Revisiting Roman's Road - 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th

The one time I was told to memorize these verses was when I was volunteering at a youth center. Apparently you were to know them if you "led someone to Christ". They are good verses to know I only wish I had put more of them to use as I am pretty sure my awkward college self was still infantile in my ability to share the gospel. So I will brush them up this week and next as part of my memorizing separate verses this year.

Romans 3:23  "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"

Romans 6:23 "for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord"

Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrated His love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us"

Romans 10:9-10 "For if you confess with your mouth 'Jesus is Lord', and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved."

Mother's Day Weekend

My mother was recently in Arizona visiting her mother. Nana wasn't feeling well and it had my mom bummed and stressed out. Meanwhile my husbands grandmother who lives in Ephrata is in a lot of pain from two broken vertebrae and must be aided almost 24hours a day to meet her needs. I planned for the family to see grandma Hepner mother's day weekend and Jeremy's mother was also able to meet us so it worked out perfectly. Then after I was talking with mom and she had such a difficult week I decided that since we were half-way across the state already we might as well go the rest of the way. The great thing about this was that the church I grew up in was having a mother/daughter tea. So the whole family left at 2:00 on Friday and we stopped to drop all the boys off in Ephrata,then Trinity and I arrived on mom's doorstep Friday night. On Saturday we got up and ran into town to do our Shanty fun. Mom bought me a really fun skirt as an early birthday present and I am so excited to wear it on a birthday date! Then we returned home and began to prepare for the tea. We had so much fun there and I really enjoyed seeing a few of my friends. It was fabulous mommy/daughter time for my mother and I. Trinity didn't even sit at my table with me! She was too obsessed with her cousin Morgyn to leave her side. It was soooo nice to not be wondering where the boys were. I texted Jeremy that he was giving me the perfect mothers day present; some time without a few of the kids. Ha! Does that make me a terrible mother? On Sunday everyone came over to mom's for a quick breakfast and then Trin and I were back in the car. Three hours to great-grandmas and three hours home after visiting with her for a while. It was a long weekend but I think both ladies felt loved and appreciated. I hope Trudy enjoyed the time with Jeremy as well even though she was pretty worn out with all the kids  and caring for grandma night and day while we were there. I am thankful for my mother who always goes above and beyond for her family. She is an amazing woman and quite the facilitator of fabulous things!

 my Uncle's wife Nancy Jane and my mom and sis.

 my friend Jessica and two of hers with morgyn and trin on the right hand side

 ah yes. there we are. My mom, my sister and her two girls, myself and trinity and my niece Morgyn whose mother Mishael was unable to attend,

 one of the tables. ..an "ocean" theme

 awww...Happy Mom's Day

 Coralee, my friend Melanie and Mel's daughters

our friend Tabitha, sister of Jessica

 Nat and her girls

my lovely mother reading us all a story. =)

7th

I had to think long and hard about the next verses I want to memorize. I am already needing to go back over the first six. I wrote them all down this morning and didn't get a single one completely correct. I then copied the version I learned them from beside it. I find this contrast effective in correcting my mistakes after a break.  I had to do the same thing with the book of James, writing as much as I could and filling in the rest then comparing it in my bible and fixing errors. It is coming much more easily now as I recite it. When I saw it was my "7th" verse I thought it should probably be about Jesus and his saving grace. The verses I chose come from 2 Timothy. Timothy had a believing mother who raised him in the scriptures. I can relate to that. He also faced doubts and trials as he began stepping out in leadership. I relate to that as well. These verses have been underlined in my old NIV study bible since I was a teenager. They have always comforted me and encouraged me when I felt confused or unsure. So I share them with you:

2 Timothy 3:14-15 (NIV)
But as for you, continue is what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

I bet not many of you are familiar with those verses but most of you will know the one that follow them.
vs. 16 - All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, training in righteousness, (note a comma not a period)

I bet also you may not have completed the though with
vs. 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

In this short section of scripture God picked the perfect context for me to connect to. A believer raised in the faith facing the onslaught of the worlds "wisdom" gently being reminded that what he has learned is trustworthy. That scripture is not for judgement but for grace and truth. Applying this and especially teaching it might involve hard things but through it we are equipped for God's good work.