Becoming Analise

  If you are a mother, I’m sure you have moments when you wonder how you could love your child your child so much. Tonight, I had a long strand of those moments as I was cradling Riley Grace in my arms while she slept. I was overwhelmed with just how much I love her and how I would do anything for her. I was overwhelmed with why in the world God entrusted her to Patrick and me. I was overwhelmed with how much God has used her to bless us, change us, and challenge us. I was overwhelmed with thankfulness that God planned her to be a part of our family even when we thought it wasn’t our plan! Our poor baby has been sick all week with a cold and fever, and she is miserable. Today after work, all she wanted to do was nap on me until bedtime. Although I hate for her to be sick, I was relishing the sweet moments of cuddling because, if you know Riley Grace, you know that she rarely wants to cuddle because she’s always on the go! As she was laying on me with a cool rag on her neck to hope...

Philippians 4:8-9 – OUR THOUGHTS AND DAILY PRACTICES “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me – practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”          Normally, when we hear the word, "Whatever!', we may think of a teen girl rolling her eyes at some seemingly ridiculous (to her, at least!) statement her mother made. I know none of you ever did that; I know I didn't!...  :-)  (Side note: As I have  become  an adult, I can definitely see where my mom was coming from when I had a  tendency  to roll my eyes, and I'll probably be the same way toward Riley Grace. :-) ) Ok, back to the real point. "Whatever" usually means that someone is meaningless to the hearer...

OUR SOURCE OF PEACE Philippians 4:7 “And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Part One: God's Peace will Guard Our Hearts.                   This verse is such a beautiful promise! In a world full of turmoil, chaos, and devastation caused by sin, isn’t it a comforting thought to know that the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds? I think it is a fitting description to say that His peace surpasses or transcends all understanding because there are many times that people try and fail to make sense of what is going on, and we simply cannot, nor can we explain the peace we feel when God gives it to us in situations that should be devastating or stressful. We just know that the only way that we can have peace in this broken world is through the Father. As believers, we know that we are not going to have the safest and easiest lives just because God is our ...