Grad and Puppy Update!

Well, Hannah graduated two weeks ago. It was a wonderful ceremony, and a friend of ours, Sarah C., put together a beautiful video of the evening. Thank you again, Sarah! Hope you enjoy. Congrats, Hannah! So excited for you. :)

In the meantime, the puppies continue to grow. They are so affectionate to people, and they bark and whine when they want attention. Kijah is starting to wean them, and they continue to eat wet puppy food. We've put all 10 of them on the lawn and they chase you around and grab your clothing at all possible opportunities. These are their four week pictures. They are five weeks, now, but I haven't had a chance to take many more, yet. I think four puppies will have homes, so far (counting my sister's), but I'm still awaiting people's final decisions. The first six puppies are the girls, and the last four are the boys!

There you have it! Ten more puppy pictures. Many people have asked me why I used different color ribbons on them all. The first time I did it was because I was weighing them and wanted to remember which puppies I had already weighed. However, I kept them on, and then kept the colors the same (as they grew) because it helped me out with learning their personalities. 

In Christ,

Kaleigh

Waiting on the Lord

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, 

and he shall strengthen thine heart: 

wait, I say, on the Lord.

Psalm 27:14

I wrote a blog post two years ago about waiting on the Lord, and though life brings constant changes, there is always something for which we are waiting. Last Sunday evening our pastor spoke on this verse and topic. Because it was an encouragement to me, I will do my best to summarize the notes I took and hopefully provide some reassurance to all who read this. 

Why might we need to wait? Why do we need to be strong? Why would we need to be encouraged? 

This verse, Psalm 27:14, was one written by David, and even just reading through his writings a couple times will give you a glimpse into his life. He was one who rode through the mountains and valleys at a rapid pace, and even many of his psalms tells us of the times when he rejoiced and the times when he wept. Many times we will face adversaries who are stronger than we are. David often spoke of the wicked who sought his life, who encamped around his living quarters, and who continually tried to cause him fall to sin. David wasn't perfect. He sinned many times just like we do, yet he learned to lean on his Rock and in His Savior's loving forgiveness. Just like David experienced, we too will be forsaken at times by those who we should have been able to count on. There will be those who will be openly hostile to us, and there will be bitter disappointments. But in the face of difficulties, when we're called to wait on the Lord, we must have a foundation that trusts and lifts up our soul to God, rather that doing what we can do with our own skill and resources. 

Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause. Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day. (Psalm 25:1-5)

This is the prayer of one who prays for the ability to trust in the Lord. David didn't sit around doing nothing, but he prayed that the wicked would not gain victory over him, that his desires would be fulfilled, and that he would be shown God's ways. Our strength should be resting in a God who gave us our salvation and who provided the security for our eternal life. 

We also need to wait on the Lord as those needing to be taught by Him.  In Psalm 25:5, David realizes the power of God to secure his salvation, and so He asks the Lord to lead him in truth and teach him. We see Christ as our salvation, which should lead to our waiting on Him. He is the One who is the source of ultimate truth. Allow Him, expect Him to teach you while you are waiting. Sometimes He teaches us by making us wait. Abraham and Sarah failed to wait on the Lord's promises, initiating the birth of a child (Ishmael) which led to generational strife that exists until today. If we fail to wait, then we will suffer the consequences and have to deal with the results.

However, our waiting on the Lord must be evident in our life, as well. We cannot say that we are waiting, but live something else. Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee. (Psalm 25:21) While we are waiting, we need to walk uprightly before the Lord and before others.

Sometimes while we are waiting, the Lord will make us aware of our own sin. And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee. Deliver me from all my transgressions: make me not the reproach of the foolish. (Psalm 39:7-8) We shouldn't come to Him without recognizing our own sinfulness: this keeps us humble before Him. But we will find forgiveness at His feet.

Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice: let thing ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. If thou, Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. (Psalm 130:1-4)

The Lord will expose our own sin as He teaches us, but don't let your sinfulness drag you down. Sometimes it's your adversary who tempts you, creating doubts in your mind. When he says "Look how sinful you are. Do you think God would ever accept or forgive you?" don't deny your sinful nature, but claim the promise that God has given to those who are of a broken and contrite heart. He promises to hear and to forgive. We will fall; that is certain. The righteous man falls seven times. We are so finite, yet the infinite God has promised to remove our sins as far as east is from the west. For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again. (Proverbs 24:17) We have to get up and keep going. Dwelling on our sin will not produce fruitfulness, only discouragement and despair. The Lord will teach us, make us aware of our sin, but He also requires us to wait for Him, and He promises to renew our strength when we struggle. 

Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, faintest not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)

God will call you to action, even during the waiting process. He will call you to hope. Jeremiah, known as the "Weeping Prophet" saw the destruction of Jerusalem and the House of God--Solomon's Temple--with his own eyes. He was thrown into a well for preaching the gospel. The king read his writings and burned some of it. And when he comes to the end, He realizes that God does do what He says He will do--what Jeremiah had been warning the people about all along. The city and Temple are destroyed and God's people are taken captive with only a few remaining. But yet he says...

This I recall to mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good unto hem that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord. (Lamentations 3:21-26)

The Lord has promised to be with us if we follow His Word. The way to have courage and strength--the way to have hope--is to say that what you are called to do is what God has said. And what God calls you to do--maybe even just waiting--He will give you the grace and the strength to accomplish.

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. (Joshua 1:9)

He has commanded us. Don't do nothing while you wait, but obey His direction. Hope in Him. Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.(Psalm 27:14)

**********
You can listen to the original sermon HERE.

PS: Puppy update coming soon! :) 

Puppy Update and Friends!

So here is puppy update number three! This video was shot by my dad about a week ago, so the puppies have grown quite a bit since then. They are now eating solid food once a day, and they are fairly steady while walking around. They've begun to bark and whine, and Kijah is starting to enjoy time without them. ;)

My sister's graduation is this evening, so we are hosting friends at our house. So far we've spent lots of time together playing frisbee, or doing hair (some of us :P), and talking. We also attended our weekly online Bible study together, except some of us were able to sit next to each other! Here are a couple pictures for you to enjoy.

Kyla and Kaleigh

Jennifer and Hannah

Sarah and Elizabeth

There have been Pinterest photo shoots, video watching, speech writing, bookmark cutting, puppy holding, excitement and crashing around over other people arriving, and, of course, eating.

Congrats to Hannah Stroink on her graduation from high school tonight! A milestone that I well remember passing myself. Well done, Hannah!

Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget. 

Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another.

Romans 12:10

Week Two: Puppy Update!

Video credit: My dad (taken late last week)

Hello, my friends!

Kijah's puppies are now two weeks old. Many of them now have their eyes open or are showing signs of it. They are quite active, crawling around searching for Kijah. Three of them (all at different times) have even managed to climb out of the whelping box and onto the ground--no idea how that happened. They still nurse frequently, though not as often as a week ago. And they are sleeping through the night now waking only about 3-4 times a night, instead of every 30-60 minutes. There are six females and four males. Several of them have a faint white "star" on their forehead from Toby.

The puppies have had many visitors already, and Kijah is getting better at handling "intruders". She still does not like Bella (our other dog) around at all, but she doesn't mind human visitors as much. :) Some of the puppies have been sitting up (like what a dog does when you tell it to "sit") and some of them make the occasional bark, instead of the normal puppy cries. So over all, they are gaining weight and growing quickly. I just gave them their first deworming dose this morning, which they'll have again at 8 weeks, and perhaps in between, too.

Two weeks old! Photo credit: Sarah Stroink
These are not posted in birth order, as I didn't record that. Some puppies were nice and sat still, and others had a mind of their own and wiggled all around. Even puppies have different personalities. ;)

Puppy #1

 Puppy #2: This one is Sarah's favorite. ;) Isn't she cute? :D

She's the darkest female, and she has the brightest white star on her head from Toby.

 Puppy #3

Puppy #4

Puppy #5: This is the only one who has a straight ridge of hair that runs up her nose. 

Puppy #6

Puppy #7

Puppy #8 (and me): This one's my favorite of the litter. 

