$ Wesley's Way $

I compiled a few noteworthy examples about John Wesley to share with a group a while ago, and I thought I'd share them here too :)

John Wesley had a great theology of money and spending.

I remember quite a few things from Wesley's life that I learned about in Randy Alcorn's book Money, Possessions, and Eternity. Here are some:

• His philosophy was: “Gain all you can, save all you can, give all you can.” Notice how he did not even mention spending...
• A distraught man furiously rode his horse up to John Wesley, shouting, “Mr. Wesley, Mr. Wesley, something terrible has happened. Your house has burned to the ground!” Weighing the news for a moment, Wesley replied, “No. The Lord’s house burned to the ground. That means one less responsibility for me.”
• Wesley had four questions he would ask himself before making a purchase. [I keep a copy of these with me in my billfold. They are powerful.]

1. In spending this money am I acting as if I owned it, or am I acting as the Lord’s trustee? 
2. What Scripture passage requires me to spend this money in this way? 
3. Can I offer up this purchase as a sacrifice to the Lord? 
4. Will God reward me for this expenditure at the resurrection of the just? 

The Small and Funny

• My mom was here last week, which is always a blessing! Our week, told in pictures, is below. My dad joined us for the weekend, and we went to the splash pad/park. We had a dear couple over for dinner, and we tried to play a game while the kids were still awake. The game took a good bit longer; I don't recommend that. Anyway, we also did a family movie night. 
• Micaiah's mishaps: treats the stove handle like a pull-up bar, has begun to feed himself using silverware (and now there is no going back), obeys me somewhat (when I say no or ask him to do something)...
• Aolani's antics: things she says lately are just so cute --

[pointing to the skirt I'm wearing] "Mommy, that's my skirt when I was a little girl!"

[runs and sits in her kitchen chair] "I'm waiting patiently."

[watches Daddy as he puts my earrings on me] "Daddy, I wear earrings?" Ricky: "When you grow up you might can." "When I grow up and get a wheelchair like Mommy I can wear earrings?" {cutest thing ever!!} 

Fizzing watercolors

The couch has become a car, and this tub is her teddy's car seat.

This boy loves to read

Micaiah goes down the slide on his belly, feet-first every time.

Homemade slime

The washing station

Aolani was warming up to the splash pad, but she was not as adventurous as she appears. Micaiah was scared to death.

Modeling her pretty new dress and lustrous, curly locks

We just did this activity yesterday, but it's simple and enjoyable for her.

• Verses to memorize for the month of June: Colossians 1:9-12 ~ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.
• We are still getting down pat the 'C' verse: Psalm 51:10 ~ Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

The Greater Things

Note: What I am about to write is not theology, it is simply me writing in my 'journal' and trying to hash out what the Spirit has spoken to me. (This is that sequential post I mentioned here.)

Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. ~ John 14:12

Okay. Back to the moment... I am praying about part of my testimony to share in two days and quoting Scripture in the meantime while I wait for some clear direction or something. And suddenly He whispers (internally this time), "Greater things than these..." And, as I said before, my life experiences clicked and came together unlike I have ever seen before.

What?! Confusing, I know. I'll try to explain somewhat but skimp details for now.

After I had a rather momentous salvation story, I was way on fire for Jesus. Like, read the entire Bible three times through in six months. Yeah, I was smitten, obsessed, and in love. Anyway, while I had quite my share of mistakes, sinfulness, and downfalls over the next eight (or so) years, my relationship with the Lord was... well, um... charismatic. Meaning the spiritual realm became very real. [I.e., God has spoken to me through dreams, given me visions, promised to heal me, allowed me to prophesy, lets me pray in tongues, baptized me in the Spirit, changed my name, used me to cast out demons, allowed me to be attacked by a demon (and overcome), physical healed my knee, has spoken to me audibly (although it is usually internally), and has done other miraculous things in my life.] Whew, that's overwhelming. Let's suffice it to say that the first half of my spiritual life (after salvation) seems... supernaturally wild.

By contrast, the past six years have been... calm. Much less outward, supernatural stuff, but a TON of inward stuff. Not really less Spirit-action, but He's doing most of His crazy work inside me. [I.e., receiving and offering forgiveness, living in and by grace, embracing true freedom (which is being free from slavery to self (true selflessness)), overcoming bitterness, breaking strongholds, standing firm in faith, being delivered from addictions, daily dying to what I want to do or say... inner healing!]

While all the external Spirit-ual things are really great (do not get me wrong here), He is showing me that all of the internal work of the Spirit are the greater things Jesus was talking about that we will do! [I never really thought too much about this verse. I naively assumed "greater" meant bigger -- Jesus heals 10 lepers, we will heal 100.]

