But God gives the increase...

So, we are (Will is) in the process of attempting to grow a lawn, key word, attempting. It's been over a week now and the wee little seeds that Will planted, and has been diligently watering, are not seeming to produce any increase yet. This has been a wee bit discouraging for my hard-working, yard-man. So, as I was out sitting on the front deck pondering this and feeling for him, a little still-small voice in my spirit spoke to me and He said "Isn't that just how it is when I'm planting seeds and watering in your life, or in other's lives, through you? You help Me plant and you help Me water, but you must have patience to see the fruit born, as I am the One who gives the increase."
We can't take the seeds back, they're already taking root in the ground (even if we can't "see" the work being done, another lesson in walking by faith, not by sight); we shouldn't stomp on them to punish them for not growing fast enough (really to our own personal speedy growth standards); we won't ignore them (because every time we walk by them, we stoop down to see if there's even a shred of growth happening.) All we can do is sit and wait, and "not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not lose heart." And we're just sure our socks will totally be blessed off when we finally get to see the green peeking out of the brown.
So if you ever start to get a wee bit impatient and just about ready to give up, just keep waiting on Him and trusting in Him, as He's the One to give the increase, in whatever endeavor He has you partnering (planting and watering) with Him in. His increase, but mostly just Jesus, are more than worth the wait!

1 Corinthians 3:7-9...
So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, you are God's building.

So if you don't mind, join us in prayer for the increase of our yard!!! Will would appreciate it too!

And Gramma Came to Visit...

Will's grandma Susie came to visit us at the end of August for Labor Day weekend, and what a treat it was! She also got to see her little grandson preach for her first viewing!

She was lovin that!

We had a shishkabob bbq!

Enjoyed lots of good gma stories and laughs!
Will even gave her a swing dancin' lesson!
Grandma raised the roof with her praises!
We went pinecone hunting for gma's next creation, a fall wreath!We had a picnic by the river, while on our pinecone hunt...

We love our grandma!

Survivor '07!

Here's what I brought. We also had a coffee can to boil our water in.

Above...Cliff Lake where we made camp.
My first fire made from flint and steel...while Paul and Jonathon built a sturdy shelter for the evening. The fire had two problems...1. It was built too far from the shelter to give us warmth and 2. We did not build a tall enough reflector around the fire to give us the heat we needed to stay warm for the night...we only slept 3 and a half hours on night 1.

On the way to the campsite we ran across a turtle...I said we should stop and take it with us...it thought differently and tried to convince us, by peeing all over itself and the ground.

Here is the turtle trying to make a break for it..."It's like watching a mosquito sucking on a mummy...forget it little friend."
Paul drove.
Here is the frame work of our shelter...just the studs and trusses...no insulation or sheetrock. Closer to the finished product, Jonathon and Paul relax on a surprisingly soft and comfortable bed...not photographed-we used moss for pillows.

Here are our make-shift fishing poles. We couldn't find grubs to catch any fish, but around 10am we found our first grasshopper...I proceeded to catch a few more...by lunch we had an 8 inch rainbow trout (or some other fish with multiple colors). I caught another fish later that day...Paul, my fishing teacher, failed to catch a fish, but I think he was proud that the mentee caught one. ("the student becomes the teacher"-said with a bad asian accent)

Here is my bite of the fish I caught.

This was not the turtle's finest moment.

He had already been boiled alive and then he met cold steel.

Rash from my bee sting (Bee not photographed-He did not sign a waiver to have his photograph shown on the internet...we don't want to be sued)

Also not shown...the eight times I puked on night #2...the 2 and a half miles we hiked in the dark to get out of there...the prayers we prayed hoping not to lose the trail or the tears we cried when we lost the trail.

At approximately 6:00 pm, I began throwing up the "nothing" that I had eaten. By nine o'clock, I was on my third puke fest...We needed to leave. But we had no flashlight...and no moon. It was dark...We felt our way down the 2 and a half miles to the car. We grew quite accustomed to the feel of the trail. By the last mile and a half we were walking at almost normal spead. (The trail is hard and dips toward the middle...it makes sense, but you typically don't notice when you have the use of your eyes.) To be honest, it was the highlight of the trip...with the slight exception of puking four more times down the trail and a final time in the car. Paul did not throw up until we were in the car...great timing!!! Actually, he opened the door and didn't get any inside the car. All in all...it was a great trip and we all had wonderful stories to tell.