The bonnie lad and lassies. Merisha and I happened to be in our family tartin skirts when Cole came in with his family tartin kilt that he got for Christmas. Fun times...

The Christmas music group. After a bit of persuasion, Pastor Bart joined in our ensamble for Christmas carols. It was wonderful...it'd been waaaay too long since we'd played with a guitar :-)

Christmas dinner:
Possum...mmm!

Me and my mommy on Christmas

Yay for Christmas Pictures!

My favorite Christmas 2006 picture. The three of us under the Christmas tree :-)













Christmas Crew 2006. Us, the Walkers and Cole. Not family, but have become pretty close.

Isaiah 9 has been fulfilled!

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. For those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned... For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and this government shall be on his shoulder. And his name shall be called: Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Isaiah 9:2,6,7

Hallelujah, Christ is born! What wonderous love that caused Christ to leave His throne in heaven to come as a humble babe in a manger, wrapping himself in humanity for this for a disctinct purpose: to satisfy the wrath, righteousness, justice and love of His Father. To be crushed for our iniquities, to save His people from their sins. Praise be to God for this incredible gift!

A Great Moral Teacher or Lord and God?

"One part of the claim [of Jesus to be God] tends to slip past us unnoticed because we have heard it so often that we no longer see what it amounts to. I mean the claim to forgive sins: any sins. Now unless the speaker is God, this is really so preposterous as to be comic. We can all understand how a man forgives offences against himself. You tread on my toes and I forgive you, you steal my money and I forgive you. But what should we make of a man, himself unrobbed and untrodden on, who announced that he forgave you for treading on other men's toes and stealing other men's money? Asinine fatuity is the kindest description we should give of his conduct. Yet this is what Jesus did. He told people that their sins were forgiven, and never waited to consult all the other people whom their sins, and never waited to consult all the other people whom their sins had undoubtedly injured. He unhesitatingly behaved as if He was the party chiefly concerned, the person chiefly offended in all offences. This makes sense only if He really was the God whose laws are broken and whose love is wounded in ever sin. In the mouth of any speaker who is not God, these words would imply what I can only regard as silliness and conceit unrivalled by any other character in history.

Yet (and this is the strange, significant thing) even His enemies, when they read the Gospels, do not usually get the impression of silliness and conceit. Still less do unprejudiced readers. Christ says that He is 'humble and meek' and we believe Him; not noticing that, if He were merely a man, humility and meekness are the very last characteristics we could attribute to some of His sayings.

I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not have been a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would have been the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God."

C.S. Lewis
Mere Christianity, Chapter 3

:-D

Today is a wonderful day. It all started with a long (for me!) bike ride of about 6 miles on the Natchez Trace with a new friend. In fact, I realized that this is the first "one-on-one" time I've had with any of my new acquaintances in Natchez since I moved here. I guess I mostly do stuff with groups and always with Merisha. Anyway, it made me feel energized and happy :-)
Soo, then I picked up my little charge and spent the morning babbling to him in baby-talk. For lunch, Merisha and I played for the Rotary Club (a meeting of lots of important and influential people) and they all LOVED the music. We even got a standing ovation, which surprised me to no end. After we were finished, we had lots of people ask for our business cards and even booked events to play this very week! Yay!
And tonight I'm eating dinner with another new friend and then will see some church people, which I always look forward to. Maybe we'll even play some music tonight!

So anyway, God is (of course) good even when things are going badly, being Sovereign as He is. But today I'm grateful to Him for blessing me with a happy day :-)
I'm glad not every day is this good...I probably wouldn't appreciate them nearly as much if they were.

Merisha's Birthday

Today is the day that my sister turns twenty.
As I try to grasp the fact that she is now two decades old, I think back over our lives together and wonder Where have the years gone? Wasn't it yesterday that we were playing dress up and dreaming of what it would be like to be "big girls"?

I have to say that my sister is one of the most incredible people on the planet, and I'm not just being bias. For one thing, anyone who can put up with me 24/7 for the past almost 19 years deserves to be canonized :)
Though we are very different in many ways, we are completely unified in everything foundational. It's rather uncanny how one of us will go to the other and say "You know, God has really brought this truth or scripture to my mind a lot" and the response is often "Wow, I've been thinking the EXACT same thing."
We finish each other's sentences and when a question is asked, our response is more often than not in unison. I really love my sister :)

But most importantly, Her passion for God and knowing Him to a greater degree is infectious...oh that there were more women like my sister!
Her convictions and beliefs are unshakable, but her humility and kindness balance her out very well. She never ceases to amaze me when she fluently and with confidence defends even the most controversial and attacked parts of our faith with graciousness.

Happy Birthday, Merisha! I am blessed beyond measure in having you for a sister. If I could have asked God for everything I wanted in a sister, I still wouldn't have been capable of thinking up anyone as great as you are. I love you.
"The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace." '

You're my sister...and you're the favorite ;)
~Robin <><

I'm Thankful

Yes, this post is late, but I've been having such a wonderful time with my family, I haven't been willing to sacrifice the sweet time with them to blog :)

I have to say, every year I realize more and more what I have to be thankful for and the importance of gratitude. Things that I would have never considered thanking God for I'm finding myself saying "Wow, thank you, Lord!"

I really feel like every year I post the same things that I'm thankful for, but one of the pastors from our church the other day posed the question to the children of our church "has anyone ever done anything so nice for you that you felt like 'thank you' just wasn't enough?" and for some reason that stuck with me. That's how I feel sometimes. Just saying 'thank you' once or twice or a million times to God for all of His blessings just doesn't seem like enough.

The first on my list must be the unfathomable grace that God has extended to me. I am eternally grateful to Him for calling me out of darkness and redeeming my soul. I cannot comprehend the kind of love that sees creatures in such a state of sin and depravity and loves them in spite of it. I'm thankful that I don't get what I deserve. I deserve death, but He gave me life. I am thankful that Jesus obediently became the propitiation for our sins and satisfied the righteous wrath of God. I am grateful that I now get justice, not based on my life, but on His death. If this grace were the only thing that He ever blessed me with, I would be complete. But in His sovereignty, He has bestowed me with other wonderful gifts.

Second to my salvation, my family is the greatest blessing in my life.My mother and sister are two of the most godly women that I know, and I am blessed every day of my life to live in unity with them. Through the hardest of life's trials we have been brought closer, and through the fire we have together been refined. My dad has taught me so much over the years, and always being a "daddy's girl", I thank God for allowing me to be his daughter. I consider bearing my father's name to be a privilege and I pray every day that my relationship with him would be whatever God would mold it into for His purposes and glory. My extended family are also quite precious to me. There is a very special bond in our extended family that I have observed is absent in many others that I know. Though we vary widely on beliefs, lifestyles and ideas, there is something that holds us all together. Of course, that thing that holds us together is our shared love for Christ. I cannot express the joy I feel when I see my little cousins walk with the Lord, hear my grandfather pray, and feel the unity of Christ when I look into my uncle's eyes. Praise to God that we all are unified in our faith in Him!

Being thankful for my family would be incomplete without expressing gratitude for my spiritual family. The church universal, and spicifically the brothers and sisters in the various churches in that we have walked in fellowship with over the past couple of years and that we have recently met upon moving to Natchez. Though God saw fit for me to only have one biological sibling, a sister, He has made me especially aware of my brothers and sisters in Christ, some of them my very best friends. I am always astounded by the love and grace of God shining through in the lives of His children.

