Time to Catch Up

Wow, it seems like forever since I've been writing regularly on my blog! I now have about 5 posts all in draft form, but just haven't completed them. It has been a wonderful summer filled with lots of activity, and just this week the weather finally started turning toward fall. Fall is one of my favorite seasons. Just today I enjoyed a Pumpkin Latte and we're looking forward to a lovely fall getaway next weekend in Door County, Wisconsin. I love the changing colors of the leaves, wearing warm sweaters, hiking in the woods on a crisp fall day, and picking pumpkins for fall carving just to mention a few.

I have to share a movie I watched within the last week that really touched my heart, The Encounter. It's a movie where five strangers take refuge in a diner where the proprietor seems oddly all-knowing. They truly have an encounter with Jesus. While some may certainly find the premise and even the acting cheesy, for some reason it didn't hit me that way at all. I'm glad my heart was in the right place to receive it. I heard about the movie on somebody's blog and I agree with this person who shared the following comment:

"I saw this movie just last night on Netflix. My parents recommended it and I must say, it is the best movie I have EVER seen. The way Jesus is presented seems to be parallel with what Scripture details Him to be like, and I was very, very impressed with the character development, setting, plot, and overall quality echoing throughout the whole film. Besides being a source of superb visual entertainment, The Encounter was extremely uplifting and really made me think about my own spiritual relationship with the Lord. I was also very surprised at how well it explained the difficult question of why God allows us to suffer if He loves us, and how suffering helps to lead us to Him. I mean normally that's a very touchy subject, but here it was explained succinctly. What an incredible feature! I'd recommend it to everyone!"

What an incredible movie!

I am also enjoying our year-long reading of the bible with our church using You Version, our study is called "Eat This Book". I have never "listened" to the bible before, and it has been an amazing way to have my quiet time. I just enjoy reading along with the narrator and then stopping every so often just to journal what the Lord is teaching me. Lately, the verse that says "the last shall be first and the first shall be last" (Matthew 20:16) has really convicted me. The way God is using that verse in my heart is amazing. I'm becoming very sensitive to seeing how many times I feel "wronged" or upset when something didn't go the way I wanted, planned or expected. This shows up in so many different places in my life and I'm glad the Lord has brought it to the forefront.

On another note, I have decided to homeschool J for at least the next few years. I am so blessed to have the support of several other moms that have been homeschooling for several years and have really encouraged me in taking this step. I found a curriculum through Hearts of Dakota called "Little Hearts for His Glory". It's a 2-year Kindergarten program and we'll be starting on Monday. It's good that we can ease our way into it, and J can't wait to get started. After doing "Tot School" and home preschool for the past couple years, I feel led to continue in this way. I am truly blessed to be at home with my son in this season of life, and can't think of a better way to invest my time than through this homeschool journey together.

Looking forward to posting again soon!

Thanks for visiting!