Revelations

Well, I've had a few today. In August of 2008 I blogged about my anniversary present: the patio/porch extension that I just had to have. Oh, it would be soo great. I could sit outside with Avery and watch her play in the sprinkler....we could just stay outside all day. I needed this because our backyard is SO sunny. Please, please, please!!!! Some of you may remember that the day they started construction and ripped our roof off, we had a torrential rainstorm and the company had to replace our entire kitchen wall from all the water that flooded our house. In addition to that, within of month of completing the project, it started cracking. It was repaired and cracked again. Now here we are in 2010 and today my porch was jack-hammered up and wheeled out. Tomorrow they will be pouring a new one. I couldn't help but be reminded of the scriptures in Matthew (6:19-24) that address treasures in Heaven.

¹⁹"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

²²"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. ²³But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

²⁴"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

To think that my quality of life would be so improved by a porch is just silly to me now. To think that material things can give you anything other than a moment of happiness is ignorant. True joy comes from Christ. True satisfaction comes from Christ. I'm thankful that my very expensive, busted-up porch has reminded me of these facts.

Like I said, they removed the porch today. I TOTALLY underestimated the extent to which sounds from a jack-hammer would DRIVE ME ABSOLUTELY NUTS!!! That sound should seriously be a form of torture. It was crazy. My heart started to race and I was snapping at my kiddos so I packed up and headed to my mom's house. We went to lunch and I put the kids down at her house and headed out to run a few errands.

I was sitting at the carwash and the t.v. in the lobby had the Maury Povich show on. The subject of his show today was about mothers who were desperate to stop their 15 year old daughters from getting pregnant AGAIN. One of the girls was drug addicted, but she thought having a baby (another one) would help her stay clean. Another one said she had wanted one since she was 13. It was like a train wreck and I couldn't help but watch it. And be totally depressed by it. I love music and immediately the song Johnny Diaz, More Beautiful You came to mind (lyrics are below). I wish each of those girls could hear that song. My heart was so sad for these girls. I'm scared to death to be the mother of a daughter who might struggle with things like this some day. I pray that she knows that she was born to fill a purpose that only she can do. I pray that she knows that she was uniquely created by God and that she doesn't have to jump through the world's hoops to find happiness. His love is more than enough.

⁹But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12: 9-10

More Beautiful You by Johnny Diaz

Little girl fourteen flipping through a magazine
Says she wants to look that way
But her hair isn't straight her body isn't fake
And she's always felt overweight

Well little girl fourteen I wish that you could see
That beauty is within your heart
And you were made with such care your skin your body and your hair
Are perfect just the way they are

[Chorus]
There could never be a more beautiful you
Don't buy the lies disguises and hoops they make you jump through
You were made to fill a purpose that only you could do
So there could never be a more beautiful you

Little girl twenty-one the things that you've already done
Anything to get ahead
And you say you've got a man but he's got another plan
Only wants what you will do instead

Well little girl twenty-one you never thought that this would come
You starve yourself to play the part
But I can promise you there's a man whose love is true
And he'll treat you like the jewel you are

[chorus]

So turn around you're not too far
To back away be who you are
To change your path go another way
It's not too late you can be saved
If you feel depressed with past regrets
The shameful nights hope to forget
Can disappear they can all be washed away
By the one who's strong can right your wrongs
Can rid your fears dry all your tears
And change the way you look at this big world
He will take your dark distorted view
And with His light He will show you truth
And again you'll see through the eyes of a little girl
[chorus]