My girl

(I will expand upon my last post very soon, but I really needed to write, first, about my sweet girl.)

My baby girl is five. I simply can not believe how quickly time has flown since she became ours officially in August of 2006. Selah is a delight to our family. I am still in awe of how good God is when I look at her. How is it that a little girl born on the other side of the world could fit so perfectly in to our family? How is it that she could so quickly BE our family in every sense of the word? Only the Lord in His infinite wisdom would know just what we needed. Selah, who's name means "to pause in wonder of God", lives up to the meaning of her name. We often pause in wonder of God when we realize just how much a part of us she is.

I thought some of you (mostly our families) would be interested in seeing pictures from her five year old princess tea party. I was thrilled with her idea to have a tea party with her favorite girl friends and had so much fun planning it.

The table pre-party

The party favors- T-shirts with a ironed on princess crown

The princess herself

Outfit, courtesy of Aunt Amy- Thank you, Aunt Amy!

Big brothers, Sam and Silas, helped paint nails

The princesses feasting on lunch

My sisters and I all got our ears pierced when we turned 5, so we carried on the tradition. Selah was SO BRAVE!

Her party was early so we celebrated her actual birthday at The Broken Plate with Auntie Bernice and Uncle Curtis. 

Selah Thu, You are a gift. We love you so much and we pause in wonder every day that the Lord matched us with you!

A New Place, A New Identity

Our family has news. Big news. We are moving! We have simply loved our time in Calgary. The Lord has grown me- us- so much. As of July, the place we will call home is Denver, Colorado.

Denver is our dream city for many reasons. It is about half way between my family and Jeff's family. It is in the mountains. It is an outdoor person's dream. A long time ago, we said that Denver is the place we eventually wanted to end up. And now it's going to happen. Our original plan was that we would stay in Calgary for a few more years, which is why we bought a house last July. I suppose the Lord does love surprises, doesn't He?

One of the things we have been talking a lot about is where we will go to church. Of course, our children want to go to church at the same place as Willow, Hunter, Trenton, and Cameron- their best friends here. But, we know that will not be possible. Sniff sniff.

One of the things that I have most been burdened by recently is how I think I have relied more on my church's denomination, rather than my actual relationship with Christ, to form my identity. I do not want my identity to be found in the Church of Christ (our denomination). I want my identity simply to be found in Christ.

Jeff and I want this for our children, as well. We desire for them to know the Lord and for them to rely on Him to fill their every need. I don't want them to always rely on us and I don't want them to always rely on their church. I want them to first look to Christ- just Christ.

At the same time, I love my heritage in the Church of Christ. I love that it has been passed down from generation to generation in our families. I love that I can walk in to any Church of Christ and have the ACU and Harding connections. I love that my grandfather has baptized people who's families still go to church- and one family we know here in Calgary. I love that.

But, I don't want my identity to be found in who I'm related to or who I know. I only want it to be found in Who I know. And how I long to KNOW Him!!! Really know Him!

We have a theme verse for our family that I have been meditating on recently. It encompasses everything we want our family to value and I'd like to share it with you:

......from the day we heard about you, we have not ceased praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may live worthily of the Lord and please Him in all respects- bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display of all patience and steadfastness, joyfully giving thanks to the Father which has qualified you to share in the saints' inheritance in the light. -Colossians 1: 9-12

Lord, how I desire to please You! How I long to know You and for my children to know You. May our identities always be found in Who's we are- not who we are.

Update: I am shocked at the number of private messages I have received from "ex-Church of Christers" who have resonated with this post. My heart hurts. It seems our denomination has failed many. Thank you so much to those of you who have left messages. On one level it saddens me that the church of my heritage has failed so many and on another level it makes me want to stick with it to see that changes are made for the sake of my own children. We honestly don't know what we will do in Denver, but I just wanted to say a "thank you" to those who are willing to be honest and share your experiences.