Memorial Day

To those who gave their lives in the line of duty;

To those who fought for this country and have passed on;

To those who served us through the military;

Our hands and our hearts salute you.

Enjoy your freedoms this Memorial Day,

for they were bought with a precious price.

"All gave some. Some gave all"

Big Beach, Bigger God

Our vacation was a wonderful time of rest, relaxation, & refreshment sent from the Lord. The feeling of sand squeaking beneath our feet, the sound of waves lapping at the shore, the wind (and I do mean WIND) flowing over us like God's breath...all of it melted our stressors like falling shackles and made us feel alive. We had 2 days of decent weather to get out on the beach, and then 2 days of storms - and with not much else to do it made us slow down, rest, and just be still.
Tim enjoyed some much needed rest and reading some things other than seminary books! And as for me, I haven't been able to read so much since I was in nursing school! We had quite a host of company with us on the beach...King James, Beth Moore, John Piper and James McDonald, and the complimentary USA today. The bible study "Stepping Up" by Beth Moore kept me engrossed in the scriptures, while Dr. Piper (as always) challenged me in spiritually in-depth ways. When we arrived Monday and first stepped out on the beach, I was reminded of the way I feel each and every time I stand with my feet toward the ocean...small! For me, there is always a tendency to stand there and hear a voice tell me "See, all those problems and worries you thought were huge, they are seemingly insignificant and almost so tiny they are non-existent." Momentarily, that has offered my mind relief. But the next cry of my heart is "But they are real and significant to me!"

This time, through his book "Don't Waste Your Life", Dr. Piper helped me put it all in proper perspective. The hugeness of the ocean, the vastness of the Grand Canyon, the enormity of the universe...they are not meant to put us in our place of smallness, or to tell us that our little lives are or are not important, or to make us feel better about ourselves. In contrast, they are all about God, and his hugeness, his vastness, his enormity, his AWESOMENESS! They say nothing of ourselves (our stresses, our self-worth, our importance) but say volumes about the character, nature and being of God. Every grandiose thing on this planet exists not to make us feel small, but to help us realize how HUGE and POWERFUL and MIGHTY God is. No matter how big or small we feel our problems are or we feel we are, God is always saying "I'm bigger than that. I'm more majestic. I have power over all that." We forget that He is our creator; and that he made us not to be small and insignificant, but important. He made us and placed us in this world full of grandiosity so that we are continually surrounded by things that remind of us of the GRAND God that he is. So to me, on the beach, this time...God said "Yes, you have stresses, and worries, and things that are on your mind. They are important to you, and to me. But I am bigger!"
Dylan enjoyed the week at Grammy and Poppy's house, and fun was in no short supply. He has been talking about it ever since! At the week's end, we took a short trip to Tim's grandparent's house for a night's stay. It was good to see Granny and Pawpaw, and Dylan enjoyed 'exploring' their property and trying to catch their stray cats with a fish net!

Mr. Master Raburn

HE DID IT!

Tim Raburn, BSC, MTh

We are so proud of you. The Lord has blessed all your hard work. Congratulations, graduate!

Cookie monsters

This is the picture I took yesterday during our cookie-making session. Somebody had dry underpants all day at preschool yesterday (and it wasn't just me) so we had to celebrate the occasion! (Way to go, Dylan!!) On the way home I told Dylan that we would make some cookies in honor of his success. A few miles later down the road he told me "Mommy, we gonna make cookies. You essighted?" (translation: Are you excited?) At home we donned our aprons and pulled out the baking stones. Then, a little later, we savored our sweet rewards. With his mouth as full of oatmeal raisin as it could possibly be, I heard Dylan say "I want summore!" When Daddy arrived home, he walked into a wonderful smelling house and partook of our treats, too.

Happy Nurses Week - 2008

Happy Nurses Week to all my nurse friends out there! We are making a difference...one patient at a time. Keep up the strong work!

Praise the Lord -- the end is here!

We are praising God and rejoicing in the fact that SEMINARY IS OVER! Tim has faithfully fulfilled all the requirements to be a Master of Theology. His last paper was cancelled, and he was notified 2 days ago that his thesis was ACCEPTED! It has been a long road since January 2003 when Tim first started taking classes. He went in this with the intention to finish in 2-3 years...but then life happened. Life that included youth ministry and a new son. Needless to say, I am so very proud of you, honey. This verse comes to mind when I think of the achievement the Lord has blessed you with:

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. II Timothy 2:15

Please continue to pray with/for us as we seek God's will about the next step in our ministry lives. We have some of the answers we need regarding Chaplaincy, but not all of them. God will be faithful to answer; we are trusting Him.

Graduation is May 9th...and then look out, VACATION HERE WE COME! (Thank you, Uncle Sam:)