Laus Deo - He's Bigger

Driving home from class tonight I thought I would listen to a sermon I've seen quoted and referenced almost daily on FB and Twitter since Pastor Bill gave it one week and one day ago (entitled Laus Deo). Shoot, I had even referenced it!

I loved that in the moments (actually 30+ min drive from Laurel, MD to my little corner of Baltimore City) I had heading back home, in the transition between my exterior life and my private world, I got to take in what so many have been thinking about all week.

"For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen." Romans 11:36

It makes sense now why my Dad (who heard the sermon when it was preached last Sunday)opened our Thanksgiving acknowledging that it has been a very difficult year for our family. Laus Deo (praise be to God) in all things. In the whirlwind of thoughts I had after smacking into the reality of God's sovereignty - I read a post from a blog I've recently come across. The two thoughts together, the Hope Chapel message and the recent blog post, joined my realizations that God is sovereign and that He is intimately involved in _all_ things in my life. Laus Deo - thank you Lord that all things are from you, through you, and to you.

Our House!

Jonathan and I are very happy in our new house and wanted to share some pictures... although, we'll just have to take pictures as various parts of the house get set up. There is still a lot to do! We've conquered the dimmer switch installation and quite nearly gave up on the new thermostat, but prevailed on that front as well! Lots of challenges and joys of home ownership.

Library


So, it may be a small space with a comfy chair and a couple of bookcases, but I have a library! This is one little corner of the house that is done (besides me hanging the curtains in the window... which, I'll post a picture of later).

Baltimore Trademark


Exposed brick is a fun feature of many of the houses in Baltimore -- and here is ours! Achilles is loving all the new places he can lay down and take a nap.

It fits!


The only thing I had to be sure of before we made an offer on the house was that a washer and dryer would fit in this closet. We measured every way we could think of to confirm that a stacked washer and dryer would manage to fit into that space. Even still, there were doubts among our friends that the washer and dryer sitting in our basement would fit through that door and be successfully installed. Well, here is the picture to prove it!

Special Feature


And, finally, here is the "special" feature of our basement bathroom. I'm not sure exactly what to say about this piece, but I bet you've never seen anything like it!

More pictures coming soon!

A New Day

I've been trying for a long time to find the words to start blogging again. There has just been so much this year that I haven't been able to share openly, but that so many of you know we've gone through. So, I wrote this in an email to my mom, and realized this would be the best way to start blogging again.

I stumbled across this song while I was on the computer this morning, and it's just so powerful. You'll have to read the words along with it so you can really capture the fullness of it. You can watch the song here, and I'll include the words below.

I was putting away pictures today, and came across ones of granddaddy over the last two years, and several of Bree. I even set the book Mary Hunter gave us on the book shelf today. Death is so awful. But, as you'll see from the song, the most powerful thing is the hope of the gospel:

"This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." 2 Tim 1:9-10

Jesus has won already, and even though we still experience the pain of death, it no longer has power over us. We wait for this hope to be fully experienced:

"When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory."" 1 Corin 15:54.

Thank you Lord, for defeating death and for giving us life.

Though the Earth Cried out for blood
Satisfied her hunger was
Her billows calmed on raging seas
for the souls on men she craved

Sun and moon from balcony
Turned their head in disbelief
Their precious Love would taste the sting
disfigured and disdained

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke with keys
Of Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

So three days in darkness slept
The Morning Sun of righteousness
But rose to shame the throes of death
And over turn his rule

Now daughters and the sons of men
Would pay not their dues again
The debt of blood they owed was rent
When the day rolled a new

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke holding keys
To Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke with keys
Of Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

He has cheated
Hell and seated
Us above the fall
In desperate places
He paid our wages

Ok, Ok.

So, I suppose I will take a break from not blogging!

I think it's just that so much has happened in the last... while :), much of which wasn't really blogable. But now, maybe in retrospect, I can fill in a few gaps on what life has been like since I last wrote.

MSRE

Jonathan has been hard at work at completing his Masters in Real Estate. A day in the life of Jonathan is going to his internship where he works (for free) as a financial analyst for a HUD (Housing and Urban Development) underwriter, and then attending1-2 classes three evenings a week. He's had a great attitude dealing with us sharing the car... which means, I drive the car and either drop him off at odd hours, or he walks across town (~3 miles). I try to follow when he tells me about class, but it ends up being a lot of NOI, ROI, EOQ, ULI, HUD... and it can be tricky to keep straight! Without embarrassing him too much, I'd like to say how proud I am of all he has learned and accomplished this year!

Dog Drama

Our dogs have had an interesting time in Baltimore as well. They both have experienced a lot! Bree was bit in the eye, had an allergic reaction, a cyst removed, teeth cleaned, and was hospitalized for two days for a cardiac condition called ARVC (Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy). Achilles has had a canine extracted, his palate repaired, his _ neutered, had an allergic reaction, and recently, a cut on the end of his ear bleeds every time he shakes his head. Good news is, Bree seems to be doing well on her heart medicine and Achilles ear doesn't slow him down... at all. We are really thankful that they have both done well, in spite of all of the drama!

Esther