I got flack for saying this last year, but it's true so I shall say it again :-D I am grateful that God saw fit for me to be born an American! I am furthermore always grateful for those fighting for our freedom, willing to pay the ultimate price for the survival of liberty. When I stop to think about it, that willingness and devotion astounds me. This nation was founded on Christ, and I pray that it will one day return to Him.

And though it might sound strange, I truly am grateful for the trials that God has allowed in my life. Some of the trials have been seen by others, some of them have not been, but God has walked with me - and often times carried me through them all. The fire is hot and sometimes excruciatingly painful, but God has proven Himself faithful again and again and again. Great is Thy faithfulness unto me!

A phone conversation I had tonight

"Hi-ya Daddy!"
"Hi, Robin, how are yo - wait, is that a MAN'S voice I hear in the background?"
"Mm-hmm, I'm at -"
"Roooobin, I guess I should now ask his name? Where does he live?"
"But..."
"What does he drive? How long have you known him?"
"Dad, he's -"
"Is he a nice guy?"
"Dad! I'm at church! You're hearing voices because bible study just let out and people are talking."
"Oh."

I think I've got a loooong few years ahead of me...

Here I go again

I sooo often fall into this category...

Lyrics from "Here I Go Again" by Casting Crowns

Father, hear my prayer
I need the perfect words
Words that he will hear
And know they're straight from You
I don't know what to say
I only know it hurts
To see my only friend slowly fade away

So maybe this time I'll speak the words of life
With Your fire in my eyes
But that old familiar fear is tearing at my words
What am I so afraid of?

'Cause here I go again
Talkin 'bout the rain
And mulling over things that won't live past today
And as I dance around the truth
Time is not his friend
This might be my last chance to tell him
That You love Him
But here I go again, here I go again

Reformation Day

In honor of Reformation Day, I read the ninty five thesis today. There were several interesting ponits made, but this really stuck out to me...
"The true treasure of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and the grace of God." Martin Luther 95 Thesis, Nubmer 62

I liked that.

A Visit Home...

I went to New Orleans last week. We picked up a friend of mine and headed off headed off down Esplanade to find something to eat. I've never been very familliar with the East Bank, and was a little confused as to where I was. But as we crossed Williams, I made a mental note: "Oh yes, I know where I am! At the corner of Esplanade and Williams...when did they put that Wallmart Marketplace there?"

After running hither, thither and yon, we returned back to our friend's house where the evening news happened to be on.
"There was a murder in this afternoon near the intersection of Esplanade and Williams. The suspect ran into the Wallmart Marketplace parking lot..."

I was shocked. Not that there was a murder in New Orleans, but that it was frighteningly close to where we were, and at the same time. We went back and forth across that intersection at least 5 times! Looking back, I remember hearing sirens and seeing police cars in the Walmart parking lot...but who ever would've thought?

I Think I'm Homesick

I say I think because I’m not exactly sure...I’ve never really been homesick before. I’m the one who, after being away for weeks and weeks will get a phone call from my mom asking "Homesick yet?" and I have to quickly decide rather to be nice and say "Oh yeah, of course!" or be honest.
But this time it’s true. I really do miss home. I mean, of course I miss New Orleans (the good parts, that is) in and of itself, but what I really miss are all of my friendships that were there. You know, the deep kind that take lots of time and effort to build...often years.
Moving to a city where you don’t know a soul has some fun aspects, but there are some challenges as well.
One advantage is that you get to make new friends. We have met some very nice people, some of which will, I think, become very close friends, but deep friendships just take time to build.

Not knowing anyone has made me a little crazy lately. Those of you who know me should get a kick out of some actual thoughts that ran though my head yesterday...they are so un-typical for me:
"Should I go say hello to them?" "Why does she never speak to me?" "Did he think I was being flirtatious?" "Will these people think I’m sassy and arrogant when they see my sunglasses picture on my myspace?" "Did he know I was kidding?" "Did she know I was serious?"
I obsessed over writing 2 e-mails, 2 myspace messages and 1 comment. This is absolutely insane.
It’s not that I don’t worry about offending my New Orleans friends or that I feel like I can just be flippant and take their friendship for granted...it’s that I know them and they know me. We can pretty much figure out where the other is coming from.

I miss really knowing everyone. I mean, I never wondered rather or not I should hug Leah, sit next to Christian, talk to Matthew or e-mail James.
I never have to explain where I’m coming from to Shelby or wonder if Jeff took something I said the wrong way. I never apologized for "unloading" on Mrs. Yvette or wondered if I was approachable enough for Amanda to tell me what was on her heart.
Elise could read my mind and put a finger on what was troubling me before most people could even notice a thing.

You know, there really is something frightening about getting to know people - really getting to know people, not the "Hi, how are you?" "Fine, how are you?" friendships, those are easy - it’s the real friendships where things get complicated and risky.
When people see your strengths and weaknesses, triumphs and defeats, successes and failures - when people see enough of you to see who you really are - it’s a vulnerable position.
People have seen me both grow in my relationship with Christ and fail miserably. They’ve heard me say really stupid things, struggle with real issues and sometimes fall flat on my face.
I’ve been through some really tough times with people, and they’ve been through really though times with me. We have rejoiced together and walked together in the courts of the Lord.
I miss those relationships...I think I’m homesick.

Robin returns to blogdom

I'm alive! But not only am I alive, I am also exceedingly happy. Why am I happy? Because the new computer came in and is allowing me online for more than 30 seconds at a time.
I have about 5 random, unconnected blog post ideas floating around in my head, so you might just see regular posting from me for a while :)

Until then, I leave you with this scripture. A beautiful mystery...

Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4

~Robin <><

My 100th Post!

Beautiful...

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
Romans 11:33-36

Just when I start to get bogged down with all things I don't understand, just when I start focusing on how many questions I have, I come across this verse. It always compells me to breathe a prayer of thanksgiving as I get a glimpse of just how great a God he really is.

To Him be glory forever!

Random Picture

Merisha and me with our favorite instruments. 

Autumn

Yesterday was the first day of autumn. This makes me very happy because I’m finding that being such northerners now (we’re quite a bit north of I-10 now, you know), we have much more season differentiation than I’ve ever known.
To my surprise, we have already had several very nice cooler days! Even in August we had some that were cool! This is a strange new experience for me, but I’m finding that I will very much like having four seasons.
Our autumn and winter clothes come out of the attic…out with the white and pastels, bring on the dark and dramatic! I love season changes.

~Robin <><

Psalm 143

1 I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever. 2 Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever. 3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable. 4 One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. 5 I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. 6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness. 7 They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness. 8 The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. 9 The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.
10 All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee. 11 They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; 12 To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom. 13 Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations. 14 The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down. 15 The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. 16 Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing. 17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works. 18 The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. 19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them. 20 The LORD preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy. 21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.

I have been knitting lately

Knitting scarves, to be exact.
Now, this is quite a strange turn of events. I have always been a crochet person and found knitting quite dull. A dear friend is an avid knitter and though she couldn't talk me into liking it when we lived together, I have since tried it again and found it quite to my liking. I have found the trick is to buy fun, festive yarn.
My problem now is that I have at least 3 crochet projects going, 2 cross stitch projects and now I'm adding knitting to the mix. Hmm. Everyone will be receiving half finished Christmas gifts if I keep adding projects at this rate :)

I Remember September 11, 2001.

