Run To Jesus

I remember sitting on my cabin porch the last morning at camp, when I heard a friend say, "Look, your kids are here!" As soon as I came into their sight, they immediately took off running to me, yelling, "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" It was a beautiful thing.

Even better was about thirty seconds later when they saw their Dad approaching. Screams of "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" filled the air while they ran to his arms. I could not stop the tears at that point.

When was the last time I contained that excitement about running to my Daddy? Not my earthly father, who is an amazing man. But, my Heavenly Father.

During the sermon this past Sunday, our pastor asked the question "Are you seeking God or just seeking His ways?" Hmm. I would have to say His ways. My thoughts are more concerned with the "right Christian things to do" rather than seeking precious time with Him. I cannot remember the last time that I just stood quietly before the Lord. I have been so busy with my actions for Him that I have forgotten to simply spend time with Him.

And I wonder why I am so up in the air about future decisions in my life.

I know how much Nick (and I) missed the kids during the week apart. The joy in his face when they ran to him was indescribable. Does Jesus react the same way when we realize we have been away and do nothing but run to Him?

A friend took this picture of Abby saying good-bye to our good friend, J. For obvious reasons, he portrays Jesus in our camp dramas. Yes, I love the sentiments of their hug (never thought I would see my junior year prom date in an emotional hug with my daughter!), but the image of Abby hugging Jesus was the first thing I thought when I saw this picture.

How I long for the day when we actually get to run to Jesus. All the sadness and joy will be swept up in His embrace and we will know we are home.

Who Needs Toys?

Reasons Why My Children Do Not Need More Toys:

They started off as babies who found my tupperware drawer much more fascinating than their toy box.

The days I change the paper towel roll in the kitchen bring great excitement as they claim their new sword or telescope.

Their current toys are only exciting when I either reorganize them/put them neatly away or when I start my garage sale pile.

Who needs toys when jumping on my bed like the five little monkeys brings tears of laughter?

They are content to look at the clouds and find shapes-most recently Caleb claimed he saw Thomas the Engine. Really-just shouted it out while in the car.

To make one of them want to play with a toy, all I have to do is give it to the other one. Suddenly, that item becomes the best thing in the whole entire world.

The days I mop the kitchen floor and move the chairs into the living room are cause for adventure as they build tents and "dark, dark rooms."

A flashlight brings amusement to all for hours.

And my personal favorite-the other day they literally fought over who got to play with the fly swatter. I really wish I was kidding.

God Unchanging

Camp Lambec has been a huge part of my life since I was ten years old. I spent seven years at Music Camp as a camper, worked on the permanent staff for two summers, and have been a volunteer counselor for ten years. Needless to say, I can look around that camp and find memories on almost every inch of the land.

This year, I found much joy in seeing my kids walk the camp, making their own memories. I suddenly felt my age when I saw their steps replacing some of my most vivid recollections.

I saw them run to the fence at the end of the camp which has a spectacular view of Lake Erie. As a camper, that was my favorite thing to look at when my feet hit the property. While at the lake, Abby suddenly needed to use the bathroom. As we ran through the trail in the woods to reach the bathhouse in time, my thoughts flashed to when I stood there and had my first kiss. While they ran around to look at more exciting things, my eyes focused on the old stump where I sat 21 years ago and made a commitment to Jesus as my Lord and Savior.

Lambec has seen so many people come through its (used to be white) fence, each with their own personalities and memories. The only thing that remains the same is the Creator the camp is designed to worship. Without such grace, it would only be another piece of lakefront property. But, because of who He is, lives are changed through His unchanging love.

Some Humorous Stories

I promise. I really do plan on writing about camp. The problem is is that so many funny things keep coming out of my children's mouths that I just have to write about them instead.

Here are some of the latest, in no particular order...

On the drive home the other day, Nick was merging onto the highway in a construction zone. While attempting to take the gap in traffic and move over, the moron in the right lane decided to speed up. Apparently, he thought his truck carrying a boat behind him was going to move quicker than our mini-van (it was a toss up considering how much weight we were carrying in the van from our week away). Anyway, as Nick swerved back over, narrowly missing the construction zone barrels (I have hit one of those before-it's fun), a few choice words escaped his mouth. I will not repeat them here, but I will say that Caleb immediately echoed him with, "Hun of a pitch."

While cleaning up toys before bedtime tonight, I made a comment about how I am so tired of cleaning up after everyone else. I asked Abby how she would like it if she had to spend her day cleaning up after her family. Her response? "Well, someday when I get married and have kids-because I really want to have kids someday, Mommy-if no one cleans up, then we will all do it together. You know, like me and the daddy that I marry and my kids, Abby and Caleb."

My personal favorite happened while being away from them last week. Abby was doing a terrific job of taking naps for her Grammy (Caleb, on the other hand, not so much). My mom made a point to thank her for being so good. Apparently, she looked surprised and said, "But Grammy, I can't break my promise to my mom! I told her I would take naps for you!" (Too bad the promise only lasts at her house and not mine!)

As Nick is now in South Africa (or, at the point that I am writing this, crossing the ocean), I am sure the next week alone with the kids will bring up some more entertaining tales.

Lord, give me strength.

Spiritual Gift

I have just arrived home after spending an amazing week at Camp Lambec. As I have just sat down after driving all day across the great state of Ohio, I will save my reflective thoughts on the week for future posts. For today, however, I have to share a funny story of a child that is not my own.

I know-shocking that other children are as funny as mine. Go figure.

One of our younger campers, Esther, is quite a character. During the Bible study that my friend Adrianne was leading, they somehow started talking about spiritual gifts. Esther immediately raised her hand and said, "I know what my spiritual gift is! It's hospitality!"

About five seconds passed when she then asked, "What's hospitality mean?"

Love it.

Geography

Abby set up two hula-hoops, a blanket and a pillow on the floor. She then proceeded to tell us they represented different planets. When we asked her which planets, she explained...

"This one is earth, this one is the moon, this one is Pennsylvania and this one is California."

After we cleared our eyes from the tears of laughter, I tried to get her to think through it. I asked her how we get to other planets which she correctly answered, "In a spaceship." Then I asked her if she takes a spaceship to go to Grammy's house in Pennsylvania.

The look on her face was priceless. She looked confused and then embarrased. Then she got over it and said, "Well, I think they are planets." Which I am fine with-I love her imagination.

I guess we better get our space shuttle ready for our trip to Pennsylvania this weekend.

Fire Alarm

This video pretty much sums up our house at 5:00 this morning. Particularly the first part and her tears at the end look a lot like mine did! I believe I used a few choice words that should be understandable with the ridiculous lack of sleep.

What made it even more fun was when the kids woke up. Every 34 seconds (when the blessed alarm would beep) Caleb would ask, "Did you hear that, Mom?"

Thank you to my dear husband who finally "fixed it" at 10:00 this morning. Although I can still hear the beeping in my head...

Muscles

Abby was helping me make banana bread the other day. Apart from throwing some of the ingredients into the mixing bowl, her big job was smashing the bananas.

At first she acted like she could do it all. But, as I gradually added more bananas, she started to complain.

"Oh Mommy! This is hard work! It's a good thing I have muscles!"

By the end of her task, she changed it to, "Okay, I think I'm done. I think all of my muscles are gone!"