Christmas Musical - Best Quartet Ever!

This is the best Quartet I have heard in a long while...actually the best ever! If you need a few minutes of encouragement during this busy season, take a look at these handsome boys!

Live Nativity...An Awesome Opportunity

Tonight Jason, Jacob, and I went to Lake Lanier Islands to participate in the annual Live Nativity that our church hosts. It was such a fun time and a great way to connect with people both in our community and from other cities and states.
Jacob was very excited because this was the first year that he was able to be a part of the drama team. He was given the role of a shepherd, which he fulfilled in a very sweet way, as you can see in the pictures. As we talked about it, we thought that Jacob's part in it made the scene even more realistic,since in Bible times boys Jacob's age probably did go with their fathers into the fields to shepherd the sheep. We know that David was a young shepherd boy, so it seemed even more authentic to me. (Of course I am a proud mother, so I am bound to have this opinion!)
I served in the hospitality tent, giving out free hot chocolate and visiting with those who came in to get warm. It is always great fun to get together with others and fellowship & serve. We were steady, but not overwhelmed and we had alot of fun meeting all of the different types of people that came along. I think the highlight of the evening for me came when a group of about 25 young men from a local drug & alcohol treatment home came in and chatted with us for about 15-20 minutes. I was so encouraged to hear how God is changing them and freeing them from the vicious cycle of addiction. Many of them shared freely about their struggles and the troubled homes they grew up in. A few of them mentioned that their fathers were also in treatment for the same issues. Obviously not every one of them will stay drug & alcohol free, but there is hope that many of them will and it was a blessing to see them making these changes now while they still have the opportunity to live long lives for Christ.
Once again, we set out to be a blessing to others and walked away instead extremely blessed ourselves and thanking God for the great things He does in the hearts and lives of His people! We are looking forward to our next opportunity to reach the people around us!

Things to Treasure this Season

Christmas is nearly upon us! It does not seem that it should already be December, but the calendar does not lie - no matter how much I wish it would!
Every year as the cold begins to settle in, I find myself wishing I were in the South Pacific somewhere watching a beautiful sunrise rather than this dreary, rainy time of year here in Georgia! However, I'm NOT there, so I have made up my mind that I will make the best of this season regardless. It's not that I don't like Christmas or even cold weather, it's just that having 5 little boys cooped up in the house more than usual generally does not have great results! We are so conditioned to being outside a good part of each day that winter is always an adjustment for me and the boys.
Each year, I really do try to look for the good in each season and something to enjoy while it lasts. So, I am reminding myself today that there are special things to do during this time of year. I thought others might benefit from a friendly reminder as well:
*Candles burning and making the house smell delicious.
*More time to cuddle up and read a good book together as a family.
*We can sleep later and still get everything done because we are not being drawn outdoors as much.
*Cookies baking and the warmth of hot chocolate and rich coffee...yummy!
*Celebrations with family & friends.
*A great time to watch a good movie...we rarely watch t.v. in our house, but on some cold, dreary days an inspiring movie is great!
*Time for handicrafts and projects - again, not being outdoors as much gives us a little more time to do something we have been putting off.

I am sure there are many other things that families do in the winter to pass the time in a memorable way, and if you have other ideas, I would love to hear them. But for now, that is just a few of the things that I try to take advantage of and use to bring joy and blessing into our home during the cold winter months.