I remember being thirteen years old as I watched on live TV the collapse of the World Trade Centers, saw the destruction of the Pentagon and saw the field where United flight 93 was crashed.
I remember the shock, the confusion and the terror on everyone's faces.

I remember wondering if there would be more attacks.

I remember the prayer services of churches all over the country being packed out.

I remember hearing of people standing in line for 6 hours to give blood.

I remember the floods of flags hanging poudly everywhere, as far as I could see.

I remember our country standing united.

It's been five years now, but it seems like yesterday. Like yesterday when our country was attacked, when thousands of people died, when I had something in common with every single stranger I saw or talked to.

Five years, but I still found it heartwrenching to see the pictures again, to read quotes of people who called from the planes and World Trade Center to say good bye to their families, to read accounts of the families left to carry on.

Though the country is again divided and splintered, I remember the day that brought everyone together.
I remember September 11th.

I really love this story...

Joshua 22
1 Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, 2 and said to them, "You have kept all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, and have listened to my voice in all that I commanded you. 3 "You have not forsaken your brothers these many days to this day, but have kept the charge of the commandment of the LORD your God. 4 "And now the LORD your God has given rest to your brothers, as He spoke to them; therefore turn now and go to your tents, to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you beyond the Jordan. 5 "Only be very careful to observe the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, to love the LORD your God and walk in all His ways and keep His commandments and hold fast to Him and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul." 6 So Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their tents. 7 Now to the one half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given {a possession} in Bashan, but to the other half Joshua gave {a possession} among their brothers westward beyond the Jordan. So when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them, 8 and said to them, "Return to your tents with great riches and with very much livestock, with silver, gold, bronze, iron, and with very many clothes; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers." 9 The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned {home} and departed from the sons of Israel at Shiloh which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession which they had possessed, according to the command of the LORD through Moses.
10 When they came to the region of the Jordan which is in the land of Canaan, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar there by the Jordan, a large altar in appearance. 11 And the sons of Israel heard {it} said, "Behold, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar at the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the region of the Jordan, on the side {belonging to} the sons of Israel." 12 When the sons of Israel heard {of it,} the whole congregation of the sons of Israel gathered themselves at Shiloh to go up against them in war. 13 Then the sons of Israel sent to the sons of Reuben and to the sons of Gad and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, 14 and with him ten chiefs, one chief for each father's household from each of the tribes of Israel; and each one of them {was} the head of his father's household among the thousands of Israel. 15 They came to the sons of Reuben and to the sons of Gad and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and they spoke with them saying, 16 "Thus says the whole congregation of the LORD, 'What is this unfaithful act which you have committed against the God of Israel, turning away from following the LORD this day, by building yourselves an altar, to rebel against the LORD this day? 17 'Is not the iniquity of Peor enough for us, from which we have not cleansed ourselves to this day, although a plague came on the congregation of the LORD, 18 that you must turn away this day from following the LORD? If you rebel against the LORD today, He will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel tomorrow. 19 'If, however, the land of your possession is unclean, then cross into the land of the possession of the LORD, where the LORD'S tabernacle stands, and take possession among us. Only do not rebel against the LORD, or rebel against us by building an altar for yourselves, besides the altar of the LORD our God. 20 'Did not Achan the son of Zerah act unfaithfully in the things under the ban, and wrath fall on all the congregation of Israel? And that man did not perish alone in his iniquity.' "
21 Then the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered and spoke to the heads of the families of Israel. 22 "The Mighty One, God, the LORD, the Mighty One, God, the LORD! He knows, and may Israel itself know. If {it was} in rebellion, or if in an unfaithful act against the LORD do not save us this day! 23 "If we have built us an altar to turn away from following the LORD, or if to offer a burnt offering or grain offering on it, or if to offer sacrifices of peace offerings on it, may the LORD Himself require it. 24 "But truly we have done this out of concern, for a reason, saying, 'In time to come your sons may say to our sons, "What have you to do with the LORD, the God of Israel? 25 "For the LORD has made the Jordan a border between us and you, {you} sons of Reuben and sons of Gad; you have no portion in the LORD." So your sons may make our sons stop fearing the LORD.' 26 "Therefore we said, 'Let us build an altar, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice; 27 rather it shall be a witness between us and you and between our generations after us, that we are to perform the service of the LORD before Him with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices and with our peace offerings, so that your sons will not say to our sons in time to come, "You have no portion in the LORD.'" 28 "Therefore we said, 'It shall also come about if they say {this} to us or to our generations in time to come, then we shall say, "See the copy of the altar of the LORD which our fathers made, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice; rather it is a witness between us and you.'" 29 "Far be it from us that we should rebel against the LORD and turn away from following the LORD this day, by building an altar for burnt offering, for grain offering or for sacrifice, besides the altar of the LORD our God which is before His tabernacle."
30 So when Phinehas the priest and the leaders of the congregation, even the heads of the families of Israel who {were} with him, heard the words which the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the sons of Manasseh spoke, it pleased them. 31 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said to the sons of Reuben and to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Manasseh, "Today we know that the LORD is in our midst, because you have not committed this unfaithful act against the LORD; now you have delivered the sons of Israel from the hand of the LORD." 32 Then Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest and the leaders returned from the sons of Reuben and from the sons of Gad, from the land of Gilead to the land of Canaan, to the sons of Israel, and brought back word to them. 33 The word pleased the sons of Israel, and the sons of Israel blessed God; and they did not speak of going up against them in war to destroy the land in which the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad were living. 34 The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad called the altar {Witness;} "For," {they said,} "it is a witness between us that the LORD is God."

Thought provoking reads

I find that a strange thing happens to me when I go to the library: I always seem to leave with at least one book on the holocaust.
In fact, I just finished Schindler's List. As I finished the last page, I thought to myself that it was one of the most troubling books I've ever read in my life. The only book more troubling was Let Me Go, an account from a German woman about her mother who was in the SS and, now in her eighties, still showed absolutely no remorse about the inhumane things that she personally did to the prisoners.
I've also read several accounts from survivors of the camps.
They are all from different perspectives and very thought provoking.
I wonder how the desensitization process can go that far, to where you give barbaric treatment without even hesitating. I wonder how people can survive that kind of treatment. I am amazed at how much humans can really handle, the will to live. I was very surprised to find out that many of them did not even believe in God and I wonder how in the world anyone could go through those circumstances without Him.

One Year Later...

One year ago at this time I was at my grandparent's house glued to the weather channel watching as Hurricane Katrina landed in my parish. Little did I know how this moment would change my life.

It hardly seems like a year ago that I lived in my hometown, the suburbs of New Orleans. In some ways, it seems like just yesterday; in others, an eternity.
I have moved several times since then, leaving behind my life and everything I knew in New Orleans.
In this year, I have been removed from close friends in New Orleans, not had a clue where I was going to live or what I was going to do, moved to Houston and made wonderful new friends, had to say goodbye to them as I moved again, again not knowing where I was going or what I was going to do, stayed with various family members and friends, settled on Natchez, established our music business, moved here, and made more new friends as we settle in here.
It's been quite a whirlwind!

As I look back over this very trying year, my one recurring thought on the subject has been the faithfulness of God. He has shown Himself mighty, loving, and gracious. He has shown Himself worthy of all praise and honor. He has one again proven that He is God and I am not. Just when I start to worry about my circumstances, He comes through again, just as He always has. It's amazing. How does God care about every miniscule detail of my life? What is man that Thou art mindful of him? I find myself wondering along with the psalmist.
Yes, in this year there have been many heartbreaks. Yes, there have been many disappointments and many dreams shattered. And yes, there have been many tears.
But through these fiery trials, God has done much teaching. And for all of the hardships, I wouldn't trade the lessons I've learned from them for anything.

Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
there is no shadow of turning with thee;
thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
as thou hast been thou forever will be.

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
sun, moon and stars in their courses above
join with all nature in manifold witness
to thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
all I have needed thy hand hath provided;
great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

An All Time Favorite Psalm

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
All that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems you life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.

The LORD performs righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are oppressed.
He made known His ways to Moses,
HE acts to the sons of Israel.
The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.
He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
He has not delt with us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear HIm.
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the LORD has compassion on His children.
For He Himself knows our frame;
He is mindful that we are but dust.

The LORD has established His throne in the heavens,
And His righteousness to children's children,
To those who keep His covenant
and remember His precepts to do them.

The LORD has established His throne in the heavens,
And His soverignty rules over all.
Bless the LORD, you His angels,
Mighty in strenght, who perform His word,
Obeying the voice of His word!
Bless the LORD, all you His hosts,
You who serve Him, doing His will.
Bless the LORD, all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
Psalm 103

Back from Bootcamp and Watching Time Fly

Last weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the Entrepreneurial Bootcamp put on by Vision Forum. It was incredible! The sessions were long, and almost always ran over, but I found myself not wanting them to end. A few of the speakers were Arnold Pent, Scott Brown, Geoff Botkin and, of course, Doug Phillips. I learned a lot of practical stuff, like marketing etc. but I think the best part of the weekend was the encouragement. Doug Phillips' "Big Picture" talk was one that I will be listening to on CD and remembering for a long time. It was very neat to see people who have family businesses with biblical standards who have been successful not only by obtaining earthly wealth but also, and most importantly, "heavenly capital".
At the end of the last session, we went up and talked to several of the speakers to find out any advice they had for us in our very....how shall we say?...Particular circumstances. Some of them had some very good practical advice and encouragement, but Mr. Brown's answer was probably my favorite - "Wow, I have no idea...can I pray for you?" Honesty and prayers always welcome!

On the way up and back we had to opportunity to spend time with very dear friends whom we haven't seen in what seems like an eternity. This was a huge blessing for us!
I found out that one of my friends joined the Marines since I've seen him last...wow...it seems like just yesterday he was 13 and throwing dead animals at me. How time flies!

Yes, time really does fly. As I have been thinking lately about the brevity of life, I recall when I was younger and how time seemed to hold still. A minute, an hour, a week, all seemed to take an eternity. To think of something happening "next year" seemed like it might as well be in another millennium.
But now, I look back over my short life and I see just how much it has flown by. I can now identify with Psalm 39:4-5 where in his distress David cried "Behold, You have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime as nothing in Your sight; surely every man at his best is a mere breath. Surely every man walks about as a phantom; surely they make an uproar for nothing; he amasses riches and does not know who will gather them." Also Psalm 90:10 "As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, or if due to strength, eighty years, yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; For soon it is gone and we fly away."
While I lived in Katy, I read a book by John Piper called Don't Waste Your Life. On the first few pages was a quote that I liked:
"Only one life,
'Twill soon be past;
Only what's done
for Christ will last."
It's very simple, and I didn't think much about it at the time. But as the months have rolled along, I think of that little quote more and more.
Only one life, 'twill soon be past. Do I really understand just how short life is? No, I don't think I do. If I did, I can't imagine that I'd ever waste a moment of it.
Only what's done for Christ will last. Do I believe that? My reaction answer would to answer "Of course!" But I think sometimes that if I had a real grasp of that concept - that everything is useless if it be not for Christ - my life would look quite different. The books I read would be different, the movies I watch, the things I think about during the day, the people I talk to and what I talk to them about, these would all be different (or would at least be in a different perspective) if I could really grasp the concept of the brevity of life.

With this I leave you. Admonition to all of Israel by Joshua shortly before his death.
"Be very firm, then, to keep and do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, so that you may not turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left, so that you will not associate with these nations, these which remain among you, or mention the name of their gods, or make anyone swear by them, or serve them, or bow down to them. But you are to cling to the LORD your God, as you have done this day. For the LORD has driven out great and strong nations from before you; and as for you, no man has stood before you to this day. One of your men puts to flight a thousands for the LORD your God is He who fights for you, just as He promised you. So take diligent heed to yourselves to love the LORD your God...Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one word of all the good words which the LORD your God spoke concerning you has failed; all have been fufilled for you, not one of them has failed."
Joshua 23:6-11, 14

~Robin <><

Iron Sharpening Iron

Yesterday was a wonderful day! It started out with a visit our friends which we worshiped with in Mandeville before we moved. It seems like it had been forever since we had seen everyone! There is always great fellowship with these brothers and sisters, but today it was even more interesting because we discussed pado-baptism vs credo-baptism, the New Perspective on Paul and various other "hot topics" surrounding Christianity. It was so rich that we didn't want to leave, and put off our departure for as long as we could. It's funny when you think that you know where someone is coming from and what they believe then WHAM! They say something totally unexpected, especially when you find out that they're thinking the same thing you are. Ah, the sweetness of like-mindedness!

So just as I thought that I'd had my fill of debate and theological thinking for the day, we made a stop through Folsom to our other old fellowship. We had been there a little over an hour when I was standing in the kitchen, talking to my friend Leah about the weather or some such thing. We had been talking quite happily about nothing in particular for a few minutes when someone who I hadn't even seen in five years walked up and after a few minutes looked to me and said "So, are you a Calvinist?" My first response was a blank stare. After I realized that it was a serious question that was awaiting an answer (even though I knew that it was rhetorical) I thought Oh no, here it goes again! and fumbled some sort affirmative reply. So it began. Now, debating Calvinism is nothing new for my sister and me, but I'll have to admit that it had been a very long time since I'd talked about the subject with someone with an opposing view. In fact, as I thought back to the last time I debated it, I realized that it was the last time I was at this fellowship.
So there I was, with no Merisha and no Bible, trying to explain why I believed in total depravity, and trying to understand his point in the analogy of the nature of the coke can (never did figure that out, by the way).
After a while, it came time to leave and it was decided that we'd talk about children being born sinful vs being born a blank slate another day. As we proceeded towards the exit, we entered the dining room where we found Merisha discussing the same topics with another group of people.
Merisha always articulates her thoughts during theological debates much better than I do, and never seems intimidated or ruffled, which continues to amaze me. By the time it was finished, there were 9 or so people all giving their two cents, and it was great! We all stayed for a bit longer and (as usual) ended up agreeing to disagree.

As I tried to discover what it was about debating theology that I liked so much, I realized that there is something wonderful about constantly being challenged to go back to the Bible for your answers. In no conversation during the day was anyone convinced of the other person's views, (in fact, Merisha just walked in and declared "His explanation of Romans 9 is completely implausible! Would you like to hear why?") but they all made me think and challenged my views. It made me go back to the Bible and say "Okay, why do I believe this? Where is it in the Bible?" After all, if my view isn't firmly planted in the Word of God, it needs to be challenged and blown out of the water.

At the end of the day, it isn't about who's right and who's wrong, it's about drawing near to the throne of grace and humbly asking God for wisdom. We're all in the same boat, striving toward the same goal, trying to understand as much as we can with our finite minds.
So next time someone asks "Credo or Pado?", "What about the New Perspective?" or, of course, the ever-popular "How could anyone be a Calvinist?" I'll recall the last time these views were challenged, remember the Scriptures, breathe a prayer for wisdom, and - by God's grace, with confidence and meekness of spirit - will make a defense for the hope which is within me.

