BIG - HUGE - GINOROMOUS - DAY!

I have 20 minutes before Extreme Makeover Home Edition starts, which is the start of the 'get the kids to bed' routine as well.... so I better get bloggin' as I have SO MUCH GOOD NEWS I just don't know where to begin.


Let's start with Kayla.

Kayla has HONOR ROLL! Thanks to the computer program the school uses, we can tell that Kayla will end up with all A's and B's on her report card. We were so confident in fact that we activated one of the phone we had here (Kayte's cell phone that she's not been able to use since losing the privilege last time she got a C and lost the right to own the cell phone). Kayla has been working her BUNS off to work to get a cell phone and it WORKED. She's had it all weekend and she is SO HAPPY. We are so happy for her!


Kayte we think will end up with all A's and B's and ONE C. Jonathan will probably have a one or two C's, Justin has straight C's across the board. Course, with their final exams, that could change some - we'll have to wait a few days for the teachers to post their grades online. Kayla's grades were pretty rock solid all 9 weeks. Everyone else has been flirting with C's off and on. (Well, not Justin, he's not been flirting, he's been living in the land of C's and D's all 9 weeks).




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Julie news.


Where to start with this????


Julie has been doing well for a couple weeks now.... I told you that last time. I've been waiting for that other shoe to fall. Well.... the other day, I sent her an email and just asked "hey, do you want to go to Church with us on Sunday?" Julie said that she really couldn't - she'd need gas money, it's so far from Riverview and such. I understand that totally.


My FIRST instinct was to IMMEDIATELY write her and tell her I'd give her gas money. But, I felt that I shouldn't do that. I felt that if it were to be a 'God thing' that I needed to let God do it His way... He would find a way to make it happen. Additionally, if Julie wanted to come badly enough, SHE would find a way to make it happen. So, I told her "I understand, no problem. Maybe some other time." And I left it at that.


No more than five minutes later she writes me back. She's thought about it some more and she would love to come to church with us on Sunday. WOW. Okay.... that's great! The plan was for her to come to our house early in the morning, drive over to church with us, she could go to the Vineyard with the kids (they buy coffee and bagels every Sunday while Chris and I warm up with the choir - we HAVE to be their favorite customer!). Then, after church (2 services as we sing for both) she'd come back to the house, have lunch, swim in the pool, relax in the hot tub, enjoy the kids all day, have dinner, then go home. Sounds good, eh?


She arrived at the house on time this morning. We went to church. I was VERY nervous. I had a trio song that I was singing Saturday and Sunday with the choir... me and two other girls on microphones and the choir backing us up. It was way cool, but I was VERY nervous. Add to that now that my sister was out there.... VERY nervous.


All morning I was thinking about Julie nearly dying SO MANY times. About how the priest had told her that she wasn't going to have that many more chances. I knew exactly what he meant by that. He didn't mean just stop trying to kill yourself. He meant... it's time to get your life straightened out... start living your life. Start living for a purpose. For His purpose. I kept praying the same prayer all morning... that God would speak to Julie's heart this morning. Not that she would be 'saved' or that she would cry or that she would have some kind of breakthrough.... just.... "Please, God, speak to her heart".


Pastor Matthew's sermon this morning COULDN'T have been more perfect. First of all, the series we are on right now is on Parables. Jesus used parables a lot in talking to the people because for simple minded people, it was easier for them to understand. Julie... well... is simple minded. Parables are PERFECT for her.


Then, the sermon itself was from Luke, about how God didn't want "perfect people" - he liked people just the way they were - imperfect. Don't think that you need to GET PERFECT before you decide to go to God.... God wants to meet you WHERE YOU ARE. Jesus extended the invitation to everyone... to come as they are. That meant everyone.

I swear at times it was like there was no one else in the room but Julie and Matthew. To me anyways, but I had no idea what Julie was feeling. At times Matthew was talking about how Jesus invited everyone regardless of their ailments: cripples - poor - blind - lame. At one point I was sure he was going to say "mentally ill" because I was so sure he was talking JUST to Julie. Of course he didn't... but I swear to you, it seemed that personal to me.

When Pastor Matthew was done with the sermon, he explained about being born again, about turning away from sin and being born again to the Lord. He asked for those who felt the calling to do so to please raise their hand.

And, up went Julie's hand.

And my tears just fell. And fell and fell. Chris held me and we were both so happy. The Lord works in mysterious ways, doesn't he?

Julie has asked to move her visits from Wednesday nights to Sundays so that she can go to Church with us every week. Of course I said yes!

Of course, I am aware that Sundays visits mean that I've gone from a 2-3 hour visit to an 11-12 hour visit. But, if all visits went like today -- who cares! Today was blissfully wonderful.

I'm not saying that Julie is cured. I know that she is not. I know she still has a terrible disease and it IS going to rear it's ugly head again, probably pretty darn soon. But, if she can keep drugs and overdoses OUT of her life and get God and Jesus INTO her life, she's got a pretty good chance of keeping things balanced out quite nicely.

I was going to end with a nice quote... but I really need to go get the kids to bed and don't have time to go search. Here is a photo of the girls from Homecoming on Friday. Are they not just the CUTEST girls EVER???