A beautiful message

I sing on the worship team at our church, and this past Sunday I got to lead a song during the service. It's one that I requested to lead...a re-done hymn that is very special to me because of the truth I've found in it's meaning. There are beautiful worship songs, and then there are beautiful worship songs that I believe God has put in my heart to lead. This is one of them...a song and one of the prayers of my heart, not only for myself but for all.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in his wonderful face
and the things of Earth will grow strangely dim
in the light of his Glory and Grace
in the light of his Glory and Grace

Isn't He beautiful?
Isn't He beautiful..
Outshining suns and stars
It's indescribable how Breathtaking You are

So I turn my eyes upon you, Lord
look full in Your wonderful face
and the things of earth; they grow strangely dim
in the light of Your glory and grace
in the light of Your glory and grace


I wish I could take you inside of my head as I lead this song...so you could feel the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, the incredible joy that takes over me as I sing about how I feel about my Father...the exquisite inarticulateness that can only be expressed in worship of His glory. I'll try to find a good version of it to link on here, so you can hear it, too...Even just thinking about the holiness this song describes and that, somehow, God shows me a glimpse of each time I sing it brings tears to my eyes. To live my life with Him in full sight means to take my eyes off of all the things trying to distract me, stress me out, drive me crazy. It means being at peace and in constant worship. And then living His plan for my life out of that peace and worship.

thankful Thursday...Moving on.

Today's Thankful Thursday post is a bit different...Our Bayfield buddies are moving to Huston today, and I wanted to take a few minutes to honor them and thank them for the friendship we have. We spent a good part of the day Tuesday helping them pack, load up the moving van, clean a bit, and just generally try to help them out...John and Lindsay have become close friends of ours in the last 16 or so months, and we're going to miss them a lot... although, it does make our own move a little bit easier, in some ways. John took Adam under his wing in a mentoring sort of relationship about 9 months after we came on staff at the church. He was the youth pastor of the Foursquare church (the same denomination as ours) out in Bayfield, a little town about 1/2 an hour away from us. They had met at a conference we both took our kids to that summer, and a few months later began to meet bi-monthly to talk about youth ministry things. As we drove home Tuesday, Adam was talking about how his friendship with John and John's influence in his life has caused him to grow personally, spiritually, and in his work ethic more than anyone else. It's true, too-I've watched my husband become even stronger in his relationship with God, his ability and passion to be the spiritual head of our home, his desire to support me and my dreams, and his leadership as a youth pastor. I reaped the rewards of much of John's mentoring at home--he's a man who is in love with God and has his priorities straight: God, Wife, Kids, Ministry. Not all pastors get this, or at least put it into practice in their lives; but John does. He's the one who encouraged Adam to come home at lunch every day-something both Pax and I love! I know there are probably people out there who think I asked Adam to do this, or nag him if he goes to lunch with others...but I never have. It was completely his decision, based on John's recommendation, and when he saw the benefit it has had on our family he wanted to continue. I know not everyone has the luxury of time or distance to do this (we live about 2 minutes from the church), and i know we are entering a season of our life when this might not be possible...but I am so thankful for the lunches we've had.
John has also been the one to whom Adam could go with anything, joys or frustrations, and know he had a safe place to talk. He's given Adam wise council about decisions in our lives--he's the one who got Adam thinking and praying about med. school again. Adam has maybe 5 people in his life that he would call true friends...John is definitely one of them. I am so thankful for their friendship; I know how much those friends are needed, and have seen the difference it makes in Adam's life.
Our families started hanging out sometime last winter...usually dinner at their house followed by cards. I quickly discovered that John and Lindsay were both people I liked to be around, for many reasons. They are real and simply themselves...John is one of the most driven people I've ever known and jokingly gives Lindsey a hard time often; Lindsay is pretty mellow and just gives him this look that says "yeah, whatever, bud." They're great. I wish I could have had more time to get to know Lindsay-we pastors wives can sometimes put up a barrier until we figure out if this person really likes us and wants to be friends with us. I'm not proud of it, but it can be true. But I do know that I really like this creative, talented woman and I knew it from the minute I walked in her door and saw how she had decorated. It was so similar to what I would have done-great colors, pictures everywhere-that I knew we would get along if given the time..thankfully, I also know our friendship doesn't end just because they are moving!

John, Lindsay, Brooklyn, and Jonathan....

I am so thankful for a Godly mentor and true friend for my husband. He needed help and guidance as we started out in youth ministry; he got that and an amazing friendship.

I am thankful for your boldness to do as God tells you, regardless of how others may mis-perceive (is that a word?) it.

I am thankful for John's passion for a deep relationship with Christ as well as his wife and family...a passion he passed on to my husband.

I am thankful we had a chance to help you pack up your home.