~Robin <><

The Miracle of Birth

The baby was born yesterday morning, after a very difficult and emotionally and physically draining labor.
I was in the delivery room, and as it was my first time to witness a birth, it was quite a new experience for me. I wasn't sure exactly what to expect, but even I could tell that things were going wrong.
While holding the mother's hand, hearing her oxygen mask inflate and watching the computer screen like a hawk for any signs that the baby's heart rate was improving, I heard her ask me to pray. I was instantly reminded of the Psalmist's words "You knit me together in my mother's womb, I shall praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made" and where he says that it was God who brought him forth from the womb. These words were an encouragement to us, especially since it was a risky delivery. We knew that God was the only one who could bring this child forth at all and definitely the only one who could protect her and keep her healthy. But all we could do was wait, watch and pray.
At at least one point I was completely dumbfounded that women actually go through this. But as I saw the baby enter the world and be placed in her mother's arms, as I held her close to me and kissed her forehead, I couldn't imagine anyone not wanting children.
When the nurse entered the room after they had been monitoring her vital signs, I breathed a prayer of thanksgiving as I heard her say "She's perfectly fine...the most beautiful baby in the nursery."
And yes, I cried.
The scene was amazing when, looking down at her, her father said, "Look at this...fearfully and wonderfully made."
I've always heard that birth is a miracle, but now I know it and believe it with all of my heart.

During the labor, everyone kept looking over to me and saying "How many children did you say you wanted? I bet you don't want any now!" But I'm happy to say, that through it all, it has only reinforced my desire to have many children.
God's power and providence were manifested and his glory magnified. His mercy is truly new every morning, as we discovered anew at 6:28 am yesterday.

In awe of His grace,
~Robin <><

Traveling the High Skies Once Again...

I'm in St. Louis again, and as I was informed last night by my host that blogs were a waste of time, it reminded me that I needed to put up another post. :)
Merisha is taking Suzuki Piano Teacher Training this week, so I decided to come up and see my friends in St. Louis while she's in New Orleans for training.
The baby is due any day and they needed some help, soooo, here I am!

I have been thinking about this scripture in Isaiah lately:

'Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.' Isaiah 41:10

What an awesome encouragement!

~Robin <><

"Put on a heart of compassion..."

In reading through the gospels a while back, I was struck anew by the compassion of Christ.
I proceeded to do a word search on compassion and was almost surprised by what I've found.
The New American Standard version yeilds 92 results to the search "compassion". Of course, not all of these refer to the compassion of God, but also to people begging compassion from God, people extending compassion to others, etc.

If you ask me, one thing that the conservative church has all but lost is compassion.
Many speakers will talk for hours about the unsaved and their impending judgement. I heard recently of a preacher who said "we always hear that we are to love the sinner and hate the sin, but God hates the sinner enough to throw him into hell!" Implying that we should only love those who are currently saved and living the life that we think they should live.
(Side note: Of course, I believe that God is not only loving and compassionate but also just and that there are eternal consequences for those who die without repenting. However, since judgement has not yet occurred, we know not who the saved are or will be. Therefore, we are given the comission to preach to every nation and share the gospel of Christ with everyone.)
All of life is a balance, and I've seen both extreemes, but there is definately an aspect of christianity that you loose when all you do is look at the sin and ignore the hurting, lost sinner.

I know one thing for sure, my life has been changed by a loving God who had compassion on me long before I ever appreciated it. That compassion was shown through his word, but also through people who had the strength to love me where I was and show me truth. They lead me through hard times, and let the Holy Spirit do the work of convicting my sin instead of judging it and pointing it out to me themselves.
The compassion of God has taken some pretty wrecked lives and made them holy, and there is not one person that is beyond the healing touch of God.
As someone who was saved as a child and has been spared may of the burdens that come from living a life apart from Christ, I can be tempted to be self-righteous. But a friend of mine has a very interesting approach to seeing people lost in their sin. Instead of automatically being welled up with pride because "I'm not as bad as that person" she would turn to her children and say "There, but for the grace of God."
Yes, that's so true. We are all there, in the place of the worst sinner, but for the grace of God. That life can be turned around with the compassion of God, often shown through His people.

Here are a few scriptures that jumped out at me as I was doing a word search on compassion, and though they're all wonderful, I especially liked the last one.

Nevertheless, in Your great compassion You did not make an end of them or forsake them, for You are a gracious and compassionate God.
Nehemiah 9:31

Shout for joy, O heavens! And rejoice, O mountains! For the Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion on His afflicted.
Isaiah 49:13

"In an outburst of anger I hid My face from you for a moment, but with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you" says the Lord your Redeemer.
"For the mountains may be removed, and the hills may shake, but my lovingkindness will not be removed from you, and my covenant of peace will not be shaken," says the Lord who has compassion on you.
Isaiah 54:8, 10

"I will sow for her Myself in the land. I wil also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion, and I wills ay to those who were not My people, 'You are my people!' and they will say, 'You are my God!' "
Hosea 2:23

But seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.
Matthew 9:36

When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick.
Matthew 14:14

When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, "Do not weep." And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt, And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise!" The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
Luke 7:13-15

We count as blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord's dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.
James 5:11

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Colossians 3:12

So there you have it, compassion for the lost souls needing Christ, and for the struggling christians alike is not only a nice thing to do, it's a command.

~Robin <><

A Great Scripture

They're all great, of course, but this one has always been one that really stuck out to me:
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannont sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.
Therefore, let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Hebrews 4:14-16

In Loving Memory

Merisha and I had the honor of playing our duet at the funeral of Kenneth Hoffman, known to us and those who knew him as "Pop".
Pop was one of the many men who served our country faithfully in World War II and continued until his death to be a wonderful example of what a godly man should be.
Though we were not related by blood (he was the grandfather of one of my dearest friends), Pop will continue to hold a special place in my heart.
I will go on remembering the things he taught me and the words he spoke to me for many years to come.

At his funeral, his son-in-law sang a family favorite of theirs (and now of ours) which was taken from the prayer of St Francis. I thought I would post the prayer here in his honor:

The Prayer of St. Francis

"Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is dispair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive -
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life

Amen"

In Loving Memory of
Kenneth A. Hoffman, Sr.
April 18, 1929 - June 3, 2006

Home Sweet Home

Ciao!
Well, we are back from a great time St Louis! What a busy trip!
Though the best part was being reunited with a couple of families from New Orleans, another highlight was the day that we got to do some sightseeing, which was very fun. We went to see the Missouri river and got to visit the famous St. Louis arch. It's huge!!

After spending 10 days in an Italian household, my Italian has improved a little. I can now speak even more important words such as please, thank you and chocolate. :)

Tonight Merisha and I are playing our first paying wedding ceremony. Preludes are no big deal, but playing the Bridal Chorus and the Wedding March are nerve racking because they are at such an important time in the ceremony. They are so well known and everyone is completely silent listening to you and watching the bride.
The rehearsal last night went very well and though I'm a little bit nervous, I am really looking forward to the wedding this evening.

Anyway, my computer is dead at home, so thank goodness for library computers!

