one brother talks to me (he left the same time we did).
80. We had to start over with our relationship with God. (our identity was lost)
81. He has done GREAT things for us.
82. It has not been without pain.
83. Religious chains were broken – freedom reigns!
84. I know I will see my family again in heaven, those that accept that Jesus died for their sin. (my hope/prayers are that we will before we get there.)
85. It’s just that they have bought into a “cultish” church, and won’t live in freedom while there.
86. I know I’m not a “special” Christian – I’m a sinner in need of God’s grace.
87. One of our favorite pastimes is camping.
88. I mean “roughing it”, in a tent and sleeping bag.
89. The prettiest place we’ve gone so far is the Rocky Mtns.
90. We canoe also.
91. My dream for this summer is to make a trip to visit some families who’ve adopted from Ethiopia.
92. We’ve been to Australia.
93. Oddest thing I’ve ever done is being part of a pageant – Mrs. ND international.
94. My platform was “finding your identity in Christ”.
95. An amazing thing was I won the People’s Choice and Hilltop award.
96. I love concerts – seen Steven Curtis Chapman, Casting Crowns, Chris Tomlin, Michael W Smith, Jeremy Camp, tobyMac, Point of Grace, Mercy Me, Aaron Shust, Rebecca St. James, Natalie Grant, Nicole Nordeman, Tammy Trent, Gaithers, Martina McBride, Alabama, Alan Jackson…
97. Hope to hear: Nicole C Mullen, Avalon, Chris Rice…
98. Strangest thing about my future: Stu won’t say we are done having kids…
99. Look forward to doing something outside of the home, but don’t know what.
100. Gotta go – Gabe is emptying the lazy susan, spreading cracker crumbs all over…
Thanks for reading!
Showing posts with label My testimony. Show all posts
Showing posts with label My testimony. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Friday, January 4, 2008
My testimony given at a Christmas program 2007
When my neighbor asked me to, in her words, “share what Jesus means to me” at your Christmas program, I knew I was in a fix. I never like having to get up in front of people, and I fear that somehow by sharing with people, they may get the impression that I “have it all together”, or at least they think that I know what I am talking about. I will never “have it all together”, but there are certain things that I know. It is an honor to stand before you and tell you what Jesus means to me.
He is truly my best friend, and I know that no matter what comes my way, I have the assurance that He will never leave me nor forsake me.
The easiest way to tell you what Jesus means to me, is to share about my life. I was born to a loving man with a great sense of humor, (he really needed it because there were 11 of us kids), and a hard working mother (who never seemed to get through the pile of ironing!). I have good memories of being #5 of 11 kids - we were a loud, hungry bunch, but sang together, laughed and played together. As many of you know, I was raised in the Brethren Mtg. We were taught about Jesus, and that we were special because we were more enlightened than other Christians. We held onto strict teaching, and looked to a leader to direct our lives. I fell in love, when I came out to Neche, and met a great looking guy, but I was only 13, and he was 20. In the following years, we saw each other at different places, and although we both thought that we were probably too far apart in age, the attraction was there. When I turned 20, I got the phone call I had been waiting for - and married Stuart soon after.
We were happy and things went along smoothly until Nov. 13, 1998. We found out that a man that worked for Stu had been stealing from us, and over time, embezzled $75,000. We sat in disbelief that someone we had trusted had done that to us, and I knew that nothing I could say would make it easier for Stu. Then the phone rang. My mom and asked me if I was sitting down. She told me that my healthy, strong, 53 yr old dad was killed in a car accident. Mom was left with 6 kids to raise alone. We were devastated. I loved my dad, and looked up to him. We saw how easily our lives could be snuffed out in an instant and our perspective changed. The $ stolen didn’t hold the same pain. Life is more important.
I had never lost someone that close to me before, and it hurt. But my faith grew during that time. I felt “arms” around me as I knelt alone by my bed, begging God for help. I also began to realize that God himself loves ME. Reflecting on the past months, I could see how He was so kind and gentle, in a personal way. My dad lived 24 hrs. away in Columbus, OH, but had just been up to see us only 3 days before the accident. In fact, I took the last picture of him. He knew and loved my husband and had seen my 1 yr. old baby. My 5 younger sisters wouldn’t be able to share their families with dad. Even as he went out the door on that last fateful trip, he told my sister (who was on the phone with me) to tell me that he loved me. Reflecting on those things made me intensely aware of God’s intimate interest in us.
