Saturday, May 21, 2011

puzzle pieces

"O Lord, you are our Father. 
We are the clay, you are the potter, 
we are all the work of your hand." 
Isaiah 64:8


God is the puzzle maker.  he knows where each piece fits. we are the puzzle, trying to get all our pieces to fit in the right spot. we don't know what the complete picture looks like, so we try this piece here. and that piece there. it doesn't fit. so we keep trying. or we may even give up because we just can't seem to find the right one. we know that the puzzle will be complete when the very last piece is placed, but the journey to completion is long, hard, frustrating, unknown, complicated, overwhelming..yet rewarding!

this is my life right now looking into the remainder of this year. it's a huge puzzle. so many different pieces that i am trying to make them all fit. it gets even harder when you find out that you have an additional piece to somehow find a spot for.

i so wish that i could see everything as a whole instead of individual pieces. every piece is amazing and exciting, but how it all fits...well, i have no idea.

...do i miss this event for another? do i buy the ticket now? or do i keep waiting? do i visit one place and not another? do i go for a couple weeks or 2 months?  do i sell or trade? etc...

those are the constant questions i face daily. i wonder sometimes...do i actively pursue the heck out of it until something happens? or do i wait, be patient and know that all these pieecs will fit. it will just take time to figure out where they fall.

the one thing that gives me hope in the midst of it all is that the Lord knows my story from beginning to end. He wrote my story even before i was born. He is the creator, establisher, and maker. He knows the steps i take and makes them firm.
"If the Lord delights in a man's way, 
He makes his steps firm; 
though he stumble, he will not fall, 
for the Lord upholds him with His hand."
 Psalm 37:23

He puts EVERY piece of the puzzle together at the right time. there are moments where i want to see it all together right now, but i would completely miss the lessons.

i fail daily to understand and see from a greater perspective. i praise God for His timing. i praise Him for gently putting one piece of the puzzle together at a time. it's the journey & the process that matters. what a beautiful picture it will be when the puzzle of life is complete.

may the journey bring even greater Glory to the Lord!

Friday, May 13, 2011

volleyball tournaments & a wedding...

every day seems faster then the day before. i blink and 3 weeks have gone by. it felt like yesterday that i was in baltimore. so here's a very quick recap of the last 3 weeks in pictures.

April 14-17 : Dallas, Tx...Lonestar Qualifier


thought this was a cool picture of the dallas skyline

in between matches..


April 21-24 : Baltimore, Maryland...Northeast Qualifier

on the deck of an old boat in the inner harbor

the inner harbor...beautiful! 

Easter sunrise...HE LIVES!




April 29 : Royal Wedding

this day will be a sweet memory made with my precious mom. we woke up early friday to begin watching the Royal Wedding. while watching one celebratory event, we worked on a project for my brother and soon-to-be sister-in-law. our project was to unwrap the original ozark water bottle wrappers and replace them with the special designed labels. as you can see below, it has a picture of tully & tara and on the back it has their story. LOVE THIS IDEA! anyways, all the guests at the rehearsal dinner were given one as a remnant of the wedding weekend. mom and i we were in full fledge wedding mode to say the least....i look forward to mine one day. the time spent with my mom and sisters is simply priceless!



April 30-31 : Regional Qualifier in Dallas...last tournament until June
(no pictures)

May 4-6 : Decorating for brother's wedding

setting up pavilion for rehearsal dinner

center pieces we made..mom had a great vision for them! 

hanging the birdhouses..by tractor that is...it's how we roll in the country

the rehearsal dinner! perfect night!


May 7 : WEDDING DAY!!!


Bridal Luncheon...future sister-in-law with her mom

first baptist church of cleburne

tully & tara cutting the cake

my sister's amazing groom's cake!!

this week...

we all have been trying to get out of the "post-wedding lull". to be honest, i thought we all would be relieved to be done preparing for wedding events, but it has been the complete opposite feeling. the week leading up to the wedding, and then the day of the wedding itself, were probably the most memorable 2 days with my family. weddings are for celebrations...not only for the couple who are making their commitment to each other, but for everyone involved. the couple is making their covenant promise to the Lord. it is the celebration of God's gift to us, His people. and together as a family, we celebrate together the Lord working in our lives. its another glimpse of His abundant love He has for us.

we actually have one more reception to do...in order to accommodate for all of my parent's friends from throughout the years, they decided to have a 2nd reception. its at the ranch on may 22. again, we get to gather together to celebrate the Lord and His love. looking forward to more memories made!