My Beloved.............

I have something important for you to understand, our relationship is based on My faithfulness. Your faith may wax and wane, but My faithfulness endures forever. I will never let you go. So put your trust in Me. In every situation, remember these words: Don’t be afraid; just believe.

I know the plans I have for you; plans to prosper you, not to harm you; plans to give you hope and a future. But this will only happen if you put your hope in Me and live according to My Word.

Don’t be afraid; just believe. That is your responsibility in our relationship: Believe that My love for you is unfailing: believe and trust in My goodness. And when you get discouraged, quickly turn to Me; call out to Me for help and I will deliver you from trouble. My faithfulness will be your shield and your fortress. I will fill you with joy and peace as you trust in Me, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of My Spirit.

Don’t be afraid; just believe. Be strong and courageous, for I am with you. I will not fail you nor forsake you. I will never betray My faithfulness. I am the Lord; when you hope in Me you will not be disappointed.

Don’t be afraid; just believe.
(1Ch 28:20; Ps.33:21-22, 42:5, 89:33, 91:4, 130:5,7; Isa 49:23; Jer 29:11; Mk 5:36; Ro 3:3-4; 15:13)

Spring!

I know I haven't been good about posting pictures or writing anything of real substance...........life has been crazy for all of us. We are thrilled that the rains have stopped (for now) and the sun is shining! Enjoy the photos from Easter Sunday........what a great day in celebrating the power of ther resurrection! It is rare that all five kids are together at the same time these days! I also posted some pictures from "Bike Day" at preschool!

It's not about adoption.........that is just one component of the bigger picture....caring for orphans!

Long time no write....

....still no write. Enjoy the photo.

Just thinking....

God's goodness provides and protects; God's mercy pardons and forgives. God's goodness will supply; God's mercy will sooth. God's goodness will help; God's mercy will heal.

Confessions......of A Mom of an 18-year old Son

Confessions of a Mother of an 18-year Old Son
March 3, 2009
It was the summer of 1993 when TJ was determined to ride a bike without training wheels. I thought it was too early. After all, it was only four months since he quit wearing diapers! He was determined and I was exhausted in trying to make him understand that he may not be ready. I figured he needed to learn for himself whether or not he was truly ready to ride a bike without training wheels. I took off the training wheels, helped him up on the bike. Several times I ran alongside of him holding the back of the seat, trying to help him stay balanced. I then had to do one of the hardest things I have ever done. I gave him a push knowing and I wasn’t going to hold that seat. I knew he was going to fall, but I hoped he would fall in the grass! I wanted to close my eyes because I didn’t know if he would collide into that tree, fall on the concrete or run into a parked car on the side of the road. I found a little comfort in that he had a helmet on his head. Watching his determination was difficult for me as his mother, but I continued to push him and watch him lose his balance and fall. And then it happened. I pushed him, he wavered back and forth, but he didn’t fall….he rode his bike without falling! Well, until he learned how to use the breaks! That was the next lesson. Eventually, bike riding became a simple matter of “go get your bike out of the garage and ride it.”

My anxiety and fear in teaching TJ how to ride a bike was intense. TJ turned 18 yesterday. Do any of you want to know about my anxiety and fears? Multiply those anxieties and fears from 1993 by a million!

My son is determined to want to live life independently from us. We’ve had long discussions and we even have written list of expectations for this next stage in life as he lives in our home. I had to bend in some areas that I really didn’t want to bend in. I am standing; watching him go. I’m trying not to hold on too tightly. I’m fearful of the decisions he has to make. I’m still close, but I’m not “right there.” It’s honestly one of the most difficult things to do!

I received an email from a good friend of mine yesterday. She said, “I’m praying that TJ will come to recognize the truth that we all have to accept sooner or later—that ‘It’s not right because God tells us to do it; rather, God tells us to do it because it is right.’ If we could all just understand that the only reason God lays out boundaries for our lives is so that we won’t tumble over the edge into an awful hole, how much happier we’d be. We all have times when we want it ‘our way,’ even knowing in our heart of hearts that His way is best. May this be the year that TJ comes face to face with his own human inadequacies and embraces the Lord’s all-sufficiency.”