Time went on, and we were busy. We really put our all into our lives as Brethren - until some things started happening that we knew were wrong. Things that were against scripture! We approached the persons who were involved and it became apparent that they were going to sweep these things under the rug, and we ourselves were persecuted because we questioned the things that were happening. Things were going to go on and we were supposed to act like all was well. We decided we couldn’t do that. Without thinking about the consequences, we left the meeting. Our lives dramatically changed. We have been shunned - from our family and not only our best, but our only friends, and the only life we’d ever known. We lost our identity. We spent some very lonely years, and had to (in a way), start over in our relationship with God. All of a sudden we were responsible for our own decisions - there was no “leader” who told us what to do, etc. But what a wonderful thing it has been. We may have lost ones dear to us, but God said that “everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” (Matthew 19;29) That started to happen for us, through one of our neighbor ladies. She kept coming over uninvited - and loving on us. Slowly we began to see that the position we held as “special Christians” was false, along with many other ideas we clung to. Through loving neighbors and listening to Christian radio, our hearts began to open. We saw our need to go to church, and what blessings we have found.
Our new life opened many things to us. We soon found ourselves enjoying many things we’d never done before. We also began to realize that doing more things, buying more things and adding to ourselves wasn’t going to bring complete satisfaction. God had blessed us, and brought us great freedom. We started to feel like we couldn’t keep it all to ourselves. We looked into adoption, and considered it for a couple years. I kept hoping that I would become a better mother, than I would feel free to go ahead and adopt. (ha ha) A scripture that we studied in Breaking Free - a Bible study with Beth Moore, kept coming to my mind.
Isaiah 58:6 says “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? (God had loosed our chains - and given us freedom we’d never known.) Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter - when you see the naked, to clothe him, (when had we ever done that?) and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? (Now listen to this) Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, (hard for us to do, after growing up as judgmental as we were) and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. (and this has become my beautiful dream) You will be like a well watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
We took the step in faith that God would be with us, and went to Ethiopia to adopt two beautiful children, 7 yr. old Kidest and 9 month old Hiale. We were humbled @ Kidest - whom we now call Serena. She leapt into Stu’s arms when we arrived and kept saying her few English words, “Dad…dad…dad… I love you”. By the way, today is her 8th birthday - and she had her first ever birthday party. (clap)
Gabe (Hiale) immediately accepted us too. It really was a miracle that a 9 month old baby seemed to know us, though he realistically couldn’t have. Even when we went to see their mother, Gabe cried for Stu, and wasn’t comforted until he was in his arms.
We now have 5 beautiful children, who each have individual gifts they bring to our family. I am thankful to God for His goodness, but also know now more than ever how much help I need. I have not, at times been a good mother, and have been surprised at how ugly I can be to my kids. Amazingly, even after loosing my temper, they forgive and still love me. How much more amazing it is that Jesus, knowing all our sin, looks on us with love. This season we celebrate how Jesus, God’s own Son, came into this world, as a dependent, infant - caring about us enough to come and experience life as we know it. God Himself, in a touchable human form. What joy!
He is truly my best friend, and I know that no matter what comes my way, I have the assurance that He will never leave me nor forsake me.
The easiest way to tell you what Jesus means to me, is to share about my life. I was born to a loving man with a great sense of humor, (he really needed it because there were 11 of us kids), and a hard working mother (who never seemed to get through the pile of ironing!). I have good memories of being #5 of 11 kids - we were a loud, hungry bunch, but sang together, laughed and played together. As many of you know, I was raised in the Brethren Mtg. We were taught about Jesus, and that we were special because we were more enlightened than other Christians. We held onto strict teaching, and looked to a leader to direct our lives. I fell in love, when I came out to Neche, and met a great looking guy, but I was only 13, and he was 20. In the following years, we saw each other at different places, and although we both thought that we were probably too far apart in age, the attraction was there. When I turned 20, I got the phone call I had been waiting for - and married Stuart soon after.
