Birthdays

It's embarrassing that my first blog in months will be about my birthday...but so it goes.

38.

It is strange. My mind tells me I'm still 20 something. My body on the other hand tells me otherwise.

I have LOVED my 30's. Really. They have been so much better than my 20's were. My 20's I was still learning how to be a wife. And just barely made it being a mother. It was a hard time because of all the adjustments.

Now, I don't have mothering and the wife thing down but I can say that the mistakes I made in my 20's taught me a lot.

This past year the Lord has taught me so much and blessed me beyond what I deserve.  I feel that He has BIG things in store for 38. Life changing things. And I can honestly say, I am ready.

He is truly gracious to have prepared, pruned, and grow me this last year. It has not always been an easy road traveled. But it has always been worth it.

As I look back on this last year I am amazed at how much He has taught me.

As I look forward to this year, I can't wait to see what He does with me and my family.

Big things are coming and I'm ready!

Beach 2013

This is about the only pic where my hair looks half way decent. The wind was CRAZY!

Love this!

So sassy!

Again, wind blown. 

We had a fantastic trip this year!

School Days, School Days

Jordyn went to Winshape Camp in Oxford the week of July 4th and loved it! This was on Family Day.

We went to visit family in Jackson last week and went to MC's campus to show the girls around.

This is on the steps of Nelson Hall where Joey and I went on our first date to Hillcrest Christian School's Graduation in 1996.

Look how far we have come!

And this crazy picture is because of an app that I learned about in Ecuador! Joey and his Mom with switched faces! HYSTERICAL!

Last week Jana Claire went to Nana Camp in Oxford. These are the pictures I got from Mama. She was "working" in this first one.

This is her new shirt. Jordyn got one just like it. Super cute!

The summer has come to an end. We started back to school yesterday. After being off for 3 months it was time. So far it is going well and Jordyn really is enjoying the new curriculum that we started. It is a lot of reading but I hope the change will be a good thing.

And this is a video of Jana Claire.  She came up to me and said, "Mama, look, I'm in a box!" She let me video and text it to Joey since he is at Kid's Camp this week. She is definitely the funny Williams.

Summer time!

I woke up today and realized that we have 4 more weeks until we start school again!

AHHHH!

Even though we have been finished since April the time has FLOWN by!

So today we went swimming for 3 hours and JC learned the first steps in swimming!

We are so blessed to have friends with great pools that are willing to share anytime! The girls had a blast and are so tired! ME TOO!

And that is a pic of the face that has 2 tired girls that will sleep well tonight!

Blogger App

This is my first post with the app on my phone. Maybe I can blog more now!

We played scrabble the other day. I hate that game but it does help with spelling and letter recognition!

We went and met my folks at Cracker Barrel for Father's Day. They love playing checkers with Gran Gran/Nana!

It really is great to live so close that the girls can see them so often. I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts!

God Speaks

I love it when the Lord speaks to me through His word.

I was doing my Bible reading today and when I was finished and "checked the box" I was flipping through my Bible just looking at the underlined verses through out.

I stopped in Ephesians 4, 5, and 6.

4:26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 

4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 

4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

5:15-16 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,  making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.

6:10-12 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Once I opened my heart and mind to the Word this morning instead of doing my reading out of obligation the Lord spoke.

I loose my temper with my girls so easily. Especially when they disobey. "Be angry and sin not."

I can gossip with the best of them and complain about others all the time. "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up..."

Boy howdy can I hold a grudge. "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." *OUCH*

And the most important relationship I have on this earth next to God and Joey is my precious girls. What I do, how I react and what I say are mirrored by them. And let me tell you, it is NOT pretty sometimes when I see myself through them. "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." (Don't be LAZY!) *double OUCH*

And last but certainly not least, I MUST equip myself first thing in the morning with the amor of God or all these other things that I want to do I will surely fail at. "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." 