Saluti!
~Robin<><

A Trip to St. Louis

I love traveling, especially by plane. As I flew across Louisiana, Arkansas and entered Missouri, I was amazed (as I always am) by the view of both the landscape and the heavens from such an altitude.

Take off and landing are always thrilling, and soaring through the skies and looking down to pillows of clouds always puts me in awe.

As I watched a magnificent sunset from the air I found myself saying out loud "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world" from Psalm 19.

I tried for a moment to understand how anyone being surrounded by such glory could doubt the presence of a wonderful Creator. I considered the logic of thinking that all of this just evolved this way by chance.

No, I smiled, nothing but the word of God could have created such magnificence as the skies.

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" Genesis 1:1 boldly states.

Nothing but these pure words of scripture is even logical.

Soon, my view was hindered as we passed through the clouds for a while.

When I touched down, I made my way to the curbside where I was reunited with some very dear friends from New Orleans. They lost practically everything they owned in the flood, have two very small children and are due for their third baby in just a few weeks. Since he is an airline pilot, he can get us free passes to various places, so we decided to take 10 days and come help them move.

Since they know very few people here, they definitely needed some help with the moving and unpacking process.

Of course, it was a great blessing for us because we love their family very much and were glad to have a great reason to see them again.

So now, taking a break from the demands of the household to make a post, I am reminded just how gracious God is. Seeing how he takes lives that were broken and making them whole is magnificent to watch.

We shall return home next Tuesday, just in time for several gigs in June.

Blessings!

~Robin <><

MHEA Conference

This past weekend was Mississippi's homeschool conference. Mr. Doug Phillips was supposed to speak, but was instead in the hospital with kidney stones. He sent Geoffrey Botkin in his place.
It was very good and we were able to make a few connections about finding a church somewhere within 100 miles! Today we'll be visiting a Reformed Baptist church in Port Gibson (about an hour north, but it's a beautiful drive up the Natchez Trace). So, we'll see! We got the names of a few other churches to try, so we'll be busy visiting churches for the next several Sundays.
Anyway, the conference wasn't very big (at least not compared to the Louisiana conference), but they had some very knowledgeable speakers who delivered some very convicting talks.
All in all, it was definitely worth the drive to Jackson.

Merisha and I are in the Sunday paper here in Natchez today, so we're excited about getting our name out and seeing what kind of response we get from it.
Many of our friends have told us "Oh, you've got to play at my wedding! Reserve a Saturday for me in about 5 years."
None of them have grooms, but hey, they've got musicians lined up :)

Anyway, I must get going...I would have posted sooner but my computer is quite fickle and likes to freeze up etc.

Blessings,
~Robin <><

Katy Run

Well, we got our first load from the storage building in Katy this past weekend.
We received help from some very kind people from our church there and were able to get over half of the stuff loaded up in just a few hours.
It was quite a treat to be able to see some friends there in Katy that we haven't seen since our initial move.

The drive was long, but had it's comic relief moments (on Hwy 84, we passed a sign on the side of a building that had a picture of a women with long dark hair and read: "Virtuous Women Fitness and Tanning." For some reason that struck us as funny and got a bit of mileage out of it. Perhaps we were just tired!)
Anyway, it rained the entire way back from Katy (very hard for the first several hours) and since I come from a family who has bad weather phobia, it was a bit tense.
We all survived, though! We'll be making another trip in the next week or two to get the rest of our stuff.
I'm definitely looking forward to having the move behind us and getting settled in!

~Robin <><

Keeping up with the times!

I AM: hid with Christ in God
I WANT: to see the world
I WILL: appear with Christ in glory
I WISH: I didn't have a headache
I HATE: stupid movies
I LOVE: playing music or singing with my sister in a room with wood floors
I MISS: lots of people
I FEAR: marrying someone who turns out to be a jerk
I HEAR: complete silence. A welcome relief after spending 5 hours listening to the Baptism Debate
I WONDER: why sincere, learned, God-fearing people come to different beliefs and convictions
I REGRET: not practicing my instruments more when I was younger
I AM NOT: hungry
I DANCE: any chance I get. In fact, I taught a historical dance today
I SING: all the time.
I CRY: on rare, heart-wrenching occasions
I AM NOT ALWAYS: patient
I MAKE WITH MY HANDS: practically nothing. I'm not very handy
I WRITE: on my blog, but especially letters and e-mails.
I CONFUSE: Farmer James
I NEED: dark chocolate (my new favorite indulgence)
I SHOULD: get off the computer and get stuff packed to move
I START: tons of books
I FINISH: almost none of them
I TAG: Tiffany, Christa and Jessica (if they'd like to, of course)

And the moving date is...

Well, the very cute little house that we are renting is just about ready. Yard cleaned, lawn mowed, interior painted, floors redone. We will sign the lease probably Monday and camp out there until the May 6th, when our moving crew (aka: us, my grandparents, a few trucks and trailers with help from friends on either end) will bring all of our lovely stuff from Katy and we will officially live in Natchez.

Since Hurricane Katrina, our home has been various places. I am strange in that "home" is not a particular town or house for me. When I think "home", I think of the whole South. I think of laughter and of tears, I think of friends coming to visit and a place where family is reunited. In a sense, I have always been at home. Even when I was away from my house and family last summer for 5 weeks, I felt at home where I was. I suppose as long as you are in the place God wants you, home can be anywhere.
A wise friend stated it best. During the time when we weren't sure where we were going to live, someone asked me "Robin, where do you live?" I opened my mouth to answer, but had no idea what to say. I looked over to this wise person and gasped "Did you hear that? She just asked me where I lived!" "Ahh," was the reply as they turned towards my questioner "she lives in the Lord's hands." Then turning back to me, said "There's no better place to be".

~Robin <><

He is Risen!

Death itself has been defeated. His soul was not left in hell, neither did His flesh see corruption (Acts 2:31).

1 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. 5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 7 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.'" 8 Then they remembered his words. Luke 24:1-8

While His body lay in the grave...

Matthew 27:62 -66
The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 "Sir," they said, "we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise again.' 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first." 65 "Take a guard," Pilate answered. "Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how." 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

Good Friday

This post is In honor of Good Friday, a special day to remember something that we should remember every day of our lives. The sacrifice made in our place, the event that tore the vail between God in man: The sacrifice of Christ.

John 19
1 So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him. 2 And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe. 3 Then they said, "Hail, King of the Jews!" And they struck Him with their hands. 4 Pilate then went out again, and said to them, "Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him." 5 Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, "Behold the Man!" 6 Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, "Crucify Him, crucify Him!" Pilate said to them, "You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him." 7 The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God." 8 Therefore, when Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid, 9 and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, "Where are You from?" But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 Then Pilate said to Him, "Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?" 11 Jesus answered, "You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin." 12 From then on Pilate sought to release Him, but the Jews cried out, saying, "If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar." 13 When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, "Behold your King!" 15 But they cried out, "Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!" Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests answered, "We have no king but Caesar!"
16 Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led Him away. 17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, 18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center.
19 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 20 Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. 21 Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'He said, "I am the King of the Jews." ' " 22 Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written." 23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. 24 They said therefore among themselves, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be," that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: "They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots." Therefore the soldiers did these things. 25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, "Woman, behold your son!" 27 Then He said to the disciple, "Behold your mother!" And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home. 28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, "I thirst!" 29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
31 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. 32 Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. 33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. 36 For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, "Not one of His bones shall be broken." 37 And again another Scripture says, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced."
38 After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus. 39 And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. 40 Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. 41 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews' Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby.