John Townsend writes, “Parents are the guardrails in a teen’s life. Sometimes they get banged into over and over and over again. It they do their job, in the end, the teen comes out on the right path.” It’s been a season of getting “banged into” over and over again. My prayer is that TJ will learn to live life in such a way that honors and pleases God. What will it take to get him there? I don’t know. I just want him THERE! If he stumbles or falls, I just pray that the outcomes aren’t too harmful. I pray that if he falls, it results in him getting up and trying to do it right the next time. I hope he knows how to use “his brakes” to stop him from ending up somewhere he has no business being.” I pray that he will know in his heart and his head Proverbs 3:5,6 that reads, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

I confess that I don’t know how to be the mother of an 18 year old son. I’ve only been that for a little over 24 hours! I’m thinking there are going to be both good and bad things down the road. Interesting, it’s like I’m trying to learn to ride a new kind of bike. I might not ride it all that well in the beginning, but with God’s help, I just might learn to do this thing well! Hmmmm, who needs to trust in the LORD with all of her heart and not lean on her own understanding? Acknowledge Him? It’s me…the mother of an 18 year old son.

Where did the 18 years go? Happy Birthday, TJ!

Me.....28. Him.....two hours old!

Me....46. Him....18.

Tom and TJ....then!

Tom and TJ today!

The family out for dinner for TJ's birthday. I know...hate the picture of me!

Tune in tomorrow with some of my thoughts on having my first child turn 18. It's a time of celebration...a time of some anxiety...and a time of some fears.

NOTE: THIS WAS MEANT TO BE FUNNY.....PLAIN AND SIMPLE.

"It's not about you."

Rick Warren's book, "The Purpose Driven Life" begins with chapter one title, "It all starts with God." That chapter starts with the words, "It's not about you."

The first paragraph reads, "It's not about you. The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It's far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God. You were born by his purpose and for his purpose."

It's not about me. It's not about you. It's about Him.

40 Days of Orphan Advocacy

*40 posts for 40 days to contribute to the awareness of the Orphan in our World. Please share this blog or specific posts with friends that you interact with on the internet who may be interested in the Mi...
Chck Out at

http://voicefortheorphan.blogspot.com/

Kathy

Same Shirt......spurred on by Donna T.

Lily's Gotcha Day.

Sarah's Gotcha Day.

I felt like blogging a little bit today, but I wasn't so sure what to blog about. I thought about writing something about faith, writing about praising God in the storms, adoption related topics, I even thought I'd write about the need of orphans in Vietnam that I am working with this month. I just couldn't get into writing. I then popped over to some of my favorite blogs. There were writings on faith, adoption topics, needs of the poor, and minitries to orphans. I guess I'm in a less spiritual mood and was caught by Donna T's photos. I'd hyperlink her blog, but quite frankly, I don't know how to do it! Donna's husband wore the same shirt on both of the Gotcha Days with their daughters. I posted this before, but am going to do it again. Here is is....Tom wore the same HAT, the same SHIRT with the same camera over his shoulder. Only difference? Different girls in different parts of China! And this was not planned! Me, I would have worn the same thing if I hadn't grown out of my "Lily Sized Clothes" by the time the "Sarah Sized Clothes" came along!

Can I also comment on his facial expressions? With Lily he was filled with excitement. With Sarah it seemed to be, "Lord help me, I now have five children!" I have the best guy........I really do! I don't know a more humble, faithful guy!

Dane

It is hard to believe that Dane turned 13 on February 11th! I am now offically the other of three teen-aged boys and two preschool girls! Yeah, I live in extremes! Two weeks ago I was teaching one to drive a Barbie jeep in the morning and one to drive a Ford in the evening!

I am really proud of Dane! He brings a lot of joy to this house/home. He's smart and I do not have to get on him about school....ever! Well, except on the nights he is memorizing Scripture for a Bible test. He gets way too anxious! But, he pulls through and gets great grades. He loves to play sports and plays with a heart bigger than anyone! He is phenominal at playing the violin, but I do wish he would practice more! He cracks me up! If you have ever seen any of his videos on youtube, you would certainly crack up, too! I have to mention some of his videos. I love an early one where he was recording Tyler lip-sycing "Three Wooden Crosses" but Ty wasn't faking it to Randy Travis, he was faking it to the sound of Dane Alexander singing behind the camera! I also like the one where he attempts to play his violin at the same time he spins a plate on a stick! I then crack up on the shortest video that was recorded after several attempts at that skill when he says, "I have no talents." Of course, the most recent posted video makes me laugh as he plays basketball in the kitchen and trash talks to the camera as if he is talking to LaBron James, Alan Iverson and Kobe Bryant! If you want to check them out, you can find them on my youtube page sevenalexanders.

