The Christian Homeschool Dog

This last week, our family had to talk about a very sad subject. Our golden retriever dog is 12 yrs. Old. She’s the only dog we’ve ever had. Our family had to discuss about her death. Our dog is getting so old that it’s showing on her. She’s going blind in one eye, has a huge wart type thing on her foot, doesn't chase things anymore, and is overall… slow! L I keep reminding myself that death is a part of life. It happens to everyone and everything eventually. The other day, when my dad asked us about whether or not we wanted to say goodbye to her before she died. What do you say to that? Our dog, “Annie”, has become a part of our family. She’s the best family dog we could’ve ever asked for!!! 

     I keep reminding myself that we’ll get another dog after we put her down, but it’s not the same. Annie loves people! She love’s children of all ages! She lies with anyone, and let’s babies climb on her and yank on her.  There are not enough words that I can explain about our dog. She’s so calm, quiet, and what our friend’s calls her, “The Christian Homeschool Dog”.

     In the Bible, we see in John 11:35 that, “Jesus Wept”. Even God knew what sadness meant. Are there going to be animals in heaven? No, they don’t have spiritual souls, but… how can there not be animals in heaven? God created them! And while God doesn't tell us if animals will be in heaven, we can wonder. Wonder what God has in store. The last time I had a death in my family, I hardly remembered it, because I was so young. Our dog’s death will be the first death that I experience. No, dogs aren't people, but they do leave you feeling loved! I remember one day when I was young, I was crying in our backyard; our dog came over to me and just sat next to me as if she knew why I was sad. Dogs are loyal. You've heard it say, “Dogs are man’s best friend.” While yes, God gives us animals to enjoy, God should be our best friend. So, I have to put my best foot forward and… move on. Will I forget about our dog when we have to put her down? No! However, God gives us comforting words in Revelation 21:4, 

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” We love you Annie! 

Worn

We've all been worn out before.
Life takes us in loops and roller coaster rides. Sometimes, we can't get off.
Maybe, it's staying up with a crying baby all night that get's us worn. Maybe it's constantly going, and you can't stop. Or... maybe it's spiritually worn. Maybe you haven't had the time with God, that you want to. Maybe, life's been giving you so many loops, that you can't handle it. God tell us in Psalm 55:1-2, 22, "Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan... cast your burden on the Lord, and he will never permit the righteous to be moved."

1st Peter 5:7, "... casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you."

Sometimes in life, we feel like we can't fight anymore. I would encourage you to give your burdens, fears, and fights to God. He wants to have your burden's!

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will fine rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
~Matthew 11:28-30~

Go to Him! He will give you rest!

To Hide with Fear or Faith?

This past week as I was doing my Bible Study; I was going through Exodus and the story of Moses's birth. I started putting myself in their shoes, and wondered what it must have been like for Moses's mom. For 3 months, Moses's mom had to hide him! What do you think it was like living from day to day hoping the guards wouldn't hear the Baby cry. That's what got me thinking... faith!
By faith we live our daily lives. Sure, Moses's family probably were very fearful with every cry that could be heard that could send a guard killing the baby at any time. However, it was all by faith!

I looked up Hebrews 11:23-29, "By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king's edict. By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that
he who destroyed the firstborn would not touch them. By faith they passed through the Red Sea
as though they were passing through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it,
were drowned..."

To think what kind of Faith Moses and his family had during the time of Moses's birth.

"Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi. The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was beautiful, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got him a wicker basket and covered it over with tar and pitch. Then she put the child into it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to find out what would happen to him. The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the Nile, with her maidens walking alongside the Nile; and she saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid, and she brought it to her. When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the boy was crying. And she had pity on him and said, 'This is one of the Hebrews' children.'... The child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. And she named him Moses, and said, 'Because I drew him out of the water.'"
~Exodus 2:1-10

After reading these verses I was very much astonished. Not because I was surprised  but because I had put myself in Moses's family's shoes. What great faith they had! It made me realize how little faith I have. We need to have a child-like Faith. Have faith just like Hebrews 11 talks about.
So, don't hide in fear, but instead... have Faith!!!

Normal life?... not yet!

Hi All!
Just wanted to let you know that I didn't disappear! ;)
I've been super busy these past few weeks.
I asked my mom a couple months ago if I could put together my brother's graduation, which means to find a building with a low price! ;) Get the slideshow and pictures together, order the cake, make phone calls, make invitations, send invitations, get the music together with my friend to play at his graduation, and figure out all the in between stuff. On top of that, I have to finish my Answers in Genesis online class, and have a couple more assignments to complete. Any way, my brother's graduation is this next week, so I've been super busy trying to get all the last minute stuff in order. My grandparents will be coming this week, and so my parents went on a weekend get-away for their anniversary before they come. While my parents were gone, I took my younger two siblings down to a place called, "Focus on the Family". Some of you may listen to Adventures in Odyssey. Well they have a play-place just focused on that! You can do treasure hunts, watch Veggie-Tales, go on there slides, put on a puppet show, and all kinds of other stuff.