Our Visit to the Creation Museum

A dream has come true for the Nave family...and alot faster than we anticipated! In the Spring of this year, we were blessed as a church to have Dr. Ken Ham visit with us and speak on the topic of Creation. During that time he shared about the Creation Museum near Cincinatti, Ohio and we immediately talked about visiting it in the future. Well, the future is now and we are here!!! How exciting to visit the beautiful campus and fabulous museum!
As we entered in, we decided to visit the Planetarium first. We were very much in awe of the magnificence and wisdom of our Creator as our minds struggled to comprehend the vastness of the Heavens! We learned about the galaxies, stars, planets, suns, etc...There was so much that I did not even know and it truly is amazing! Indeed, "the heavens declare the glory of God!"
After this we viewed "The Men in White". This was a well done and humorous presentation with great special effects! It was especially good for our 13 year old son as he was able to get a glimpse into a traditional science class and listen to a Biblically knowledgeable student challenge his "professor".
A highlight to our day was the opportunity for our boys to meet Dr. Ham and have a family photo made with him. What an honor to be able to meet a true Christian hero of our time, challenging secular humanism with the truths of Scripture! He is a very kind and generous man and it was a blessing to spend a few moments with him.
Next we walked outdoors to visit the petting zoo where we petted donkeys, baby goats, saw a large potbellied pig, and for the first time a zorse and a zonkey (no I am not misspelling this...one was a donkey/zebra mix and the other a zebra/horse mix!) We also visited with a camel and some other barn animals! Of course the boys loved the animals and fresh air and the scenery was very pleasing to they eyes!
Later we toured the walk-through section...dinosaurs, Adam & Eve, Noah's Ark magnificently done, the effects of sin and disregard of the Bible clearly shown, suffering and sacrifice - all depicted with excellent quality! We were very impressed with all of it! It was wonderful!
As I sat in one of theaters I was overwhelmed with the joy of being able to bring my sons to a place that completely reinforces what the Bible teaches and does so with excellence! There are so many other museums that we have visited that attack our Biblical worldview at every turn, but today we were able to see realistically what the Bible teaches and our hearts and minds were stirred with God's truths!

Autumn has a nostalgic effect on me. Every year when the weather starts to cool, the leaves begin to change, and the evenings become shorter, I can't help but be reminded of years gone past. I am not talking about my years, but long years ago when people lived a much simpler life (in some ways) and autumn was truly a time of harvest for them.
I have always been an old-fashioned kind of girl, but even more so as the season of Fall goes on. I think about the lives I have read in stories, such as Anne of Green Gables or The Little House series...lives where people worked hard, knew an awful lot (despite lacking educations), and loved one another enough to pitch in and help when times were tough. Perfection I do not see in those stories, but a true sense of community and a devotion to Someone and something much bigger than themselves!
Being the dreamer I am, I can't help but imagine what it would be like to live a life such as the men and women in pioneer days. Of course, in my mind it is much more romantic than reality, but still I think there are some things that they understood that we have overlooked:

*The importance of family - People in days gone by desired to have large families and children really were considered a blessing and a gift from God. Obviously the hands were needed to work the farms, but it was more than just that! Fathers and Mothers understood the sacrifices and responsibilities in raising their children, yet they went about it with an attitude of honor rather than duty or obligation. Children, in turn, perceived their parent's love and commitment and genuinely respected them and regarded them as their dearest friends.

*Knowledge of the things around them - Knowledge "in those days" wasn't optional! It was a necessity. One needed to know how to make butter or milk, how to build their homes, how to care for their flocks & families...life depended upon their knowledge and resourcefulness. I think about the things that I encounter on a day-to-day basis and how much I don't know about the very essentials! How to cook from scratch (completely!), how to sew or quilt, the care of land animals or the tending of gardens or flowerbeds...all of these things I have very limited knowledge on - and I can't help but feel that I have been cheated! With each new "convenience item" man invented, a little more of the knowledge of the things around us was stripped away.

*Dependance on God and each other - Almost all classic literature that portrays life in pioneer times naturally relates the foundation of the families and communities...God and His Holy Word! Over and over you will read of families who prayed together, fasted together, read God's Word on a daily basis together and not at all begrudgingly! Entire communities met together to hear the Word preached, to pray for God's forgiveness and provision, and spur one another on to good works and belief in God's goodness and mercy! There was this general knowledge of God's Word and His ways that knit communities together. Today there is all this talk about the importance of diversity, but somehow, in the name of diversity, concrete belief in anything wanes. It is rare to meet someone who fully believes one particular way...it reminds me of the toothpaste aisle - there are so many choices, that when you leave the store you're never fully sure that you bought the best one! People's belief systems seem to me to be like this, a gnawing uncertainty in their hearts, regardless of the professions of their mouths. How refreshing it would be to meet men and women who truly believed and followed the words of Christ!


*Gratitude and Simple Joys - Oh, how often I catch myself thinking in the negative! And to think, I have the "words of life" (Bible), live in the USA, am married to a wonderful husband, have 5 very healthy children, am able to stay at home with them each day, lack no provisions, and on and on and on...!
What an ungreatful woman I can be! Just the other day as I was reading Anne of Green Gables to the boys, we listened as she repeatedly expresses her joy in the natural things around her (the blooming trees & shrubs, flowers, sunshine, etc...)And I think back to Christmastime in The Little House series - the children would receive a few pieces of candy along with some homemade gifts and were elated for days! Comparing that to my family today gives me this remorseful feeling about some of the ways we have adopted without giving them any thought. In just a few months we will celebrate Christmas ourselves, yet I am dreading the shallowness of it in today's society. What I would give to be able to start all over again and guide my children into the ways of thankfulness and simple joys!