Dane is a wonderful big brother to LIly and Sarah. The girls love Dane! I enjoy hearing Ty and Dane do devotions at night with a small light on in their room. I'm thinking Dane is going to really miss Ty in a few years when he goes off to college. He asked if we would consider adopting a boy his age so he wouldn't be alone. At this time, he needs to learn to be alone! My quiver is quivering! Dane also has a sensitive heart for others......gotta love that! Plus, although he isn't one to show me too much affection in public, he can seldom walk past me at home without hugging me.....gotta love that! Shhh, don't tell him I posted that!

Anyway, Dane had a great day turning 13! What did we get him? It was a miniature camcorder.....since he likes to make movies. The only problem is that he took my memory card!

Where is He calling you?

"Where the world's deep hunger meets your deep gladness is where God calls you." Where is He calling you?

Blogging thoughts.....

I will either go to a private blog or close this blog down in the next month. I'm just a bit concerned that people are accessing my pictures through Google Images. If I go private and you want to still follow along, send me your email address to kalexand@columbus.rr.com and I will send you an invitation. I'm also on Facebook so you can keep in touch there if you desire.

Kathy

Phil Wickham in concert!

Fairfield Christian Church
1965 N. Columbus St.
Lancaster, Ohio 43130

http://www.fairfieldcc.com
http://www.bringmehope.org

TICKETS: $8.00 at door
Benefits orphans in China through the work of Bring Me Hope.

Sisters Stick Together

In the craziness of my life, I find a lot of joy AND enjoyment in my two girls. Sometimes I just sit and watch them play! Most of the time they do really well together. I love to watch them watch "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" and "Diamond in the Castle." The actually act out the movie while they watch it! I also enjoy watching them play school and cooker's (Chef's in the play kitchen.)

These photos show them at one of those moments that I found joy. In was late on a snow morning when they were watching public television. They wanted some dry cereal...yeah, I know....looks like dog food! Anyway, love this shot! It reminds me of the miraculous God we serve! Only God could orchestrate two little girls from different parts of China to be adopted into the same family....to be sisters that stick together! The joy! The enjoyment!

Snow Fun

Kathy and Tom

Christmas

The "Fab Five" on Christmas Eve after we returned from church.

The "Fab Five" on Christmas morning.

These are our boys! TJ will be 18 in March, Ty just turned 16 in November and Dane will be 13 in February.

Tyler was thrilled with a special gift this Christmas...a set of Ping G 5's.

The girls love their jeep although they are a bit baffled as to how Santa brought it down the chimney! Lily does most of the driving and Sarah controls the real radio!

The Alexander Cousins: Eleven Kandels, Five Alexanders and Three Coopers.

Well, to those of you who read this who are typically on our Christmas card mailing list, sorry....we did not send out cards this year! I just didn't get around to it.

We had a great time celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior! We had several Christmas programs at the school and at church. First, we had the preschool Christmas program. Lily sang and signed, "Happy Birthday, Jesus" with her preschool class. She was majorly into it! I can't remember what Sarah's class sang, but keep in mind, Sarah refused to sing! She just stood their playing with her hair! She tells me, "I'm an artist, not a singer." We then had a Fairfield Christian Academy program where Dane played the violin. He did a great job as they played several arrangements of Christmas songs. We also had the church program. Tom enjoys directing a full orchestra at this time of year...he did a great job. It was fun to watch the girls watch their daddy direct all of those instruments.

We went to church Christmas Eve and then spent the day on Christmas Day at home. We did get to have dinner later that evening with our friends Brad and Lorissa Bennett. Brad and Lorissa are patiently waiting for their adoption from China to happen. One year down, yikes.....who knows how many to go!?

We then headed to the farm for a few days. We love seeing all of the Alexander cousins together...it makes for a wild time. I'm so thankful to God that my kids get to be part of the extended Alexander family! Their is a heritage of faith that means a great deal to me. I so appreciate Tom's parents, too. They love the Lord deeply and it is evident in their love for their family.

We did make a day trip over to Girard, Ohio to spend with my family. None of the pictures came out clear so I didn't post any...sorry. My mom looked great for having just had surgery on her shoulder. A number of the Johnson cousins were there. Katy is the oldest and I'm guessing she might be 30 or close to it now! The youngest is James who is just a bit over one year old. There are 20 in between the two of them.

We returned home and have been busy adjusting back to our normal school routine. Ty and Dane continue to be busy with basketball. The girls are excited to be back in preschool. They are even more excited about giving ballet a try as they will start this Saturday.

I hope everyone who reads our blog had a great Christmas. Blessings to all of you in this new year!

A little bit of Ty, a lot of candy!