The reason I'm telling you all this, is because, I spent a whole day with my siblings, and spent so much time with them! It's amazing how close you can get in your relationship when there's only a couple of you, and you're doing what you love!
Having a good relationship with your sibling(s) is very rare in today's culture. I feel so blessed to have a family! I've grown closer to my siblings in the past couple years then ever before. Having those special, quality time with my siblings, make's it all the more special. Yes, sometimes my siblings ask me something so simple like, "Caitlin, can you correct my essay for this week?" While it does interrupt my schedule, I need to remember to spend quality time with them, and to make the best with what I have. I don't get those moments back. There was a time this week when I had to finish my assignment before the end of the day, and one of my siblings asked me to play a game with them. Instead of saying, "Sure! I'd be glad to play!", I told them, "I've got to much to do. Maybe later." After I said that, I realized that my assignment can wait; my siblings are more important!
So, my point is, even in the busy time, go enjoy your family/siblings while you can! Make time out of your day to be with them!
I'll be back to write hopefully this next week! ;) Blessing!

Homeschool Day at the Capitol!

This past Friday, was our annual, "Homeschool Day at the Capitol". We start off at a church not far from the capitol, and there's skit's, speakers, and music. After that, we eat lunch, and then march around the state Capitol, letting our legislative's know that we care about Homeschooling, and Christianity.
After the rally at the steps of the Capitol, we can go inside the Capitol. I took a lot of pictures below of the Museum that was in the dome. Every year I seem to be more fascinated with the history of how the Capitol got to be there, and the construction of it. There's lots of pictures, so please bear with me! ;)

The rally on the front steps of the Capitol. They estimated about 1,500-2,000 people being there. 

 Inside the Capitol

 To go inside the Museum on the top of the dome, you had to climb all these steps. :)

 An actual cannon ball they used in a Canon outside the Capitol.

Our State Legislative's having a meeting.

 Inside the Museum.

 This is what our state Capitol looks like on the outside.

That's it, so I hope you enjoyed them! :)

Loving God with all your Heart

The other day, we had some friends over, and my dad and I were talking about God. My brother asked my dad, “Daddy, what does it mean to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength?” I thought my dad told it really well. He said, “Loving God with your heart is, loving Him with passion! Loving God with all your soul is loving Him with all your emotion, will and passion. Loving Him with all your mind, is how you think throughout the day, and taking every thought captive. Loving God with all your strength is loving Him with all your energy and strength to glorify Him in everything you do."

     So, what are some way’s that you can love God throughout the day? Have you ever heard of the acrostic, "Joy"?
Jesus
Others
You

Here are just a few verses about loving God. Enjoy!
“...You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind..."~Luke 10:27~

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. ⁶ These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. ⁷ You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. ⁸ You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead.⁹ You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."~ Deuteronomy 6:5-8~

I thought I'd post the video/song below of a song called, "Love the Lord your God" by Lincoln Brewster.

What are our Priorities?

These past few weeks have been really busy for me.
I've got so many things to do during the week that sometimes I forget to do the most important things in life. I forget to read the Bible, I forget to spend quality time to my siblings, I forget to fold laundry, I forget to... well, you get the idea.
It's so easy to forget, isn't it? Sometimes our life get's so busy and so full, we forget to do the most important things in life. Doing family worship every night is our family's priority, and we've noticed that when we don't do it, that everyone seems to be more grumpy.

I try to write in my Prayer Journal a couple times a week, and lately, I haven't had the time. So, when do we need to say no? It's hard for me to say no to someone who needs my help. So, this past week, as I was listening to a sermon about priorities, I started to realize that I hadn't been doing the most important things in life. Sure, I picked up the Bible, but I didn't study or give my time to God. I prayed during family worship, but, I found that I hadn't prayed to God that entire week! I couldn't believe how fast the week went by, and I had done... almost nothing! Sure, I accomplished things, but how much time did I spend with God? did I spend time with my siblings? Was I grumpy? Did I spend more time with friends than I did with my own family or even God? When was the last time I memorized scripture?

All of us deal with priorities in our life. We forget. In the Bible, the Israelite's are constantly forgetting the commandments of God, and even the God that brought them out of the land of Egypt. We complain... a lot! We don't realize how easy we have it!
God created us, doesn't he deserve out time?
So, try to put God first. If you find that you're doing too much and not focusing on God, maybe it's time to say no to some things. Maybe instead of doing your Bible Study whenever you find time, maybe you could do it when the little one's are taking a nap, or at night when everyone's in bed. Find time for God. He's waiting there for you! :)