This holiday season is off to a great start!! Throughout the past week, we enjoyed game nights with wonderful friends (complete with an intense game of Taboo, awesome food, and fabulous fellowship), as well as spending priceless time with family for Thanksgiving.We are so truly blessed!
In light of thanks, we now have a new kitchen table that is big enough to share wonderful fellowship with others. It only took us a year to find the one we wanted, but it's here! Now, all we have to say is -- Don't be a stranger! Come on over!!
Paul has also worked hard to set up our Christmas lights for this year! The Griswold's have come to town! He is carrying on his family tradition. In fact, our house was even featured on the news on Thanksgiving night. How awesome is that?!
Check out our"winter Christmas wonderland" as our sweet little neighbors call it!!
Paul definitely took care of the outside while I had fun decorating the inside. I had so much fun putting up our two trees, setting out my Christmas village, decorating the mantle, and turning our home into a very cozy, warm, festive jewel during these chilly COLD holiday times.
Last but not least, here is a preview of some of our pictures from this season! We had so much fun taking our Christmas couple pictures in Mooresville, AL. It is the absolute cutest little town! It was like taking a step back in time. We had such a peaceful time taking pictures and enjoying this little historical charm of a town. My mother-in-law is always so sweet to snap these pics for us, and this photo-crazy girl sure loves having all of these pics! I believe these pictures really show the blessed love that God has so graciously allowed us to share!
(Don't worry. Our Christmas card features new pics, not shown here, as well as our Christmas poem for this year. I have to say, though, that my English mind was having major mental blocks this year, and I was slightly concerned that the poem was not going to happen. Nevertheless, nothing to fear, the poem is finished and will be on its way to you soon!) So, with that said:
As we once again remember our veterans on this day, it is hard for me to even put into words the thoughts that race through my mind on this day. So many of our loved ones have fought for the freedoms that we share in this great country, and sadly we only take a short twenty-four hours out of the year, as a country, to recognize these wonderful heroes. I will be the first to admit that I need to do a better job at thanking our service men and women. There are really no adequate words to express my appreciation, but to our veteran men and women - THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!!
I cannot fathom the mindset that it takes to put your life on the line for people who may or may not appreciate your efforts. With this in mind, Veteran's Day always humbly brings to mindone particular veteran who gave his life for a wretch like me. (Note: This post is meant in no way to minimize what our service men and women do for us; it is to humbly recognize the sacrifice that our service men and women have endured for our earthly freedom while also shedding light on a veteran that sacrificed for our eternal freedom.) Webster defines veteran as "someone who fought in a war." Let me tell you about my favorite veteran, one who fought a mighty war against the Enemy, was deployed for nearly 33 years, and whose Tour of Duty is not yet finished. This whole war began about 6,000 years ago. Man was created, and unfortunately we fell prey to sin, taking too much pleasure in the things of the world and disobeyed the commands of the mighty father. In essence, we went against the Almighty God.
However, God sent his army of one, not to wreak havoc on us or "condemn the world, but to save the world through him" (John 3:17). Now, whether Jesus voluntarily signed up or this mission or was drafted by the Almighty Father, I have no idea; nonetheless, "God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son" (John 3:16).
This was no ordinary mission. In fact, it was the most unique deployment in all of history. Forget the one-year, four-year, or more deployment - we are talking nearly 33 years.
He didn't come in with machine guns, a full brigade of armed men, and his combat boots strapped up; he came as a lamb, an innocent baby, but armed with the FULL ARMOUR OF GOD! - He stood firm with the "belt of truth," "breastplate of righteousness," "feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace," "shield of faith," "helmet of salvation," "and the sword of the Spirit," and PRAYER (Ephesians 6:14-18).
Just as our men and women of our armed forces do today, He fought for
his own, even though some of them would mock and ridicule his efforts,
just as many shamefully do today to our soldiers. "He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.He was despised, and we did not care.Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;it was our sorrows that weighed him down." (Isaiah 53:3-4).
Jesus fought on the front lines for us and became a Prisoner of War. In
fact, even one of his own followers (supporters) turned him into the
enemy as he faced the "crowd armed with swords and clubs..." (Mark
14:43) He was taken and arrested by the enemy. Furthermore, he was
tortured in his fight for US! They had Jesus flogged and prepared to
crucify him. "They struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him."
(Mark 15:19).
Jesus did not receive the PURPLE HEART medal, even though he was "wounded for our transgressions,bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him" (Isaiah 53:5). Instead, he received a purple robe and a twisted crown of thorns, just to have them mock him as the King of the Jews (Mark 15:17).
He did not receive the Service Cross Medal for risking his life in actual combat; instead, he carried his own cross and GAVE his life for us.
This soldier gave his life fighting for our freedom from sin - a fallen hero. "He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing to to the cross" (Colossians 2:14). By his death, he ensured our freedom from the enemy of sin. He paid the ultimate sacrifice for us.
Interestingly enough, Jesus even became MIA for a little bit when they found his burial tomb empty. Nevertheless, it wasn't long before the people realized his risen victory! It was impossible for death to hold him down! (Acts 2: 24).
However, you will not see his name on a Wall of Honor. You will not see his name on a Veteran's or Hero's program. In fact, the mention of his name is even hushed in our schools and workplaces. You definitely won't see his valiant efforts in most history books. However, we can take joy in the fact that his commemoration is COMING...and coming SOON! Jesus' tour of duty is not yet over. Yes, he may have returned from his deployment on earth, but he is now actively serving as our mediator to the Heavenly Father. In fact, he has one more big war to fight against Satan. (Spoiler alert: Jesus will win!!) Then, just as most heroes on a quest, he will once again return to his people and take us to be with him! :)
Until that time, though, I think it's time that become VETERANS ourselves. The war with Satan is constant. We need to be active soldiers against him during our life on this earth. Jesus has already covered the frontline - "The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” (Deuteronomy 31:8). Whose side are you fighting on? It's time for us to raise up and be in the ARMY OF THE LORD!! Check out this drama to Jason Upton's song Dying Star! It's time that we become in the Army of the Lord! I hope this encourages you as it did me. Go confidently in the Lord this week!