The Great Fall of Merisha

I had just sat down at the computer when Merisha walked in. I told her that I was going to write a post and she replied "About what, your stupid sister?" I replied no. After all, there is nothing stupid about going running in huge, baggy, ankle length koulots that you've fallen and hurt yourself badly in at least once before...right?
She is hitting me. Oh well.

After a stressful evening last night, Merisha and I slept in a bit this morning. When we woke up, we decided to go for a walk (which we do every morning). We walked down my grandparents driveway and started down the big hill just to the left of their house. I usually ran this part of the way, so I suggested that we do it this time. After all, it's a lot easier to run down a hill than to try to walk it. "You wanna run this part?" I asked. Her taking off was the only reply I needed. I was just slightly ahead when I heard something screeching behind me. I looked to see Merisha rolling like a barrel down the hill and off to the ditch in the side of the road. I screamed and instantly felt responsible for the accident. "Why did I have to suggest running? Now Merisha's hurt and we can't finish our walk!" Then I took a close look at her. Her arm was really torn up and one of her fingers was already huge with swelling. "I think it's broken" she said. Wonderful! A harpist with no left index finger! How can we gig now?

It turns out that it doesn't look broken, and she can move it fine (except for the swelling). Now it is now purple though, which is a tad disturbing, but she thinks that she can still play (just not with that finger).
So now we just have to make long sleeves for her ball gown and it everything should still work out fine. Thankfully, her face wasn't at all injured and the scrapes should be on the road to healing before our next gig.

Never a dull moment!

~Robin <><

Our First Natchez Gig

Well, yesterday we got a call from our friend at the Convention Center asking if we could play a gig that night since we'd already be in Natchez for an interview and CD recording. It was rather last minute, but we told her that we'd do it and it became our first Natchez gig. It was for some sort of RV rally or something...I'm still not quite sure what it was. A lot of older people with tons of money and motor homes all met near Natchez for a get together of some kind and they wanted some entertainment that represented the historic culture of the city. Of course, this means that we were in our Southern Belle ball gowns which is always a hit. It was fun, and all of the people were very kind.

Anyway, we're going to help some friends move today, so I must be running along...

~Robin <><

Blogging on the Road: Update 3

Yes, it is definitely time for a new update!

After searching the world over (or so it seemed sometimes) for the perfect place, we have finally found it.
That's right, a decision has been made.
For those of you who have never heard of Natchez, Mississippi, you are really missing out. A quaint town with dozens of Plantations and Antebellum homes, and with some of the kindest, most sincere people I've ever met, it will soon be the place that we call "home".

Now, I must say that at first I had not even the slightest interest in Natchez for only one reason: It is in Mississippi. I don't know about you, but when I think of Mississippi, I think of hicks traipsing through a hole in the wall grocery store with no shoes on (and yes, I saw one of those in another Mississippi town today). The stigma that Mississippi holds for me is deeply engraved in my brain. But after one afternoon in Natchez, I felt like I was stepping back in time to the old south. We will be renting a small (but not too small!) house which was built in the late 1800s and will be playing our harp and flute duet at various events in the historic town.
It has been exciting to see how God has provided us with opportunities to use the musical talents that He has given us and that we have invested so much time, energy and money into.Since Natchez has become a destination wedding spot (if you see these exquisite houses, you'll understand why), and there is not a harpist in town, the owners of these wedding spots are confident that we will be able to secure as many gigs as we can take.
This will provide us with an opportunity to work together (Merisha and I on instruments and Mom managing us), which is our hearts desire. Since the pay is very good, this will also provide us with an opportunity to be at home much more than we first anticipated. Doing just four regular gigs a week (1-2 hours each) will provide well for us, and that's not counting the weddings and other extra events (which we already have found a demand for....we have 14 gigs booked already!!). So we can work outside of the home for 4-16 hours per week (plus optional weekend gigs) and have the rest of that time to work on our homemaking skills!As you can see, I am very excited to see how God has provided for us and taken care of us! We thought that we'd have to work outside of the home for 20-40 hours a week, but He has graciously given us another way.

You want to know something else funny? We unknowingly made a very good connection at the Convention Center. She has booked us to be on two local TV programs, in the newspaper and has scheduled professional photo shoots for us on the grounds of these historic homes and halls. It turns out that the city wants to use us in their publicity. This will be good for us (free publicity for our duet) and good for them (they will be able to use the same photos for their advertisements). It's all so exciting!

So anyway, I must go practice my flute for a bit before bed!
~Robin <><

Blogging on the Road: Update 2

A quick update to let people know what's the latest scoop.
Several weeks later than first anticipated, we are now in Mississippi with my grandparents.
My grandfather's birthday was made wonderful by the addition of all of his children and all but three of his grandchildren. It was quite a surprise for him!
Unfortunately, the day after his birthday, while all of the family were still in, I came down sick with some sort of sinus infection. Not fun. The sore throat and congestion were livable, but when I woke up one morning with my eyes red and glazed, I knew something had to give. After several days of walking around looking as if I've been crying my eyes out, I was no better. So yesterday we went south to see my loved and trusted doctor from New Orleans. As expected, I was given anti-biotics and a couple of other things to clear everything up. By last night, I was feeling much better.
When we got back to Mississippi, I was on the sofa relishing how I could lay down and still actually breathe when I felt something pop in my eye. "Does this never end?" Sure enough, a blood vessel had popped in my right eye. Wonderful, just wonderful. No my eye has a huge (well, it seems huge to me), rather frightening and quite unattractive blood spot on it. I'm assured that it will eventually clear up on it's own but I (being ever so patient) am having a hard time finding this as comfort.
So here I am, perfectly useless (anti-biotics always knock the life out of me) with not much to do but think of my woes and ponder the sins of vanity and pride.

We had an insightful meeting with Angie Matherne from Destrehan Plantation yesterday and she had many wonderful ideas for us. I'll keep you posted as things start happening.

~Robin <><

Blogging on the Road: Update 1

Hello everyone! After a three day visit to our Aunt and Uncle in San Antonio (who we've been intending to go see since we moved to Texas), we came to Tyler. We got in yesterday and will continue to do some looking around for the next few days. We already have some leads that we're looking into, which is encouraging.
Next week we'll treck off to Mississippi for my grandfather's 70th birthday celebration. Our family will again be reunited, which is always a blessing. How fun to see all of my cousins and aunts and uncles again!

~Robin <><

Hitting the Trails

We have a very busy couple of weeks ahead of us!
If you don't hear from me for a while, you'll know that it's because I'm scampering about the country visiting family and friends and checking out what opportunities we might have in different places.
As I have the access and free time, I'll update everyone on where we are and what we're doing.

Ciao!
~Robin <><

The Elephant in the Room

It looks as if everyone else has a new post up, so I guess it's about that time!
The reason that I haven't posted is the fact that I haven't had a whole lot to say.
I sit down in front of the computer screen and say "What shall I post about today?" I sit for a moment thinking that I'll have a revolutionary idea to post about any minute. Nothing comes to mind. I type out a few words, move them around a bit and end up deleting them all. "Why this lack of blogging inspiration?" I wonder aloud. In the end, I close the window, and repeat the saga the next day, sure that this time something bloggable will soon pop into my head.

At one point I realized that the reason that I didn't have anything to say is because of the elephant in the room. Ah, yes...that! We've all had those experiences, right? Something happens that everyone knows about, but no one talks about because it's awkward.
It's like a huge elephant standing right in the middle of the living room that everyone avoids mentioning. "What's that elephant doing in the middle of the room?" people wonder. No one else says anything, so everyone just sits there acting like everything is perfectly normal. Funny how that happens. I think having elephants in the room, while slightly unnerving, has its humorous aspects.