I guess I could sum up my story, thus far, with this sentence: the Holy Spirit drew me in with His visible signs of power, but it has been the Word that He now uses to chisel and refine me. Any real heart change or victory I have had has come through the power of the Word.

Basically, He interacts with me differently than He used to because He is moving me forward, taking me higher, going deeper, and doing the greater work in me. For the past few years I didn't really know why our relationship had changed. But now I do.

When the Sun is Shining

• Ricky's parents visited over the weekend, and we were on the go! We ran errands, ate at a  scrumptious BBQ restaurant (and we only eat sides, no meat!), drove through the mountains (it was a beautiful day), enjoyed a (some of us contended that it was the best-ever) dining experience at a local food-only restaurant tucked away in Appalachia, went to church, and attended our small group's summer cookout (complete with a swing set, trampoline, and blow-up water slide for all the kids). It was fun; and, I got to do homemade baked beans in the crockpot for the first time :)
• Oh, and we learned that Appalachia is the most agriculturally, bio-diverse region in the western hemisphere because of the seed-saving...
• Micaiah turned one-and-a-half last week, so we measured the kiddies. They're both growing ;) Micaiah is 32" tall and weighs 21.8 lbs. Aolani is 38" tall and weighs 34.6 lbs.
• Must say -- Micaiah does the sweetest wave and cutest night-night announcement; and, Aolani cracks us up with her rooster call, "Cackle-doo-doo"!
• The first two pictures are from Ezra's birthday party two months ago:

 

• These are the current week's pictures:

I tried to make an "Authority Triangle" to use with Aolani (to show her how God has put us in authority over her, not vice versa, so she does not tell us what to do because that would flip the triangle). I magnetized the names, so that they can move around for a better visual. She doesn't get it yet, but it is cute (so I took a picture, ha).

Imaginets

• Verses to memorize for the month of June: Colossians 1:9-12 ~ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.
• I am not enforcing a new verse every week. Instead, I have her repeat the ones she knows every day until she gets the new verse down pat, then a we'll add another one. We are still working on the 'C' verse: Psalm 51:10 ~ Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Three Active Actions (that are good for you)

Seeking...

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. ~ Psalm 63:1

Waiting...

I wait for the Lord, I expectantly wait, and in His word do I hope. I am looking and waiting for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, I say, more than watchmen for the morning. ~ Psalm 130: 5-6

Trusting...

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? ~ Psalm 56: 3-4

In the Psalms and noticing that these three things seem to be some key themes of this book...

Like a Tornado

• Over the weekend we prepared a meal for Superwoman's family (since she just gave birth), welcomed a dear college friend for a 3-day visit, went to church, had a pizza/popcorn/Disney movie night with the kids, and stayed up way too late at night!
• Ricky has to work out of county this week, so I have had friends come over to help with lunch (and dinner one night). We have had guests for dinner every night since Saturday, which is always fun :) Tomorrow is low-key, except that I'm participating in a free parenting webinar after the kids go to bed. We will have a family over Friday evening.
• Ever since Superwoman birthed her baby girl (Leora), Gunny is no more. Instead, Aolani's teddy bear is now baby Sarah!
• Aolani really enjoyed two of last week's activities. We pulled out all the apples to peel stickers off, wash, dry, and polish (rub). She was proud. I took a small, hand-held recorder around one night and took five-second recordings of about 10 different household noises (toilet flushing, clock ticking, running water...). Then, she had to guess each one. She loved this game, and I was shocked at how well she did! This week, I squirted globs of paint on paper, slid it into a Ziploc, and let the kids paint in the bag :)
• And, I must say how I treasure when she wants me to watch her elegantly dance around in her skirts to certain songs.
• Last Friday morning I came out of the bathroom to find a little fiasco -- the changing table moved, the diaper pail pulled off its stand and on its side in the middle of the room, and all of the dirty diapers strewn all across the floor like a torpedo got 'em. Yep, I was a little speechless from the shock. [I'll let you guess the culprit.] And that was right after she dropped poop on her white skirt but right before he blew a big one that dirtied his britches. It was a stinky morning ;)
• Weird news: my right leg has been "locking-up" for over a week now, meaning that even when I am out of the wheelchair (like laying in bed) my leg wants to stay curled up and not stretch out. It hurts and sometimes I feel like a muscle might get torn when Ricky pulls my leg out. And then two days ago, I awoke to find my right foot suddenly pointing to 2 o'clock and tremoring (just like my left foot did for months after Aolani's birth). Not really sure what to do, but we are trying to make more of an effort to stretch my legs thoroughly every morning and have me stand every evening.