As we begin this month of thanks, we truly have so much to be thankful for. In this crazy, fun, chaotic series of events that we call life, we often forget to take the time to really count our blessings. As we talk with those around us, we seem much quicker to count our woes; however, I propose that if we simply took a few moments a day to reflect on all the joyful occasions, we might actually be surprised at what we realize. I, for one, know that I was quickly humbled at all my blessings as I sat down and began pondering what to put in this blog post. I am always amazed at how all those seemingly "small things" throughout our days really do add up to some pretty amazing memories. I challenge you, as you are reading this, to take just a few moments to make a small list of just the good, happy times over the past week. If you are like me, I bet that list doesn't stay small for very long. With each passing item, our joy begins to grow. As our joy grows, so does our thankfulness (or so it seems to me). And....if you are like me, by the time you finish that list, you will be able to say with confidence:
While the coffee cup may not seem big enough for some days, I can still joyfully say MY CUP OVERFLOWS!
As I write this (at 9 pm on a Monday night), I have just returned home from a night of basketball games with my cheerleaders. As tired as I am right now, I cannot help but be amazed at how hard they have worked this year. Here is a link to the video of them practicing their dance (and, yes, I have their permission to show this): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjGG290iF8E
Aren't they just precious?! They get even better each day, and I am just as proud as I can be. I am so thankful that God blessed me with the opportunity to teach another year at, what I am convinced, is the best school around. I may get tired and worn out, but I absolutely love my job, my students, and my co-workers. I know that not everyone can say that, so I truly try to cherish it (some days I do this better than others lol). I even got my first official yearbook picture made as a teacher!!
Last year, I just had to take a pic on a random day, and, of course, it just happened to be the day that I had my hair in a ponytail. Yay for a bald looking teacher, lol. Nonetheless, God has blessed me with another year at Central and another wonderful year on this earth, as I reached the big 24 this year! Okay, so maybe it's not that big, but still.... In fact, I made the mistake of saying "back in my day" in class the other day, and one of my students replied: "When was that, Mrs. Lanza, last year? You are so not old." haha I have to say that my birthday was wonderful and probably one of the best yet.
I finished out year 23 in my penguin PJ's and a very unhealthy dinner of baked mac-n-cheese. Then, I got to celebrate with my honey, family, and in-laws. Paul made sure it was an awesome day, complete with a night out to eat at Rolo's (my favorite), a strawberry cake with real strawberries and cool whip icing (there is nothing like it!), presents, and a dozen red roses. Isn't he just awesome?! I also had a meeting I had to be at that day for work, and it finished a little early, which allowed me to go home early on my birthday! Awesome, right?! I would love to say that I made good use of that extra time, but this old woman definitely went home and took a much needed nap. Needless to say, it was a pretty incredible birthday. My students also knew that I was going to be out on my birthday, so they sang to me the day before during lunch. They are just so sweet. One even brought me a cupcake the next day.
Speaking of birthday wishes, I also received a nice little birthday message from my grad school (even if it was an automated message). It was still nice to receive.
In regards to graduate school, I am now officially registered for my next class. I will begin taking my third graduate class in January, Human Growth and Development.
I am going to have to take some pointers from the hubs on how to balance work, school, and life, but I know that with God's help I can do it. It also doesn't hurt to have a husband who helps out A LOT. In case you can't tell, I am so very grateful for him and all that he does! We have so much fun together, and we even get to take time out for each other and friends. This past weekend, we celebrated our extra hour with the time change by going out on a fancy date night: dirt cheap, Steak 'n Shake, and a dollar movie. haha It doesn't take much to please us. By the way, Monsters University is a really cute movie.
We even made time for friends and had a wonderful time a couple weekends ago with our Bible class. We had a fun time roasting
weenies, toasting marshmallows, hanging around a bonfire, going on a ridiculously
chilly hayride, sipping hot chocolate, and more---oh how I love the warmth of
friendship on a cold night!
All of this fall fun is just so exciting. We even dressed up on halloween at school. I, of course, went as Pebbles, and I was joined by some of my co-workers (Alice in Wonderland, Where's Waldo?, and the Wicked Witch). We even had Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus, but I don't have a picture of that one.
We even had Ponyboy show up to school that day from The Outsiders book.
and.....Of course, Paul's decorations was a big hit with the kiddos on Halloween night. Weather and all, we still ended up with about 150 trick-or-treaters, complete with screams as the jumping spider lunged at them as they rang the doorbell. Nevertheless, I cannot say that I am sad to see all those decorations go. Now, the REAL FUN begins. The Christmas lights are slowly making their way up, and I could not be more excited! This is the most exciting time of the year to me! I just love it. Of course, the lights will not be turned on until Christmas, but Clark Griswold is already busy setting everything up.
This is just a glimpse into the Lanza happenings, but what joy we have! As always, we are BUSY, BUT BEYOND BLESSED!
Back to my earlier sentiment about my cup overflowing, I can testify to the goodness of God's promises. Luke 6:38 : "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken
together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the
measure you use, it will be measured to you." You truly cannot out-give God. Take a moment to simply say thanks to our Father today. :)