This world is dark. And a lot of the time I am defeated. But if I am faithful to do the things Christ has called me to do then I will have victory in my every day walk with Him. He has already defeated the Devil. Praise God! 

God speaks. I must listen. 

Have you heard from Him today?

Ecuador 2013

Joey and I just got back from a 5 day trip to Ecuador. These are the questions that were our debriefing at the end of the trip and I wanted to share my answers on the blog. Number one so that I would not forget and number two so that you would know and could pray for the Ecuadorian people.   

Reflection Questions from your Mission Trip to Ecuador

1. What is the funniest thing that has happened on this trip? The middle missionary girl asked if I was a boy or a girl! It was because of the short hair.
2. What will you miss the most? The Darnell’s
3. Who is someone you won’t forget? Norma, one of the Ecuadorian ladies that help with the ministry there. She was so kind and with the little English she knew she really tried to get to know all about me and my family.
4. What surprised you the most about coming to Ecuador? The immense poverty. It was truly astonishing that in 6 hours on a plane I could be in a country that people live in cane houses with no running water.
5. What are some scriptures that have stood out while being here? What time I am afraid I will trust in Thee. Ps 56:3. I get extreme travel anxiety. Upset stomach and all that goes along with it. Even when I have to go to the grocery store by myself I have anxiety. I have it EVERY Sunday morning. So, when I made the decision in February to go with Joey to Ecuador, I started telling people to pray. About a month and a half out I was really struggling with anxiety. I increased the prayer chain. I can now say that our God is even interested in the small things. I not once had any stomach problems the entire trip! It is truly a miracle! I am so glad I stepped out in faith and said yes. It was life changing.
6. What has God taught you during your time here? To pray for the small things. (see #5)
7. What is one story that reflects God’s glory from this trip? After the morning session that Joey taught the people on worship though music, one of the Ecuadorian ladies came up. She spoke a little English and through that broken English she told us thank you. She was amazed that someone from America would come and teach them about worship through music, and was so thankful because she really needed to learn what Joey was sharing. It made it worth the entire trip to hear that. 
8. Who are three people you can tell this story to, to direct them to Christ? I am going to tell my girls. They need to know that their Mama was scared. That I knew I was going to miss them terribly but that it was worth my fear to step out and go. To share the love of Christ with those Ecuadorians and to love on the missionaries there. I also want to share with our GA’s and church. I teach them how important it is to go and now I can teach with experience behind it.
9. What will you tell people if you only have (1, 3, or 60 minutes) to tell them about your trip? Go. No matter what the fear may be God can take care of it all. Pray. If you don’t feel called to go at this time, then pray for those that are going. It truly makes a difference. Give. If you can’t go for some reason then give so someone else can. My trip was paid for because others sacrificially gave so that I could go.
10. What will you do in the next six months to spur others on to value Christ more and to spread the gospel? Talk about my trip to anyone that will listen!
11. What are some changes that need to be made in your life and how will you work towards that? I need to pray for the small things. I need to pray for all things and I need to make sure that I don’t forget what it was like to be there. Looking at those faces of people that need Christ needs to be burned in my mind.
12. What will you do to remember to pray for the ministry here? I bought the girls and I each a purse. Every time I see those purses I am going to pray for the people in Ecuador. 
13. How can we raise awareness about supporting missions through praying, giving, and going? Talk about it to anyone that will listen. 

I remember feeling this this way when I got back from Mexico in the summer of 1994. But now that I am older, have a family and actually invested in the lives of the missionary family that serves there BEFORE they were missionaries my outlook is so much different. They have a hard job. I was able to sit down with my friend Saturday night and have a "girls" night complete with an ABC Family cheesy movie. I was able to ask questions and try to understand what she has given up and how she feels. I only have a small glimpse into what she is feeling. I will never completely understand how she feels unless I give up everything and serve overseas. But it was good to try to encourage her and her sweet family while we were there. I have sweet memories that I will never forget and I hope that one day soon I will be able to go back and see them again in Ecuador.