Ty after being inducted into the National Honor Society. He is with Chris, the upper classmen that pinned him.

Part of the NHS group of Fairfield Christian Academy.

Ty with the girls at the reception after the NHS ceremony.

Ty turned 16 on November 21st! I know...it is a pathetic cake!

Lily and Sarah at their post for the candy making process!

Lily "doing her job."

The hand of a master candy maker....Tom!

The art of making candy! It's a pretty picture! Sarah or Lily is pulling the stick through the screen!



I love this pictue of Sarah through the screen!

Britney (one of my nieces) puts the candy on the stick and hands it to the dippers...Tom and Brianna (another niece).

A recent photo of the Fab Five!

We'll start from the top down. Tyler was inducted into the National Honor Society in late November. He's a super smart kid...we are really proud of him! I NEVER have to tell him to do his homework!!!!! Also, on November 21st, Tyler turned 16! He's been driving for several months on his permit. We hope to allow him to take the driving class this spring.

There are many blessings that have come my way through marrying into the Alexander family. Maybe one day I will actually write about some of those blessings. One of the things I've been able to participate in a few times over the years is the candy making process at Christmas time. I enjoyed taking a few pictures of the process this year. This is the first time Lily and Sarah got to participate! Mom makes several flavors of candy. The candy is rolled and placed on was paper. The center leaves of the table are removed and replaced with screens with wax paper on top. Someone puts the candy on the sticks and hands the sticks to the the dippers. The dippers dip and send the sticks through the paper and the screen where smaller hands gently pull the sticks through. They then hand the sticks to the person who is putting the candy on the sticks. The girls enjoyed sitting under the table "doing their job!" Me? I enjoyed taking the pictures and eating the candy!

On another note, I am workig through some back problems. I won't go into all of the details because it would take too long. A little while back I found out that what I thought was a thoracic strain was actually three herniated discs. I've gone through several procedures and still haven't found much relief. I welcome any prayers as I try to figure out how best to deal with this.

I have not put together Christmas cards as of yet! Isn't that terrible?! I hope to get it done, but it is highly unlikely at this point. If I don't get around to it, I will at the very least post a "Merry Christmas" message on our blog!

Blessings!

Sharing an encouraging word.....and standing FIRM!

Just had to share today:

Whose Battle Is It?
by Rick Warren

“But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the Lord’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out there tomorrow, for the Lord is with you!” 2 Chronicles 20:17 (NLT)

*** *** *** ***

In today’s passage, God is talking to King Jehoshaphat and the Israelites. They’re about to be attacked by three enemies: the Moabites, the Ammonites, and the Meunites.

Jehoshaphat had to be worried about how his people could defend themselves in such a battle, but God knew exactly what Jehoshaphat was thinking. He said, “You will not have to fight in this battle.” Now, that’s the kind of battle I like!

What God tells Jehoshaphat in this passage, and what he would remind us today, is this: “The battle is not yours; it’s mine. You don’t have to fight in it.”

In other words, it’s God’s problem. Let him solve it.

The fact is if you are God’s child, then your problems are his problems. And he’s much better at fighting your battles and solving your problems than you will ever be. Your job is to trust him to work it all out. Perhaps the reason we have so many tired, fatigued, and discouraged Christians is because we think, “It all depends on me.”

The day you resign as General Manager of the Universe, you’re going to find that it doesn’t fall apart. You can relax in faith, trusting that God is able to run things without your help.

Twice in this passage it says, “Don’t be afraid,” and “Don’t be discouraged.” When you face a seemingly impossible situation, don’t be afraid and don’t be discouraged. Has God ever lost a battle? No. He doesn’t lose battles.

There’s an important phrase in verse 17. God tells Jehoshaphat, “Take your positions and stand firm.” What does it mean to stand firm? It means to have a mental attitude of quiet confidence. It is never God’s will for you to run from a difficult situation. I’ve discovered that when I run from a difficult situation, inevitably God always brings it back around and gives me another chance. Why?

Because God wants us to learn – and he wants to teach us through experience – that in every situation he is sufficient. He is competent and capable and he will meet our needs in that situation. Don’t be afraid; fear is the opposite of faith.

You stand firm on two things:

The character of God – He’s faithful. He does not bring us this far just to let us down. He doesn’t bring you out on a limb and then cut off the limb. Have faith in the nature andcharacter of God.
The truth of his Word – God’s Word is faithful. You can count on the promises found in the Bible.
Stand still. Remember Who the battle belongs to. Trust that he is able to deliver you. And then watch him do it!