Running With the Horses

Hey All,

Have you ever felt like God was unfair, unjust and just plain unkind? Just a couple of weeks ago I was told about a family that lost their husband and father to a sudden heart attack. This is also the same family that lost their teenage son October of 06' in a car accident. For the past week or so I have been talking to God about this particular situation. I say, "I know God that you are God and I am not, but this mommy was just catching her breath from the loss of her son and then you take away her husband as well. That really stinks!" David was mad at God about something the other day, so he called me from work to tell me about it. He said, "I told God exactly what I thought and then I stormed out of the Throne Room." As I have talked to God about this mommy I too have done a little storming out of the Throne Room. I have heard people say that you shouldn't question God, maybe it is my inquisitive nature, but sometimes I just have to ask WHY. When I ask I really don't expect an answer, but it makes me feel better to ask anyway. So yesterday as I was reading Proverbs He answered me. Proverbs 24:10 If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength! Thank goodness for a Study Bible because I needed a little more clarification on that. What was God saying? In my notes it lead me to Jeremiah 12:5. To understand verse five better it important to know the question that Jeremiah asks the LORD. Jeremiah says, "You are always righteous, O LORD, when I bring a case before you. Yet I would speak with you about your justice;Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the Faithless live at ease? Then he continues to question for the next 3 verses. God's answer actually goes on until the completion of 12, but verse five really spoke to me. The One and Only says, "If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?" Just last Tuesday I went to lunch with a group of ladies and my friend Sylvia was talking about the journey that God has taken her on in the past couple of years. She said, "Girls, when you submit to God, He will take you places that you would have never dreamed." My dear Reader, God doesn't want us to just compete with man, we are to run with horses. So how does all this answer my question? All of us have had to endure pain, hardship and disappointment that has left a scar somewhere on us. While we were weeping, God also wept, but He was also developing the character in us to take us to where we needed to be. When God finally gets us there, we can look back on that scar and we will remember the pain, but we will also see the purpose. I won't lie to you, the journey is a hard one. It will probably be one of the most difficult things you have ever done in your life, but if you hang on, you will be prepared to run with the horses.


Jennifer

Updated Pictures

Here is Amelia in her prize winning 80's outfit. For spirit week at Heritage they had decade day where all of the kids dressed like the 50's, 60's, 70's or 80's. Amelia won 2nd place in the whole school for her ensemble.

Here is Joshua preparing to go outside in the snow. Soon after this picture was taken I went and purchased black snow boots and a black snow suit. Just as a note David said, "Oh, don't take his picture." But since I take a majority of the pictures, and he looked so adorable in Amelia's old snow gear, I had to take it anyway.

Here is our sweet Abigail getting ready to put butter on her morning toast. Tonight, right after I got off the phone with David I went looking for Abba to see if she put her pajamas on. What I found was her in the bathroom with a pair of scissors and hair all over the floor. Tomorrow we will make an emergency visit to Jennifer my hair person.

I know that I have a dry sense of humor, but I think this is hilarious.

Caroline is 30

Hi All,

Today was my only sister's thirtieth birthday. Boy is she getting old. I am really not looking forward to turning 30. That will be a bummer. HaHaHa.

She is seven years younger than me. Now I know you a sitting over there doing the math. I am 37 years old and proud of it. Today we went and let our kids play at CAGE gymnastics and then she met some friends at the zoo. She is married to Lucas and has two little ones, Zoe and Caleb. Caleb is a bit like my Abba full of passion in everything that he does and both are very competitive. This year she will not only turn 30, but will also celebrate her 10 year wedding anniversary. What a Year. So here are some pictures of my sister.

In both of these pictures she is wearing party glasses. I know that she would want me to tell you that.

The Princess and the Horse

Amelia wrote a wonderful story call the Princess and the Horse. For the most part it is exatly as she wrote it. I changed some spelling, gramatical errors and punctuation but the story is all her. So now sit back and enjoy The Princess and the Horse.

