Life in a Nutshell

Wow, a lot has been happening. I have been so blessed with all that has gotten down around the house between my dad & Greg. My electric heat is now hooked up in the frontroom & back entry. I now have a light in the back entry that had gotten hidden. My dad did a great job finding it & getting it hooked up. (What would I do without my dad?) My dad & Greg ran a sidewalk around to the back door. (It was great timing to start going with Greg last spring. He really didn't like the mud to get to the back door.) They, also, got some siding to put on where the garage had been turned into my living room & back entry. Greg was able to get the paint & get in painted before it got too cold. It looks really nice now (yes, Dawn, I will get a picture some day.).

We are now starting the count down until our wedding. It is less than 1 week. I see the week feeling very long as Saturday can't come soon enough, yet it will go very fast. I have way too many goals set for myself (& Greg). I don't know that I will be able to get them all done, but I am sure I will try. Greg is being very patient with me. The plans for the wedding really doesn't require a lot of my attention. However, I want to get Holly's stuff packed up from her bedroom as that is the bedroom Greg & I will use. I am hoping Heidi will come to pack her stuff. We got beds moved around this past Saturday but still need to get the boxspring over for our bed. I need to make it through the week with school. I would like to finish getting the photos put in the albums. I need to get the boys bedroom ready, & I would like to get our bedroom organized. Then, if that isn't enough I could always dream big & get the home videos all caught up, but I KNOW that isn't happening. Of course, sometime before it snows it would be good to get the trampoline down & the yard raked. We have a "ton" of leaves. If things go right, maybe the kids can do those last too things while we are gone, but I am not going to be really hopefull on that either. I suppose sometime in there I, also, need to pack. I am very thankful that I don't have to pack the kids. That will make life easier.

Engagement

I am very excited to announce that I am engaged to Greg Will. It has been a very different engagement as we have been fairly confident that we would be getting married. We went into this relationship with that intent though with the understanding that we needed to get to know each other better. Neither of us were going into this relationship blind & knew there was a lot that had to be considered & worked through. When you have 9 kids between you plus one son-in-law here on earth, there are a lot of logistics that had to be thought through. It definitely hasn't been all easy, & we know that we will have some rough times. However, God is good, & He will see us through. Sunday, Sept. 7th we met with our pastor & his wife as there were some issues that we felt we needed to discuss with them. Sunday, Sept. 14th I found out that Greg had a peace about our getting married before we even left the pastor's house on the 7th. We begin to talk more seriously about marriage. Monday, Sept. 15th we actually set a possible date for marriage which since then was changed. Wednesday, Sept. 17th Greg went to my parents to ask for their blessing. After that, he came up to my house along with my parents, pastor, & pastor's wife to tell the kids. He told the kids that we were planning to be married in October. Then, he turned to me and said I could still say no and went on to ask if I would marry him. Of course, I said yes. This last week has been very exciting & busy trying to figure everything out. Greg needed to get the details of our honeymoon done before we could officially set the date of the wedding. We are getting MARRIED Oct. 18th @ 11:00 am. We are planning to be gone for 10 nights on a honeymoon which will be amazing. Figuring out a honeymoon with so many kids to think about isn't easy. I praise the Lord for my brother & sister-in-law's willingness to step in & watch all the kids for us (7 kids). My parents, Heidi (my 2nd oldest), & Tiffany have, also, willingly agreed to help with the kids since we will be gone so long.

God is amazing. If you would have told me a year ago that I would be getting married, I would have thought you were crazy. I didn't even think I would be seeing anyone. Greg is a Godly man who strives to be sensitive to the Lord's leading. He is a wonderful father, & I feel blessed to have him in my life.

What our family will look like

Family Reunion

Family Picture with my parents

So...I haven't posted in quite some time and have had a few people comment on that so decided it was about time to post something. Aug. 15-17 we had our first Weinert Family Reunion here in our home town of Bemidji, MN. It was great to have everyone but 2 of my nephews make it. (They were greatly missed.) There was a total of 46 family members and 3 special guests who stayed at the camp. It was a wonderful time of fun & fellowship with all. Some of the family had never had a chance to meet while some of us had only meet briefly. Therefore, this was a great chance to get to know everyone. We were all able to stay at a camp and have our meals catered so that no one was stuck in the kitchen other than to make coffee which was a must have for our family. Over the weekend we had the opportunity to play games (indoors & out), have a laughter filled talent night with some touching moments as well, have some canoe races, & just some great times of fellowship from joking around & laughing to some talks centered around our wonderful Lord. We ended the weekend with a family church service with my oldest brother bringing us a heart felt message about how thankful we should be for the heritage we have and a reminder of what we were taught growing up (Labor, Live, Love). We are blessed to be going on the 5th generation of believers. What great example our grandparents & parents have been for us. After my brother's message, we had the opportunity to share in communion together led by my dad. To top the whole weekend off, my church came out for a baptism service which included my daughter Sharmane being baptized by her cousin.

Volleyball fun


Sitting around the campfire

Smores

Canoe Racing

Baptism

Pray for the Lawrenson Family

Nate, Tricia, & Gwyneth have had a rough start for the year but continue to look to the Lord. Gwyneth was born a preemie but seems to be doing well. Tricia has cf and was able to get a double lung transplant this spring after Gwyneth was born. They were all able to go home as a family but have not found that Tricia has lymphoma cancer. She went through some chemo treatments, but it hasn't been helping. She will now try a stronger dose. Her care is tricker because of her health & all the medication she already needs to be on. If you would like to follow there blog, you can find it at www.cfhusband.blogspot.com

A poem for women

I found this on a blog of a new friend of mine. I thought it was good and wanted to share this with others. I hope you enjoy it.


