The best vacation...so far...

As much as I'd like to be Ultra spiritual on my first blog in eons, I just have one thing on my mind....vacation.

This past summer we had the most family fantastic vacation on the planet and it all took place at a State Park.

Many many moons ago I read an article in my FAV magazine, Southern Living, about the most affordable beach vacations in the south.  One stood out to me, maybe because of the great price: Grayton Beach State Park.

And so a few years later (it takes a while to think on it you know) I looked it up and the Brennan/Severtson/Bowman/Graves clan booked 3 places.

When I say 'places' I mean CABINS.  Duplex Cabins.  Not the log kind, and not your typical state park kinds, because this kind is a short walk from the beach.  They also feature a screened in porch, full kitchen, full bath, gas fireplace and 2 bedrooms.

Now, this is not just any beach, but one of the top rated beaches in these United States... #4 out of 10 to be exact.

It's so great it could be called Great-on Beach State Park.

But I digress.

No WIFI, No TV, lots of food (well...as much as you bring), sand, warm CLEAR water to wade in, and memories.

What awaits you is board games, mornings on a screened in porch writing your little heart out, and pine scented breezes, not to mention lizards in the road, bike trails galore, and smelly little fish shops...basically heaven on earth.

But wait, there's more! :

Because this place not only touts the beach, but it also touts the coastal woodlands.

I saw 3 deer and a snake on one bike ride, there's even a fire pit area (because you never know when the weather will turn chilly enough in the Florida summer to enjoy wienies and s'mores....my boys were BEGGING to go light a fire there, but ya know, we just never seemed to have time....).

And while I don't want you taking up MY week to go, I do want you to experience the same restful respite that we did so head on over to:

https://www.reserveamerica.com/camping/grayton-beach-state-park/r/facilityDetails.do?contractCode=FL&parkId=281033

and book yourself a week!

warning:  If you let me know when you're going we might show up for an afternoon visit!

Like a brother? Uh-Oh

Have you ever wondered WHY you were born into your family?

Do you ever look around at a family reunion and pray that you were adopted?  "Please Lord, don't let me come from them!"

Are we placed in a family?  Is it on purpose that our brothers are our brothers and our sisters, our sisters?  

It stands to reason that a God, who developed and formed you on purpose, who took time creating you, with all of your quirks, habits, and preferences, would drop you in the best possible family to develop and hone those personality traits and individual gifts.

At least, that's His intention.

Proverbs 17:17 says that a "friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity."  I always thought that this was speaking of friends who loved us, despite ourselves, unlike our siblings, who were there to fight with.

But today it dawned on me (at 34 I can be kinda slow).  A sibling isn't there to be ADVERSE with!  On the contrary!  A sibling is the one who should stick by you through the tough times!  A friend will love you, but a brother will never leave, or rather CAN never leave.

Well, a brother should never leave you, that's the plan.

I have 4 little boys.  They are like a tornado at times, revolving around Josh and me.  They feed off each other, whipping around the house, going from room to room, leaving a disaster in their wake.

But they do it (mostly) together.

One of my greatest desires for my boys is that they would be best friends as adults.

As they grow, I want them to keep their brothers involved in their lives.

I pray that they will always enjoy being around one another, that they would continue to confide in each other, that they will get along as well as they do now.

I hope they maintain the closeness they are developing now, that they would learn conflict resolution skills that will benefit them long into adulthood.

I want them to learn how to fight effectively, protect fiercely, and love loyally.  And I want them to learn it from each other.

This would be our greatest success, that these 4 fun boys would become 4 great men, a whirlwind force, constantly spurring each other on in their successes and comforting one another in their failures.

  

His greatest work is YOU.

Was it only a few weeks ago that I was in Breckenridge, CO, surrounded by majestic mountains?  May as well have been a year ago, for now I am on the other side of my world, taking in the sight of an endless sea.

I look out now, rather than up, and am witness to a beautiful blue expanse.

There I felt the green of the world, here I feel the blue.

Both priceless priveledges, enough to leave me breathless.

I am brought to thoughts of the Creator.  Creation reflects HIS majesty, HIS endless presence, they reflect HIM.

In our world, the Creator is often forgotten, and the creation glorified.

I forget.  I see a glorious sunset, complete with magenta sky and golden clouds, and just witness.  I don't say, "Wow, Lord, you must be some kind of gorgeous to be able to come up with a sky like that."

Creations are a dingy reflection of their creator.  We make what we know, what we have seen.  We make what we are made of.

And if our God can make the mountains stretching high, He must be big.

If He can make the oceans so wide, He must be vast.

If He can make the sky so complex in its beauty, clouds constantly changing shape and the atmosphere it's colors:  gray, blue, pink, then he must be able to fit in every hidden crevice of our hearts.

He is Giant, this God of ours, He made all we see, whether it be directly or through the wisdom He gave to man, and His greatest work, the crowning glory of His efforts is YOU.

He knows you, how you tick, what you desire, and even more hopeful, He knows how to satisfy those things that burn within your heart.

Today, let's let Him in.

Verses that fill my mind today:  Romans 1:21,25 ; Ps 139:14 ; Ps 37:4

DEATH.

The other day I was thinking about dying.  More specifically, I was thinking of that moment when we will all slip from this life and into the unknown.

Even more specifically, I was thinking of that split second release, that last breathe, that falling from our bodies into vast eternity.  What will it be like to let go of all that is tangible in this world, and jump into the everlasting?

I was thinking it will be scary.

My grandma died a little over 1 year ago.  She had been battling that evil enemy, cancer, for many years.

She was tired of fighting, had a glimpse of what lay ahead, and she decided to cease chemo.