• Verses to memorize for the month of June: Colossians 1:9-12 ~ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.
• ABC verse: Psalm 51:10 ~ Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

When the Stories of Life Do Not Seem Compatable

I just have to document this for my own sake.

As I had mentioned before, I had shared a small part of my testimony with the youth at our church about a month ago. [I only had 7-8 minutes, while I'm sure I could talk for over an hour without a time constraint just sharing personal stories ;)]

While I have "shared my testimony" many times over the past 13 years, this was the very first time it clicked.

As I was praying (incessantly it seemed for days) about what stories He wanted me to share and wanting clear direction, the Holy Spirit spoke a few words*. And, I suddenly saw.

All the events of my life, how He has orchestrated every story, how He has intervened, how He has interacted with me in the past and is currently interacting with me... I mean I saw how all of my spiritual timeline came together. It all made sense, and I could understand my life story, thus far, as a whole.

Before, it seemed like I had a bunch of random experiences in my life that didn't really have anything to do with any other experience. Instead of a lot of smaller isolated stories, I finally saw them together tell one larger story. [I don't want to say it came together like an enclosed circle because the LORD is still adding more to it.]

Basically, now I understand my life so far. I feel enlightened by the Holy Spirit. I cried; I felt giddy. And grateful. This was the first time I have ever felt like I was asked to share my testimony FOR ME. This invitation was for my personal benefit; He had something to show me while I prepared.

*I will try to write another post later this month about what it is the Holy Spirit spoke to me.

Note: I want to highly recommend that every person make their own spiritual timeline. I started making one in college (for an evangelism class), and I still add to it all the time. Basically, I record on it events in my life where the hand of God is evident. This way I can look at it and see God's faithfulness to me in my life. Whether it is a scary or happy or tragic event, it is added because He uses all things for my good and His glory. It helps me not to forget what He has done and how He has worked in my life. [I don't have a great memory, so this is really helpful for me.] 

Yes, thank You, Lord, for this revelatory understanding!

Decorating a Life, a World

• Our weekend held a God-encounter with a Romanian woman at the local farmers' market (a Christian sister who is curing her daughter of some mysterious illness through symptometry), dinner with our pastor and his wife, and our small group gathering met here. Twenty people inside our little 900 square foot home! It was a joy! There was a thunderstorm, so we put six of the kids in out bedroom with a portable DVD player and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Twelve adults sat in our main room, and we used a projector to cast our parenting talk on a wall :)
• Some friends from church gave us their two old yard toys -- a miniature basketball goal and a plastic cube with a small slide. Yeah, the kids are bonkers over them.
• Ricky's spiritual birthday was a couple days ago. We celebrated with cheesecake, Upwords, and the movie The Mission. A small accountability group just started up that he attends, and Ricky is now joining with other young men (and an older tennis pro) to hold Tennis Tuesdays late at night after kiddies go to bed.
• Oh, and let's not forget to document that my little interior designer decorated our walls with her purple crayon. You better believe that she has to scrub each mark off the wall (with those magic erasers that really do work) herself. Hopefully, the natural consequence will discourage her from repeating that antic. [She got a third of the way done before saying, "Mommy, I'm tired. This is hard." Yes, scrubbing walls is hard. I told her to push on and get halfway before she could rest and finish the other half after nap. Well, she did a little more after her nap when our last magic eraser disintegrated. So, we still have crayon art gracing the wall for now ;)]
• Micaiah has been a little more tired, fussy, and feverish this week -- teething.
• Chores: While I am still brainstorming some way to encourage her in bed-making (of some sort), here are the other chores Aolani is now doing: help transfer laundry, put laundry away, carry next day’s clothes to recliner, set table, take dirty dish to sink (and putting away things), wipe kitchen faces (fridge door, oven door), wipe door knobs, pick up toys, and any other task I ask her to help me do (which is a lot!)
• Superwoman has had a 36-hour labor and just gave birth to a healthy baby girl a few hours ago! Leora Tess... (this is her fourth child)

From decorating the walls of her cardboard house to decorating the walls of her real house

• Verses to memorize for the month of June: Colossians 1:9-12 ~ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.
• I have recently started verse memorization with Aolani (as of last week). We are starting with these ABC verses. [She is so quick and smart, repeating them in their entirety after 2-3 days ;)] I just decided that since I am memorizing her verses too, naturally, then I might as well start quoting them routinely and add them to my arsenal (so the memorization on my part is not useless). Anyway, last week we learned Joshua 24:15 for 'A', which says, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." This week, we have learned 1 Thessalonians 5:11 for 'B' ~ Be kind to one another, and build each other up.