Of course, I can't go on and pretend that there was all of this goodness without the bad. I know full well that life in those times was hard! I can't imagine the grief of losing children or a husband or wife, as many did to illness. The effort it would have taken just to get the meals on the table or the laundy done is beyond me! However, I still believe that there was substance to these people that is lacking today...there was belief! There was character and hope and the hard work to go along with it all! Somehow in these twenty first-century days of Fall I pray that the Nave household may experience a bit of it!

The Children's Hour

"Between the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day's occupations,
That is known as the Children's Hour."

...so begins one of my favorite poems. It is the sweet tale of three little children quietly sneaking up on their father to pounce upon him and smother him with their hugs & kisses...he lovingly relates this daily "ambush" of which he becomes the victor and ends in these sweet words,

"I have you fast in my fortress,
And will not let you depart,
But put you down into the dungeon
In the round-tower of my heart.

And there I will keep you forever,
Yes, forever and a day,
Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,
And moulder in dust away!"

What a loving way to demonstrate the affection we have for our children and the importance of the "pause in the days occupation".
As I reflect this afternoon of the busyness of the past two weeks in our home, I am saddened that too aften the demands and activities of this world take me away from the real goals that God has laid upon my heart for my family!
Isn't that the way that it always is? It is so much easier to be carried away with the non-essentials of this life and lose focus of those things that truly matter.
I often times stay up way later than my family and as I sit in the quiet, dark house I think over the words we shared in the day and the things we did and many, many times I say to myself, "did that really matter?" I look at their sweet sleeping faces and any hardness of heart that I may have had melts away and suddenly life comes into perspective. Usually I vow to treasure them more and I pray for them & I commit that tomorrow a difference will be made more for eternity...but then comes the morning and soon after the distractions and irritations of our daily life and once again I make the mistakes I so despise and another day becomes the past.
Oh, how I long for the day when I will be able to walk away from those things that hinder me and turn instead wholeheartedly to what God has called me to at this time: to love Him, to love & cherish my husband and sons and to bring them up in His ways with joy and guidance! That is my prayer during these foundational years when my children's hearts are tender and turned towards me. Lord, may we seize the opportunities and let the other things wait!

A Glimpse of Maturity

This morning I awoke to the sound of my son, Caleb, chatting away on the telephone! He never ceases to amaze me - he wakes up earlier & earlier every week! Well, thankfully he was only chatting with Jason...it turns out he had decided to call his Daddy to talk since no one else was up yet!
Anyways, each person slowly began to stir and it never takes long before these little people want to eat! I told them I had to go & brush my teeth, but I would make breakfast after that. When I returned, Jacob & Caleb were already in the middle of a real man's breakfast...sausage, eggs, & the rest! Jacob had the eggs scrambled and seasoned and Caleb had the sausage frying in the pan!
Together, with a few questions to me, they successfully served us a delicious breakfast! As I sat at the table eating with them, it occurred to me that my children really are getting some of what I am trying so hard to teach them! They really WILL grow up and have the skills that they will need.
So often as day in & day out I pour my life into them (& all of my little speeches) I feel like I am getting nowhere and many times I have questioned: "Why am I doing all of this?"
But on occasion I am fortunate enough to get a glimpse into the men that they will one day be. It is like a veil is lifted, just for a moment, and I am able to see them in a different light. I am able to see that progress in being made and loving, compassionate men are being molded...slowly, but surely!
I am thankful to God that He gives me the grace to teach & love my children every day and that He takes my meager offering of service for Him and multiplies and uses it to grow & nurture my children. A wise lady once told me that mothering was very much like stringing beads...one at a time...but that at the end of the day you realized the string was untied at the bottom...all of your beads were gone and you would have to start again. I can relate so well to that analogy - each day over and over I do the same things and many days I feel that I have accomplished nothing! However, deep in my heart I know that truth be told I am raising up young men who will one day surprise me and become what I have always hoped...just as they surprised me this morning!