Trike Fun at Mamaws

God knows the truth

From today's devotion - Had to post it so I wouldn't forget it!

The Bible says that when we love someone, we won't want to advertise his or her sins, but keep quiet about them.

Q. There were probably many people who passed judgment on Joseph and Mary when they saw that Mary was pregnant but not yet married to Joseph. It must have really hurt them. Have you ever had someone believe something bad about you that wasn't true? What should you do when that happens?

A. You should try to explain the truth to those who have passed judgment on you, hoping that they'll realize their error. But, even if they don't, you can be thankful that God knows the truth and trust that He will eventually clear you, just as He did Mary.

into the uncomfort zone

it sure has been a while since i've been to blogger.  however, i had to write about this in case it helps anyone else and also so i won't forget the feelings i have right now.

ok.  how to make a long story short and non-specific...

well, first off, nathaniel and i have been going to church now for a month and a half.  we feel like we've found one we really like and thus far they have not even come close to having a sermon that pushes us away.  in fact, the sermon this past sunday was so moving, it took us all the way into church to meet with the pastor.

last week, the sermon was about forgiveness.  the pastor gave a personal account of how truly forgive someone very close to him (his dad) - the hurt (for him) began in childhood and moved into adulthood.  it was just an amazing story.  when we left church that day,  we both agreed that we needed to talk to him.  no one is an expert in forgiveness, but when one so openly discusses personal trials and triumph about something so profound in his life, then i felt like he could provide us some help in a way to move into our own triumph:  forgiveness.  not sure exactly how to explain our issue, and i don't think WHAT it is is relevant, but just trust me, time has not healed our pain and it has definitely hindered things we've wanted to do.

so - we made an appointment to talk with the pastor.  we sat for 1 hour and talked about our honest and innermost feelings with him, without shame (it was uncomfortable at times, but we got through that).  it was such a release.  i can only speak for myself when i say that several times, i felt like i was going to run over with emotions.  several times i could feel tears wanting to build (i suppressed them).  after that hour was over, i was a SO proud of my husband (for talking - you know, communication isn't easy for all men!).  i really feel like we have hit the road to recovery.  recovery meaning TRUE and COMPLETE forgiveness.

i'm shaking right now writing this!  this is so emotional.

here are some key points that i want to remember:  talking to the person/people with whom caused you pain and hurt (laying it all out on the table) is the best **and probably easiest** path to forgiveness.  sometimes, though, that doesn't work - and it is ok.   there is another way.  you have to look deep inside your heart and truly and honestly forgive - without the acknowledgement from anyone else.  closure is not always possible - and should not stop you from achieving your goal.

we naturally wanted to know how one could truly and honestly forgive.  one suggestion was to write down honest feelings about what hurt you, how you tried to work it out, what you wish could happen - everything related to said topic.  this could be an essay, a letter, something - but when you are done, throw it away/burn it/something (do not share it) and that is symbolic of releasing the pain that binds you to the issue.  and, you forgive.  this was such a wonderful idea.  though nathaniel doesn't write ME letters, he is a great writer and i know he gets much enjoyment from it.  we both thought this idea would help.

probably the most important thing the pastor said to us was to know that even in true forgiveness, your relationship with that person(s) may never change.

i think that is one place we had it all wrong.  previously we felt like our forgiveness (the one we would do in our hearts without involvement or knowledge from the other party) would mean we had to mend the relationship.   it is not required at all.  after forgiveness, you can't expect the other person to change - or for you to suddenly be involved in their life or they in your life.  that doesn't mean you haven't forgiven them.

so that is what we did for the first time.  talked about our pain, hurt, and how to get over it.

last bit - nathaniel said in the car after we left that that was the first time he'd ever heard anyone pray for him. (i laughed because i pray for him all the time, just not outloud) - so another thing we need to practice is OUT LOUD talks with God (prayers) as a family and including our kids.  i sure don't want them going through life not thinking anyone ever prayed for them!  and i don't want them to think praying is just for blessing food.

that's all.

Lincoln Memorial

I know i've mentioned how crowded DC was easter weekend.  The Lincoln Memorial was shoulder to shoulder packed.  We couldn't even get close enough to really see the statue.  Since we had walked so far, we thought we deserved a break.  so after viewing the grand statue, we walked around back in view of the river and the bridge and tried to sit down.  this is where kendal had a meltdown and thought the sky was falling (or something).  he wouldn't eat.  he wouldn't sit down.  we got a rest but he did not.  of coarse, he was getting to rest while we walked.  we did have to endure his screaming and whining.

and on the walk back there, holly decided that kathy was someone she really liked.  she preferred her hand over mine.  it just melted my heart and i'm sure it did kathy's too!  holly held kathy's hand more than just that time.  it was precious to watch!

 and of coarse we had time for silly shots.

Washington Monument and Korean Memorial

what i'll remember about the washington monument is that there were only 4 stalls in the women's restroom, and a really long line to get in there.

but i did snap a few good shots of it on the walk by it!  and, a view of it from the lincoln memorial.  they are redoing the reflecting pool as well as a lot of the mall so there is a lot of construction visible in the photo.  and people.  have i mentioned how many people there were?

we also breezed by the korean memorial.  kendal and holly had a screaming contest over there so we had to hurry away.  seemed a bit disrespectful to be screaming around a memorial. i did stop for a second to take a picture!

Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

first of all, we went out and decided to get off at the l'enfant metro stop rather than smithsonian.  at that stop, there are three options for coming out of the ground.  we picked the l'enfant plaza choice because we did not know which to do.  it wasn't the right choice, but there was a starbucks at the top of the 1000 story escalator.  woohoo!  coffee.

here is one from the morning on the metro - taken by holly:

first thing to do:  find our way to the the air and space museum (which will now be called the AASM).  we picked this stop because according to online, there was a mcdonalds there (and there was).  with one really picky child, he sorta has to be accommodated when it comes to eating out - and mcd's is one place he will always eat.  so, air and space was first.  kathy was very patiently waiting for us!  i think we were about an hour later than we thought we'd be.  (starbucks only took 5 minutes.)  our lack of metro knowledge took the rest.  think "which way do we go?  which way do we go?"  we needed a compass.  and a map.  that would have been helpful.

ANYWAY, the kids sorta liked the AASM.  they liked the big planes but it was REALLY crowded so there were long lines to do anything.  there wasn't much to "touch" - and whatever was to touch again had long lines.  it was a really busy weekend in DC.  think NC fair on a friday!  like that. 

and i have this thing about taking pictures with strangers in the background.  so, i really didn't take too many.  but, i have a few.  here are the ones from the AASM.  i'd like to go back, maybe on a day that isn't so crowded.

The DC Metro

gosh, the most favorite part of washington dc to little kids (at least mine) is the "train" by far!