After she died, the hospice nurse commented on how she looked.  She said, "Most people fight it until the end and have a look of struggle on their face.  She looked relaxed and at peace."

wow.

I'm just not sure that I would look peaceful, I would be one of the ones who fight it until the end, face tense, struggling against the unknown, trying to hold onto every breathe.  She was ready.

Maybe she saw a pool of love, of loved ones, and decided to just JUMP IN!

This morning I read Isaiah 9:2.  The New King James Version...Isaiah was talking about Jesus coming into the world and he said, "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined."

Ahhh, this image is beautiful to me.  Souls, lost to death, as we all will be, wandering around in the darkness of impending doom, have a beacon of light, hope, and life.

One of the most beautiful pictures of Jesus was painted for me by my pastor, Pastor George.  He was talking about the time when Jesus went to Lazarus' tomb.  (John 11)

Remember that story?

Lazarus had been, quite literally, rotting in the grave.  He had been swallowed by death, physically and spiritually and then Jesus calls him out of the tomb, "Lazarus, come forth!"

But what Pastor George talked about was HOW Jesus faced it, HOW he commanded Lazarus to come forth.  He said that, in better translations, Jesus is described as a warrior, come to battle his greatest enemy, death.

John 11:38 says Jesus "groaned in himself."  Many of us would think, "Aww, Jesus sighed because he was sad."

But Jesus wasn't a passive man who would groan out of despair.  If you really read the New Testament you can see that Jesus came as an aggressor against an enemy.

So, my Pastor said it wasn't a groan like we think of it.  Other translations describe it as a snort.  But not just any kind of snort, no, this one was like one from a Stallion that is facing down an enemy.

A snort of derision, of repulsion, of disgust.

It was a declaration of, "I'm sick of you, Death, and all the fear you wield around these people I love, and I'm gonna show everyone who's boss RIGHT NOW!!"

And then he does!  He  SHOUTS,  "LAZARUS, COME FORTH!!!!!!!!"

And here comes Zombie man, wrapped up from the burial procedures, stinky, but alive and ready to face the day!

Today we must remember that Jesus didn't just come to Earth to make peace, or people happy, or show them how to get along.  That really wasn't his goal at all.  His laser like focus was to defeat an oppressive enemy.

And he did.

Let's follow him into eternity, with a peaceful countenance.

If you don't know Jesus, you can, "Lord Jesus, You are everything, I am not.  Please be my Savior, forgive me, help me.  Show me Your ways that lead to life, true life, everlasting life."

A house full of intention.

One morning, in the not so distant past, Josh and I were sitting, having coffee, when we saw a white flash go by in our hallway.

It was our oldest son, Noah, age 8, dressed in a short sleeve white oxford shirt, white sweatpants, and black running shoes.

Why would our son be dressed all in white?  A boy dressed in white is just inviting disaster.

Josh called him out,  "What are you wearing?  You look like a tobacco farmer from Cuba!"

Noah, understandably, was embarassed by this attention.

He didn't respond so gregarious Ben came to his rescue and explained.   Ben just loves to explain and explain and explain.

"Well, Dad, we were actually going to make you food from our restaurant today."

"Ahhhh!" I exclaimed, "So, Noah, you're the waiter!"

Noah looked even more embarrassed.

"Actually, (Ben loves that word) I was going to be the waiter."

Revelation dawned on me, "Oh, Noah's the chef!"

Yes.  All was clear.  Minutes later a menu was brought out...curiously enough by the chef...and we were presented our dinning options, complete with prices, for the day.

Those seem to be pretty good prices.  Gatorade's a little high, considering the cost of the entree, but all in all, a pretty cheap meal!  

Amazingly enough, we never did order, pay, or eat any of the menu options.  I think the fun was in the planning.  When it came to the follow through, the excitement had worn off.

They sure are cute though.

Oh say, can you see?

FREEDOM.  What does it mean?  Is it worth our very lives?  The lives of those serving in the Armed Forces?

What about the lives that were given over 200 years ago?  Did they think the very freedom they were fighting for was worth their futures?

"yes" is my whispered, reverent answer.

They believed in freedom.  They recognized freedom as the answer.


Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

I hear that Francis Scott Key wrote those lyrics while imprisoned in a ships belly, probably thinking that his life was nearing it's end.

They don't sound like the words of a man who believed his fight in vain.

Freedom is the answer for poverty, homelessness, social issues, religious oppression, for all our needs as a nation. Those early freedom fighters recognized the Creator and the freedom He desired for us, "It was for freedom that He set us free." Gal 5:1

Those men saw their Savior, the one who died for their freedom, and they followed his very example.

I love this nation, it IS the best one on the planet.

America represents freedom, opportunity still lies here, waiting, waiting, waiting for us to rise up and take it.

Businesses are waiting to be founded, careers launched, technology developed, books written, it is all ours for the taking, as long as freedom prevails.

We can become all we are intended to be in America, if we only utilize the freedom that has been so preciously purchased for us.

Legacy

See this place?  Soon I will be there, sitting in a beach chair, with 8 kids under 8, 10 teenagers, 14 adults, and 1 pre-teen.

It will be fabulous and I can't wait.

I anticipate:

Sand castles
Boogie boarding
Tanning
Reading
Lots of food
Sequence (a game)
Tee-shirts
Outdoor showers
Strong coffee
Porch sunrise
Sandy shorts
and
Reminiscing about Grandma, Aunt Eileen, and Jon Jon

How blessed am I to witness a legacy?

I am a partaker in it, an observer of it, and so thankful to be honored to be in a family where:  family is everything under God.