I am thankful for the way you opened your home to us continually, not worrying about whose "turn" it was to entertain...and for nights of hand and foot!

I am thankful for your sunny little girl's love of playing with (and sometimes running away from) her "baby brother".

I am thankful for second chances...the first impression I had of John at camp several years ago was very different than the man I know today! he reminded me too much of a guy I knew in collage...but seeing his heart through my husband changed my perception of him, and getting to know his family helped me see him as he truly is.

I am thankful for Lindsay's love of her kids, and both her and John's open arms to our little guy. I'd just had Pax when we met; she was pregnant (and very sick!) with her second until last July...somehow she still found the energy to make new friends!

I am thankful for a set of youth pastor friends outside of our church...there are things that only other youth pastors understand!

I am thankful for their sweet little blue-eyed boy, who wasn't named after his daddy, no matter what people think :)

I am thankful for creative husbands who were determined to make our last date together (Valentine's) a spectacular event. And caramel apples as an appetizer.

I am thankful that true friendships can outlast changes in location.

Thank You, Lord, for these dear friends....thank you for the time we had with them, the wisdom we've gained from them, and the future You hold for them. Bless them as they start a new life in Houston, and continue to watch over them, guide them, and provide for them.

The Great Debate...pt. 2

For the past month or so, we've been debating the best time to switch Pax into his "Big Boy Bed". Really, this just means convering his crib into a toddler bed using a rail kit...but it's been a big deal! Adam has been wanting to switch it; I kept thinking about Pax getting up during his naps or at 2am and running around his room playing. So I wasn't so keen on the idea. Than Adam had a genius idea of using a clock with stickers on the times he could get out of bed...genius, but our little 17-month old isn't quite there yet. And so it went, back and forth...maybe when we move to Ft. Collins....maybe we'll wait until we are expecting another little one...maybe we should do it now....until this past Monday. I decided to check out the rail conversion kit, to see how hard it would be to take of the full crib side and add the rail; looked like a piece of cake. Then I looked at his bed-it's pretty high for a crib, since it's also a toddler bed. Hmmm....maybe we could just try it and see. We could always put it back on in a few days if the little dude wasn't ready for it yet. So, when Adam came home for lunch, we took the crib side down and put the "big boy" rail up. Pax was soooo excited! He loved that he could jump on his bed, without feeling like he was behind bars; we liked how much easier it would be to change his sheets and kiss him goodnight. And it was a bit too high for our little daredevil to want to climb out of it (see, having short legs can be an advantage!), even with a step. So. We tried it for naptime....he did beautifully! Fell out of bed twice that night (the kid seriously sleeps like a washing machine) but actually slept better in it overall that he has been in the crib! Last night, we improvised a bit longer rail (really just a big blanket rolled up and stuffed along the open side) so he wouldn't fall out as easily, and perhaps learn that he can't flop just anywhere in the new bed. We also put a single-sized camping mat along the side of the bed, so if he did fall again it would be cushioned (you should have seen me fly out of bed after the second thump Monday night!). He did fall out of bed last night, but only once. Half as much! At this rate, tonight should be smooth sailing....PLUS he slept half an hour longer this morning than usual! This big boy bed thing could have it's advantages....

Thankful Thursday...it's been awhile!

I realized today that there has been quite a dearth (great word, I know!) of blogging going on at Sunflower Eyes...not because I don't have anything to blog about (ooohhhh, do I have things to blog about!! Crazy, fun, exhausting things from the past few weeks...), but simply because I've been so busy living the crazy soon-to-be- blog stories that I haven't had time to write them down...I will soon, I promise, since Adam keeps bugging me about when I'm going to blog about the latest adventures of the Cupboard Dweller and other stuff...but for now: a short & sweet thankful Thursdays list.
Today, I am....
-thankful that my son is, although perhaps not a great sleeper, a great and flexible traveler.
-Thankful that I have family with extra bedrooms living in town (more about that one later...)
-thankful that my husband loves to take the time to plan surprises for me he knows I will LOVE (more about that later, too...)
-thankful for the kids I tutor-so different, so interesting, so fun to be challenged to help them learn!
-thankful for the BEAUTIFUL SUNSHINE we've been having this week...ahhh, flipflops!
-thankful for whoever invented toenail polish.
-thankful that my son loves people so much and makes it his personal mission to smile, wave and say "hi there!" to each and every one we pass.
-thankful for the sweet Sam's club lady who he charmed today...she gave him a sugar cookie, and it kept him busy almost the whole way home from Farmington!
-thankful for my station wagon.
-thankful that we get to go to the marriage conference for free this weekend because it's considered part of our job. We would have gone anyways, but it is nice to not have to worry about coming up with the money for it!
Sometimes we take for granted all the big and little things we have to be thankful for...what are you thankful for today?