BOY!!!

We're having a beautiful baby boy!! Just what mommy wanted!! =] Christian and I are getting even more excited the bigger I grow... we can't wait to see our little boy!! In the meantime, everything is going good in Tucson, we are very happy with our new church and I am so excited to get involved. The children's ministry is awesome! We've gone up to Mount Lemmon twice already, and it's just beautiful up there. Our home away from home! I love the monsoon season too!! I'm thinking about taking classes online for data entry so I can work from home when I'm not volunteering at church, but we'll see what God has in store for me. I just can't wait to see what He is going to bring into our lives along with the birth of our baby boy!!

Next.

Next step in life-- moving. We've been praying for a way for God to bless us... 'move us up' if you will.... and it looks like our prayers have been answered. Christian just recently got a promotion at his work which will be moving us to Tucson, AZ. New location, new home, new people... it's all exciting but it's also bringing up tension at the same time. It will be 2 hours away from my family, the farthest away from them I've ever lived. And especially with the baby coming in November, this move isn't the best idea to grammy and papa. Nevertheless, I have faith in God and I know that if He left this door open for us to walk through and made that promotion happen, He did it for a reason and He won't let us down. So even if some people close to my heart get hurt in the process of us moving even farther away, I still somehow know that we're doing the right thing for this particular time in our lives. I'm a grown woman now with a family of my own, and it's time that we base our decisions off of what's best for OUR family, and not everyone else and what they prefer. I mean come on, it's Tucson, not Philadelphia right???
..... Anyways, no matter how much strife we get for doing this, we both feel that this is what God wants for us, and we're not going to change our minds. Christian is so happy about his managerial promotion, and I'm happy for him too. We're moving there by the 28th of June, so we've visited Tucson a couple times so far, and for the most part we both really like what we see. We're looking at some really nice and big apartments in Northern Tucson, which is a beautiful area of town. Mount Lemon is gorgeous from there, and the city has SO MUCH to offer. It's different than any city I've ever been to, and we both like it. We're excited to bring our child into the world there. We're excited to do road trips to visit grammy and papa whenever we're able. We're excited to welcome friends and family anytime they want to visit as well. We're excited to meet new people and do new things there. We're excited to live a life of our own. It's all going to be okay. :)

Oh, and by the way, we're at 17 weeks now. :)))

Prayers.

We're at 14 weeks! Christian and I are excited about the baby, but the pregnancy has been a little rocky so far. I just can't wait to get over the sickness, and when I start to finally show, it will seem a little more real. In the meantime, we are doing a lot of praying so that we may know what God's will for us is in this point in our lives. A new occupation for Christian, the city we're supposed to live in.... waiting for God's will can be tedious sometimes, but it's always worth it in the end. Christian has been doing a lot of research and thinking about it, which comforts me a lot, so we'll basically just have to see what doors God shuts and which ones he opens. Other than that, there's not too much going on! Christian is doing great, and we've been doing great as a couple as well, and that's always a plus. =] So as long as we get some prayers from those who care about us for a healthy baby and some direction from God, we'll be just fine! Thanks!

Random.

Ashley: So tonight was....

Angel: DANCE PARTY!!!

Ashley: I'm so out of shape that I...

Angel: Cant stop hypervenalating... and i love...

Ashley: How dumb we are together. =)

Angel: Im dumb??? I think not!!! hahaha

Ashley: =( Sad day

Angel: and what are the boys doing????

Ashley: Fixing MY car mwah ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!! And coming down with the horrible crack kills disease!

Angel: we really are sober..even though you cant tell [ =

Ashley: Well.... ACTUALLY.... we ARE in fact high. On Jesus!!! hahahahah

THE END!

Evangelism.

A Christian co-worker of mine spoke a very intuitive analogy today. She was talking about her son, and how his girlfriend was not a good influence on him and the decisions he was making. She said "it's just like a person that is drowing-- when you swim out to save them, they grab on tight, panicking, flailing, making the situation worse. Then before you know it, you're drowing right along with them". I praised this woman for such a thought, and dwelled on it myself. So often, we as Christian swim out to save those in the secular world, but we often end up following the sins of the world instead of pulling them back out of the murky water. How can we avoid this? Well for one, of coarse, reading God's word directly. The Bible is like the blueprint of life, the life that we are ALL supposed to be living. And so long as we obey God's word and honor him with everything we do, we will stay straight on that path to righteousness and save others in the process. Secondly, I've noticed throughout my life that the harder I try to persuade other to Christ, the easier I fall. Not to say that verbally spreading Jesus's word isn't the best avenue to explore, not at all, but that sometimes a person is more suseptible to SEE God's word in action, rather than to hear someone preach it to them. That's why I try my hardest to resemble my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and have our awesome God speak through my actions, prompting people's heart to yearn for more. My mother used to tell me that no matter how hard I tried to help her get closer to God, the more it pushed her away, and it never really clicked until she started paying attention to my Christ-like behavior and finally realizing that she wanted what was making her daughter so happy-- the salvation of Christ. I know there are times that we as Christian just want to shout of God's grace from the rooftops above, but we also have to practice the virtue of patience, another one of God's gifts. By acting in a Christ-like manner throughout a span of years, who knows who has been watching you all this time. Who knows who thought to themselves "I want what he/she's got." Who knows how many blessings you might have been a part of. So that's what went through my mind when my co-worker said what she did. We as Christian's CAN'T drown with others in the secular world, but are called to be their safety raft, their life jacket. We need to be patient, and wait for God's word to speak THROUGH us, and be whole in Christ's image no matter where we go. After all, you never know who's watching.... ;-)

Door.

Have you ever felt a wind before

That moved you through an open door

Where once was lost but now is found

The hope that saves the evil-bound?

Where lies are canned and sin is crushed

Where innocent hearts are left untouched

Where dreams are birthed within your life

And all that's missing is pain and strife?

The wind, the door are oh so real,

And in your heart the joy reveals

A child of God that dwells in you,

A hope, a life, a love so new.

To follow, to lead, to forever endure

The cross, the Book, the promise so sure

A life to live, a life that was lost

A demon, a Messiah that never crossed

A choice to make, a decision to tell

An eternal life or forever in hell?

The choice for me was plain to see

There's no where else I'd rather be.