The Princess and the Horse

by Amelia Lotspeich

Once upon a time there was a princess and the princess had a horse. The horse loved the princess and the princess love her horse. Their favorite thing to do was take a ride in the forest. A wolf was watching the princess ride on her horse. The wolf jumped out and the wolf bit the horse. The princess picked up a stick and she hit the wolf on his side and he ran away. She was so sad. The princess's daddy, the king was looking for her. The princess was still in the woods trying to make her horse feel better. That was her one and only horse. Now she will not ride her horse any more. Her father found her in the forest. The princess said, "Can you fix my horse?" Her father said, "I am sorry princess, I am afraid I can't fix her." But the king forgot he had a servant that could help animals. So he got back on his horse and went back to the castle and went to the room that the servant was in. And the father of the princess told the servant about the horse and what the wolf did to the horse. Then they went where the princess was crying. Then the servant took the horse to a vet in the village. First the vet put a cast on the horse. Then he said she would have to stay here for five weeks to rest. So the princess and the king and the servant went back to the castle. The princess was still not sure if her horse would feel better . The horse was better after those five weeks. The princess was picking flowers for her mother until she saw a wagon in the distance. She wondered,"What is that?" She waited long enough, then she saw a horse trailer. She thought, "Could that be my horse?" The wagon stopped. The king came out. The vet opened the door and the horse ran out to meet the princess. They were happy again. They put on a celebration to celebrate them being together again. The next morning the horse and the princess went to the field instead of riding in the forest. After riding in the field they ate supper. After supper the king read some verses from the Bible. After that they went to bed. The horse and the princess dreamed about there adventure. Then they had a good nights dream. The End.

Our Little Pung Pung

Hi All,

Since I have discovered how to post video I am going CRAZY. Now I am going to show you some video of our little Jonathan. His foster parents called him Pung Pung and when we brought him home we also called him that quite a bit, but now he is our Jonathan. This was taken a few weeks after we brought him home. As you will see, his language is really blooming. He is an amazing kid.

Lotspeich Olympics

Hi All,
I was looking through some video and came across some that I took during the summer Olympics. The kids were fascinated with the synchronized diving.
Since then we David and I have been working on our basement. We have added real walls and are having the carpet guy out tomorrow. I will have to take some up dated pictures and post them some time.
Here my kids and there version of synchronized diving. We should of had an awards ceremony.

The Little Twirler

Hi Again,
If you are reading this in response to my email you will want to read the post entitled "Summing up your life in six words"
While I had a second I wanted to post video of Abba-Dabba or as she is becoming known, The Abbanator. There are days where she will literally be walking from her room to the kitchen and leave a trail of tears and they are not hers. I love her passion, but it is also the thing that exhausts me the most. So without further adieu' our little twirler.

Summing up your life in six words

Hi All,
I was just about the shut er' down for the night when I thought I would visit the LPM blog. While there I read a funny insert that I thought I would duplicate. So here is the insert written by Melissa, Beth Moore's daughter.

Several months ago I came across a fascinating blog post. The author briefly discussed a trend (back-in-the-day) among writers/authors to sum up their lives, or in other words to succinctly write their memoir, using only six words. Here are a few examples he cited or I came across:
"For Sale: baby shoes, never worn”-Ernest Hemingway
“Bumpy road, kissed toad, recovery mode!”-anonymous blogger comment
“My flame flickers but never fails”-anonymous blogger comment

Now I didn’t come up with this idea, but I thought this would be so fun and insightful to do on our blog. I love learning more about our community and seeing firsthand how much creativity and diversity we have in our group.So here are a few of mine as of right this moment:
“Loving this life --Longing for next”
"Never forget--> the heart is resilient"
"Big Heart. Bigger Dreams. Biggest Mouth"

So, if you had to sum up your life in six words and six words only, how would you do it?I look forward to reading your comments. If you are unable to comment, you can write me at my lotdj715@att.net.

Laugh until you almost pass out,
Jennifer

Last One Standing

Hi All,

Today as I drove home from work, a 5 minute drive that I turned into a 15, I was in serious praise mode to the song "Last One Standing" by Mercy Me. Here are the lyrics to the first verse and the chorus.

Don’t you count me
Out cause I’ve fallen
Out cause I’ve fallen down
I have landed Down on my knees
Down on my knees again
This is where I’ll find the strength to carry on
This is where I’ll find the strength to stand

I’m gonna be the last one standing
Fighting for something much bigger than me
I’m gonna be the last one standing

What I love about this song is the visual that is provided. When I listen to this song I envision myself on a battle field exhausted and covered with sweat. The fallen lay at my feet and cover the ground around me. With my sword in hand, but too exhausted to raise it, I realize that I am the last one left. Then I ask myself, "Would I fight for the cause of Christ like this?"

Today as I thought about that song I was reminded of the story of Eleazar, one of David's three mighty men.2 Samuel 23: 9-10 Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered at Pas Dammim for the battle. Then the men of Israel retreated, but he stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day.
So now, you the reader may ask, "When do we fight like this? I am ready to fight, but what does it look like?" Here is your answer Ephesians 5:15-16 Be very careful, then, how you live-not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.In short, grow in your relationship with Christ so that you exhibit His character in everything you do.(James 4:8 Come near to God and He will come to near to you.) If you do this, I guarantee you you will experience the battle field, but do not be discouraged. John 16:33 I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

Battle on Mighty Warrior,
Jennifer