We were happy and things went along smoothly until Nov. 13, 1998. We found out that a man that worked for Stu had been stealing from us, and over time, embezzled $75,000. We sat in disbelief that someone we had trusted had done that to us, and I knew that nothing I could say would make it easier for Stu. Then the phone rang. My mom and asked me if I was sitting down. She told me that my healthy, strong, 53 yr old dad was killed in a car accident. Mom was left with 6 kids to raise alone. We were devastated. I loved my dad, and looked up to him. We saw how easily our lives could be snuffed out in an instant and our perspective changed. The $ stolen didn’t hold the same pain. Life is more important.
I had never lost someone that close to me before, and it hurt. But my faith grew during that time. I felt “arms” around me as I knelt alone by my bed, begging God for help. I also began to realize that God himself loves ME. Reflecting on the past months, I could see how He was so kind and gentle, in a personal way. My dad lived 24 hrs. away in Columbus, OH, but had just been up to see us only 3 days before the accident. In fact, I took the last picture of him. He knew and loved my husband and had seen my 1 yr. old baby. My 5 younger sisters wouldn’t be able to share their families with dad. Even as he went out the door on that last fateful trip, he told my sister (who was on the phone with me) to tell me that he loved me. Reflecting on those things made me intensely aware of God’s intimate interest in us.
Time went on, and we were busy. We really put our all into our lives as Brethren - until some things started happening that we knew were wrong. Things that were against scripture! We approached the persons who were involved and it became apparent that they were going to sweep these things under the rug, and we ourselves were persecuted because we questioned the things that were happening. Things were going to go on and we were supposed to act like all was well. We decided we couldn’t do that. Without thinking about the consequences, we left the meeting. Our lives dramatically changed. We have been shunned - from our family and not only our best, but our only friends, and the only life we’d ever known. We lost our identity. We spent some very lonely years, and had to (in a way), start over in our relationship with God. All of a sudden we were responsible for our own decisions - there was no “leader” who told us what to do, etc. But what a wonderful thing it has been. We may have lost ones dear to us, but God said that “everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” (Matthew 19;29) That started to happen for us, through one of our neighbor ladies. She kept coming over uninvited - and loving on us. Slowly we began to see that the position we held as “special Christians” was false, along with many other ideas we clung to. Through loving neighbors and listening to Christian radio, our hearts began to open. We saw our need to go to church, and what blessings we have found.
Our new life opened many things to us. We soon found ourselves enjoying many things we’d never done before. We also began to realize that doing more things, buying more things and adding to ourselves wasn’t going to bring complete satisfaction. God had blessed us, and brought us great freedom. We started to feel like we couldn’t keep it all to ourselves. We looked into adoption, and considered it for a couple years. I kept hoping that I would become a better mother, than I would feel free to go ahead and adopt. (ha ha) A scripture that we studied in Breaking Free - a Bible study with Beth Moore, kept coming to my mind.
Isaiah 58:6 says “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? (God had loosed our chains - and given us freedom we’d never known.) Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter - when you see the naked, to clothe him, (when had we ever done that?) and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? (Now listen to this) Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, (hard for us to do, after growing up as judgmental as we were) and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. (and this has become my beautiful dream) You will be like a well watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
We took the step in faith that God would be with us, and went to Ethiopia to adopt two beautiful children, 7 yr. old Kidest and 9 month old Hiale. We were humbled @ Kidest - whom we now call Serena. She leapt into Stu’s arms when we arrived and kept saying her few English words, “Dad…dad…dad… I love you”. By the way, today is her 8th birthday - and she had her first ever birthday party. (clap)
Gabe (Hiale) immediately accepted us too. It really was a miracle that a 9 month old baby seemed to know us, though he realistically couldn’t have. Even when we went to see their mother, Gabe cried for Stu, and wasn’t comforted until he was in his arms.
We now have 5 beautiful children, who each have individual gifts they bring to our family. I am thankful to God for His goodness, but also know now more than ever how much help I need. I have not, at times been a good mother, and have been surprised at how ugly I can be to my kids. Amazingly, even after loosing my temper, they forgive and still love me. How much more amazing it is that Jesus, knowing all our sin, looks on us with love. This season we celebrate how Jesus, God’s own Son, came into this world, as a dependent, infant - caring about us enough to come and experience life as we know it. God Himself, in a touchable human form. What joy!
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