merry & bright

Merry Christmas! I've said this before, but 2012 went by extremely quickly. It's hard to believe we'll be ringing in 2013 in just a few days, and I can't wait to see what the new year holds. I feel beyond blessed to have stayed so busy touring in 2012 with my wonderful, talented husband and our sweet Lorelei. Although I am so feeling ready to welcome our little boy into the world and into our family, I am savoring each moment we have to focus all our love and attention on our precious girl. She is a joy and a light every day! 

This year we have had much to celebrate, and it's such a blessing to be able to spend the holidays with family and those we love. This year, we are in Puerto Rico with my parents and brother for a few more days, and then we are headed to the icy midwest to celebrate with Jordan's family. Trading the beach for snow drifts actually has me a little bit excited as we haven't seen much snow this year! (Someone may need to remind me I said that in a week when I'm complaining about being frozen.)

I hope that this Christmas is a blessed one for each of you, and that the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ will permeate your heart and mind as we reflect on the goodness of God to send his only Son as a helpless babe for our salvation. The power of that message continues to amaze me, and I am humbled to have such a reason to celebrate. To be free from sin and shame due to the tremendous work of Jesus on the cross is a seemingly impossible gift that my soul rejoices to receive!

This year, I have found this lyric from "O Come All Ye Faithful" to be a particularly beautiful description of the arrival of Jesus. I hope the entrance of Jesus into our world will strike you now as never before, and draw us near to the throne of grace as we enter 2013.

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning
Jesus to Thee be all glory giv'n
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing
O Come let us adore Him
O Come let us adore Him
O Come let us adore Him
Christ the Lord

God and grief

I had a hard time sleeping last night in the wake of the events at Sandy Hook Elementary yesterday. Lying in my bed, with my sweet little girl sleeping soundly in her room and an acrobatic little boy causing a ruckus in my ever-growing belly, I couldn't help but feel a small amount of the grief that the parents, family, and friends of the victims must be feeling. While I truly can't fathom what they are going through, I know that in this life, my greatest treasure is the ones I love.

I tend to battle anxiety and a lack of peace, so as I prayed for the families and thanked God for my own sweet little ones, I also had to ask God for a reminder of His heavenly perspective. It's very easy for me to give in to feelings of anxiety and fear, and yet, I know that dwelling there is opposed to the abundant life God promises us in Jesus Christ in John 10:10. I believe that His heart is also broken for these events. For the gaping hole in those families their precious babies used to fill. For the many, many loved ones who lost child and adult yesterday. For the loss people around the world are feeling every day as they endure crisis and tragedy.

We are not overlooked in our need. We are not abandoned to the evil that surrounds us. We are, however, temporarily inhabiting a world in desperate need of the Jesus of the gospel. In my own heart, I felt God gently reminding me that just as He loves and cares for me, He loves and cares for others. My job is not to protect my children from every evil and harm (although I would die doing my very best) or to control every aspect of their life and formation. My job is to love and serve a perfect, all-knowing, gracious God to the very best of my ability each and every day. I am here for the glory of God and to spread the name of Jesus Christ, not to build myself a tidy kingdom here on earth.

As the goodness of the gospel of Jesus' salvation continues to permeate my heart, I am asking that God would continue to give me perspective that outweighs my own limited sight. Too often I judge and condemn others without viewing them as beloved children God has already called, or desires to call His own. This world will bring trouble, but it is not our home. I don't have answers, and I do not wish to trivialize in any way the suffering endured here and now. I can only look to Jesus to fill the void I feel when I am overcome by the weight of such evil. Now, the words of 2 Corinthians 4:16-17 are comforting to me; I hope that you also find comfort in the message of the gospel of Jesus.

¹⁶ Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

skateboards for all

Possibly the last thing I thought I'd find time to post about here is skateboards, but something amazing is going down in Nashville, y'all, and skateboards are at the heart of it. Check out this video for an introduction to Salemtown Board Co. and see what the fuss is all about!

I may not know much about skateboarding itself, but it doesn't take a discriminating eye to see the beauty in these hand-crafted boards. From the mission to the product itself, great things are happening through Salemtown Board Co. I'd highly encourage you to take a moment to check out this company, founded by some top-quality men I'm proud to live and serve alongside here in Nashville. You can find them elsewhere on the web below:

facebook.com/salemtownboardco

twitter.com/salemtownboard

halloween

It's hard to believe we're already in November! It seems like we start seeing Halloween decorations in August, but it came and went so quickly this year! I grew up carving pumpkins, planning costumes, and trick-or-treating my heart out (followed by a strict dump-and-sort by mom, and probably a little bit of sort-and-snatch by dad). My dear husband grew up celebrating Halloween by picking something out at the toy store, I think. And while I have a strong affinity for pumpkins and all things Fall, I have never been enamored by the celebration of all that is bloody, evil, undead, etc...

Our compromise has been to find ways to celebrate cultural traditions, without feeling like we're dedicating too much time and energy into the things we don't find gospel value in. This year we chose to spend Halloween with some close friends eating a fried turkey and collecting candy at a local trunk-or-treat. To be honest, I was a little skeptical of the trunk thing, hoping it wouldn't be lame in comparison to the usual neighborhood trek. We were surprised on our arrival to realize that we'd conveniently chosen a trunk-or-treat that was only one part of a huge fall festival, hosted by a local church, and it was a blast! We got the kids in and out in a reasonable amount of time (it was way too cold here in Nashville!) and people got really creative with the decor. Just when Lorelei was losing steam, we came upon a woman dressed as a sheep, and Lorelei excitedly yelled, "Sheep! Baa!" right in her face, haha! Reenergized, we happily made our way through the remaining cars. Every so often she would ask us, "Where my bag?" ensuring the candy was safely in our custody.

 Here are some photos of our little "shooting star" in her costume.

a very special announcement...

As I mentioned in my last post, I've had to take a small step back from blogging in recent weeks. A busy schedule is something I've gotten very used to, but on top of our constant travel and busy life, there's a little something else that's caused me to be a bit quieter around here. Those of you who have seen me in person lately know I've been keeping a not-so-small secret for the past few months...

We are so thrilled to be welcoming baby # 2, due in early March! It's been such a sweet time for us as a family to dream about our future with another precious little one, and I have loved being able to slowly tell friends and family the news as we've seen them in person. At 17 weeks, I just couldn't keep it to myself any longer—not that this growing belly will let me (and yes, there's just one in there)! In a few weeks we'll have an appointment to find out if miss Lorelei will be getting a brother or sister, and we're all beyond excited about what's to come.

As is normal, my first trimester was a very nauseous, very tired one, but I am praising God for good health so far for me and baby. I'm still feeling quite tired, but God has been providing for every need as we continue to travel and perform. Of course, we would appreciate your prayers for health and safety as we continue to travel throughout the pregnancy. Thank you to those of you who have already shared in our excitement, I'm looking forward to sharing the blessed moments ahead with all of you!