Most of you know by now what the elephant in the middle of my life is. Just in case you've missed out, I shall make a statement of the obvious.
As alluded to in my last post, we have moved and are no longer working or living in Katy, TX.
Everyone has the same question: "Why?" Their concern is evident, and the question is a perfectly logical one.
However, I shall save all of you dear people the trouble by stating up front that for the sake of all of us involved, the particulars of the events surrounding our move are better left unsaid. In short, things have not worked out as we had hoped.
But just because I'm not telling you, don't imagine the worst! Be assured that I have many wonderful memories of this season and will think back on it with joy. I will remember it with joy because of what I've learned and experianced, but most of all because of the people I've grown to love.
Yes, of course, there have been trying times but I daresay the tears of sadness and anger because of them has ceased. I have been given gladness for mourning and peace for dispair.

The second most asked question is "What's next? Where do you go from here?" Hmm, another perfectly logical question. Every time I hear it I cringe before giving the true answer: "I don't know."
Your prayers are welcome during this time of transition. Just as I believe that it was the by the direction of God that we moved to Katy in the first place, I am confident that He will guide us again in our next step.

~Robin <><

Tiffany's 20th Birthday

Today I will make a belated post in honor of the twentieth birthday of my very dear friend, Tiffany.

Always up to the most difficult challenges with a smile, she is diligent, kind, loving and long-suffering. Her quest for christlikeness is apparent in how she treats others, and her strength of character shown every day.
Through these last 125 or so days, not one has ended with strife between the two of us. Quick to offer a hug during hard times, and always quick to forgive when I've failed, I am honored to call her my friend.
From the "unforgettable cranberry molds" to frolicking down Fry, it's been real!

Happy Birthday, Tiffany. It has been an honor to live, work and worship alongside you for past four months. You are, and will continue to be an inspiration to me.

I love you, my dear Tiffany. Our season of constant acquaintance may be over, but our friendship will never be.

God bless in this coming year!

~Robin <><

Eighteen Things I've Learned

For my 18th birthday, I decided that I would post 18 things that I've learned through the years. Unfortunately, I don't really have computer access on the weekends, so today (my first day back at work since my birthday) will have to be close enough to February 5th.
Of course, this list is not exhaustive nor is in any particular order :)

1 Mom really is always right
2 Attitude is everything
3 Love is a choice
4 Hard times will either make you or break you
5 If you want to make a difference in the world, don't try to be like everyone else
6 You can't change other people
7 Living your life for Christ is the most effective tract
8 Patience is a virtue. If you are patient with angry people, they change their tone like a light
9 Nothing good in life comes without risk
10 Life is fleeting
11 Sometimes you just have to say no
12 Friendships take a lot of work
13 Trust is essential in any relationship. The closer the relationship, the more trust is required
14 Memorizing a book of the Bible isn't as hard as it sounds (yes, I finally finished it!)
15 Contentment is key in every circumstance
16 Everyone sees and loathes everyone else's inconsistencies and hypocrisies, but usually fail to see their own
17 Debating and challenging ideas is helpful to define one's own beliefs
18 Living 14 people under one roof is fun

~Robin <><

I've been tagged....again.

7 Things I Would Like to do Before I Die:
1. Go sky diving (I wanted Melissa and I to go for our 18th birthday, but she wouldn't hear of it)
2. Get married
3. Travel the world
4. Learn Italian
5. Become more proficient on all of my instruments
7. Memorize more books of the bible

7 Things I cannot do very well:
1. Find 7 things I can't do well (haha, just kidding)
2. Sight read music
3. Give people the benefit of the doubt
4. Sew. I sew, people laugh
5. Appreciate fiction books. I can't stand fiction, save the 4 I listed below
6. Play any sort of sport. Basketball, baseball, volleyball, - you name it, I can't play it
7. Play violin. A horrific sound, by all accounts

7 Top favorite movies:
I don't like movies. I've seen tons, but none of them really did much for me. I mean, there might be some that were okay or even good, but every time I write them down I think "you know, that really isn't worth mentioning". So, I've decided to change mine to "7 least favorite movies" (though this is FAR from exhaustive):
1. Gladiator
2. The Quiet Man
3. The Great Escape (though I liked the story, the soundtrack atrocious. It sounded like circus music the WHOLE time.)
4. Star Wars movies
5. My Fair Lady (or any other musical for that matter)
6. Peter Pan (especially the new one)
7. Finding Neverland

7 Things that I say often:
1. Hi! My name's Robin and I'll be serving you today. Can I get you started with something to drink?
2. You shall not surely die
3. What a trip
4. There you go
5. What's THAT supposed to mean?
6. On and on and on... (but they all make fun of the way I say "on". I say it more like a combination of "on" and "juan"- owwn. Whatever. Everyone here says "ahn".
7. Hey, Chickie (my pet name for my sister)

7 things that I would like in a husband:
1. Fears God
2. A strong leader: more stubborn than I am :)
3. Has a defined vision and purpose
4. Interacts well with people
5. Not given to tantrums (yeah, screaming people really freak me out)
6. Confident without being full of himself
7. Someone who loves children

7 of my favorite books/authors:
1. The Bible
2. R. C. Sproul Sr.'s work
3. Homemaking
4. Pride and Prejudice
5. The Giver
6. The Bronze Bow
7. Madman

7 people that I tag to write their 7x7's:
1. Farmer James (payback time)
2. Leah
3. The Swamp Celt
4. Shelby welby woo
5. Jeppy
6. Emmy
7. Christa (you haven't been tagged yet, have you?)

Happy Birthday!

Today is Melissa McDonald's 18th birthday. Though we haven't had a whole lot of time to get to know each other since she is usually at home while I'm usually at the store, I have made certain observations of her.
She was the first McDonald I met on our very first visit to Katy. One of the first things I noticed about her was that she is often very quiet. I'm not, as you all well know, so to see a quiet person always intrigues me. I suppose that is because finding someone who knows when to keep their mouth shut is such a rare find. Once I got to know her a little better, I learned that though she is still one of the quietest in the family, she has quite a sense of humor about her.

Another thing that is immediately apparent is that she is amazing in caring for the children. Firm, yet kind. Loving them enough to not give into their every whim. Fair and balanced in her judgments and consistent even when it hurts. Sometimes I think that she's just about to give in to the insistence of one of her little charges, but no. I haven't seen her back down yet.

So many happy returns of the day, my dear. I feel so young now that you have abandoned me and left be as a young 17 yr old. Don't get too used to being older, though. My birthday is only a week away. We shall be the same age again soon :)

~Your Twin (well, PRACTICALLY...)

From Grief to Glory

What do you say to a mother about to bury her 5 day old son? What kind of consolation can you offer in the midst of such grief?

Yesterday we received a call from our dear friend Leah, informing us of the death of the son of a precious family we know from the New Orleans area.
Five days on this earth. Born to one of the most godly families that I know.

The only recurring coherent thought I have on the subject is Job's response when he was told of the sudden death of every one of his children:
20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped. 21 He said, " Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD." 22 Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God. Job 1:20-22

In His Sovereignty, the Lord gave this child. And also in His Sovereignty, the Lord has taken him away.

Please be in prayer for the parents and surviving children at this time.

~Robin