CHRISTIAN WOMEN
by Maya Angelou'

A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ
that a man should have to seek Him first to find her.'
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not shouting 'I'm clean livin''
I'm whispering 'I was lost, Now I'm found and forgiven.'
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I'm weak and need His strength to carry on.
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed and need God to clean my mess.
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are far too visible but, God believes I am worth it.
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I still feel the sting of pain..
I have my share of heartaches, so I call upon His name.
When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not holier than thou,
I'm just a simple sinner Who received God's good grace, somehow!
Pretty is as Pretty does.... but beautiful is just plain beautiful!

Resting in the Lord

Life has been filled with stress lately. I find that when things aren't movely along smoothly I tend to allow myself to stress. I have seen this many times over my life. In Philippians 4:4-9, it talks about how one is suppose to rejoice always. It doesn't say to rejoice in only good times or when things are going the way you think they should. God never promised that life would be easy while we were on earth. He does say in Phil. 4:5, Matthew 28:20 & Heb. 13:8 that he will be with us. That should be enough for us to know that we can rest in Him even during the troubled waters or storms. We are told to bring everything to the Lord. I find myself turning to Him during these stressful times but always wanting to take it back so I can control the situation. Am I really going to know what is best? I may think so, but in reality, I know that is not true. God has shown that to me many times over. We are commanded not to be anxious for anything in Phil. 4:6. With such a specific command, how do we think we could know better? The best way to put into practice resting in the Lord is by taking time to mediate on His Word, praying, sitting under Godly teaching, & fellowshipping with other believers. This will help one keep their eyes, heart, & mind focused where God would have them. When you are able to do that, you are more apt to rest in the Lord during those times that would normally be stressful.
"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report: if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8

Discipleship

I believe we have lost the art of discipleship though now days people may us the word mentoring. Now days you don't often hear the word discipleship or find it in the dictionary as its own entry. The definition of discipleship is "the state of a disciple or follower in doctines and precepts." What is a disciple? "a learner; one who receives instruction from another." As we see the decline in today's society, our churches need to got back to one on one discipleship. We are losing people to the world because they are not getting the grounding in the Bible like they need. Because of that and the loss of what a true family is, we are seeing our world go down the drain. We need to have one on one discipleship to help people understand and put into practice what the Bible teaches. However, I believe, because of where the family is at today, that teaching has to go beyond teaching the truths about the Bible but include the basics of life. There are many girls & women who have no clue how to take care of a household and men who don't know how to change oil on the family car or do upkeep on their homes. I believe these are lost skills that need to be taught. Looking at scripture, I find this to be biblical. We see in 1 Tim. 1:2 & 2 Tim. 1:2 that Paul calls Timothy his son or son in the faith. It leads one to believe that Paul was involved in bringing Timothy to a personal relationship with the Lord. In Acts 16, we find that Timothy goes with Paul as he journeys. What a wonderful way to learn, by watching & doing! In Titus 2:3-5, it states that the older women are suppose to teach the younger women. These verses touch on not only Biblical teaching but teaching them to be keepers of the home, too. This can be done so well in a home where you have a believing father & mother. However, in today's society, there is fewer & fewer of these homes. The church body needs to pick up the slack and reach out to disciple those who don't have anyone in their life doing this. This is something that is lacking not only in Children's lives but many adults who didn't have the opportunity to learn from their parents for whatever reason.

Comfort vs. Peace

As I ponder upon comfort and peace, I turn my eyes toward the Lord wondering what He would have to say. Is comfort Biblical? How about peace? I honestly believe that we should have peace in our lives because of the Lord Jesus Christ, but comfort? When I think of being comfortable, I think of sitting back and relaxing and being content with where I am at. I'm not sure that is necessarily Biblical. If we get to comfortable with where we are at, are we going to grow in our relationship with the Lord. I don't think we are very apt to grow. I believe we will begin to rely upon ourself instead of relying on the Lord for our ever need. An earthly example of this would be if we are cuddled down under a nice warm featherbed. If we are comfy and warm, we aren't likely to get up and stoke the wood burner that heats our house. Why should we, we're warm. I think the same can be true with our Lord. If we are all cozy with the way life is going, aren't we more apt to depend upon ourself instead of Him. We like to be comfortable but that isn't always best. As for me, I have seen that when I am comfortable, I am not nearly as apt to turn to the Lord in the little daily things of life like He wants. I can, also, look back to see that when I have been put in uncomfortable situations, I am much more apt to turn to the Lord for even the little things. I don't think any of us like it when we are uncomfortable but praise the Lord if we grow in Him through our discomfort. As much as I prefer to be comfortable, I am so thankful for those times of discomfort knowing that I am more likely to grow in the Lord. Now this said, in
II Cor. 1:3, Acts 9:31, & Psalms, it speaks of God being our comfort. When I think of it in that mind set, I think of being more at peace. I want and should be at peace with the Lord. To me that means I will be trusting God in all that is happening in life whether that is good or bad, big or small. I need to stay focused upon Him and continue to allow Him to grow and stretch me in my daily walk with Him. I should be rejoicing when I feel that I am being stretched from my comfort zone knowing that God is doing a work in my life.