He's also one of the two biggest and darkest males. I think he'll turn out the color of Toby. 

No, I don't intend to keep him. ;) My dad calls him Tobias (after Toby). :)

Puppy #9: This is the squeaky little princess. 

She's the runt of the litter, but she's growing well. 

Puppy #10: This is the other big male. He's almost a white color.

Sarah calls him "Mr. Chunk". :)

Which is your favorite puppy? 

Blessings,

Kaleigh

Who Shall Not Fear Him?

Who shall not fear thee, O Lord,

and glorify thy name?

for thou only art holy:

for all nations shall come and worship before thee; 

for thy judgments are made manifest.

Revelation 15:4

As I finished reading through the Bible again in June, this verse stood out to me. I recognized it because it was included in a song I had recently sung in a chorale group. And truly, when 250+ voices are raised in song towards the Lord, it is only a small part of what I imagine heaven will be like when all the ransomed ones sing praise to the risen Lamb. 

But I also recalled the scene in the last book of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia. Aslan and those loyal to him have finally defeated the White Witch and her allies, and it is time for a new age to begin. Yet, there is one final act of separation between good and evil. As Aslan stands in the doorway, all the creatures of Narnia meet face to face with the King of Creation one last time. They all looked; they had no choice. And as they did so one of two things happened. Those who turned to Aslan's left were those who looked into his face and feared and hated the one standing in front of them. They fled from his presence into the darkness and were never seen again. But those who turn to his right were those who looked at him in fear, yes, but they also loved him, even though they were also frightened. These chosen few who feared but loved Aslan walked through the golden gates into his kingdom. 

Both kinds of animals feared the Lion, but there were two different kinds of fear. One was of utter terror and hatred, the other of reverence and awe. And it was to me a small reminder of the ending of this world. When the Lord returns and His feet rest on the Mount of Olives, who shall not fear thee, O Lord? We all will fear Him; we all should fear Him. The Creator of our life, the One who holds our very breath in His hands, the One whose righteous wrath would destroy every single person on the planet, the One who will divide the sheep from the goats on the Last Day. Yes, He is worthy of our fear. 

There will be a dividing of those faithful and true to the Lord and from those who served the Devil. The judgment is certain, and it will be just. Those who face Him with their own works and doings will find no mercy. Those who have given their loyalty to other masters will find no second chances at the foot on the Great Judgment Day. Those who have hated His commands and refused to submit their lives to the Creator of it all will be sent into everlasting misery. 

But those who have placed themselves under the blood of Christ have nothing to be ashamed of, for we have learned to love Him, too. We contrast His holiness with our filthiness and we stand in awe and love at the One who carried the weight of our sin to set us free. We love Him. We glorify Him. 

All the nations shall worship Him. Every single creature, race, ethnic group, gender, kind, religion, background, and nationality will bow down to Him as Creator. As Judge of His world. There will be those who bow out of sheer terror, and there will be those who cast themselves down at His feet out of humble gratefulness in their Savior. 

Which group will you belong to? You will fear Him; that is certain. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord?You will be judged; that is also certain. Thy judgments are made manifest. But will you be forced to bow or will you join the thousands of redeemed ones who will raise the cry of "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing!" 

*****

A very happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canadians! May God keep our land glorious and free. May our country return to the Lord. 

O Canada! Our home and native land!

True patriot love in all thy sons command.

With glowing hearts we see thee rise, 

The True North strong and free!

From far and wide, 

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

O Canada! Where pines and maples grow.

Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow.

How dear to us thy broad domain,

From East to Western sea.

Thou land of hope for all who toil!

Thou True North, strong and free!

O Canada! Beneath thy shining skies

May stalwart sons, and gentle maidens rise,

To keep thee steadfast through the years

From East to Western sea.

Our own beloved native land!

Our True North, strong and free!

Ruler Supreme, who hearest humble prayer,

Hold our Dominion in thy loving care;

Help us to find, O God, in thee

A lasting, rich reward,

As waiting for the better Day, 

We ever stand on guard.

God keep our land glorious and free!

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

*****

Blessings,

Kaleigh