Wow. It has been awhile since I have had a chance to record these thoughts of mine that I almost didn't remember my login and password for this page. Now that we are getting a new routine established in this crazy life of ours I finally feel like I have a few minutes to update this (though I really don't have the time, if I don't take it I will never get back to the blog).
We finally got to help my sister get married off. It was the most fun day. The perma-smiles on her and her new husbands faces were contagious and it was so much fun to be a part of the celebration that perfectly represented their personalities. I was however running on energy provided by the Holy Spirit because in reality, I was down right exhausted. All went as it was suppose to and that made them happy.
Jeramie became deployed 36 hours before the wedding so immediate re-adjustment of our plans was needed. We spent about an hour disagreeing on what the best plan B was before God finally had enough and intervened. Jeramie and the dog ended up driving the motorhome to Chicago and the kids and I stayed behind until after the wedding. I took a day to recover and then we drove 2/3's of the way cross country to meet him. It was amazing and there were many small moments of divine protection along the way. Things like hotel suite upgrades for the economy price to a tire that had to be filled with the Holy Spirit himself because under no other circumstances could it hold any air. Driving cross country, a mom and her three kids, seems like a big deal. Many people make it out to be a big deal. But it wasn't a big deal. It could've been a big deal but it wasn't a big deal because it was blessed by God.
Illinois has been a cool place to hang. After 2000 miles of less than exciting scenery we were excited to end up in Northern Illinois where there is grass and trees that cover the biggest roller-coaster like hills. The humidity has taken some getting use to. There are days I wonder why I even try to take a shower but quickly remember that this place is TOO small for anything odiferous and although I don't smell me doesn't mean someone else can't smell me. We visited a cool little historic town called Galena. We got to see the historical museum of President U.S. Grants home where he resided in between the war and his term in office. This is the kind of history I can learn, tangible. I retained nothing in school of US history. It wasn't real. This learning is hands on, you can touch it and envision what played out. We all remembered something different, but President Grant's military service and his silk green chair that he took everywhere with him resonated most with Andon. I love that. The green chair. Andon will forever remember that President Grant had a favorite green chair. You cannot teach that in a book in some stuffy classroom. There was a day where Jeramie had a light day scheduled so we tagged along. We were headed to some cool park in Freeport that the KOA owner directed us to. We had to get the inspections done first. This was a day of enlightenment. My exposure to the hood or projects has been limited to what Hollywood protrays for us. I have never gotten why people who live there choose to live there. I have always written it off as it is what they know and people are scared of what they don't know. Today I know different. In Oregon our state services provide housing funds. You are issued a check for rent and as long as the landlord meets state housing requirements, you can live pretty much where you want. The projects are government owned apartments. You get assigned an apartment and they own the building. If you are dependent on the government you don't get choices. You get what they give you. Many of you may already know that, I did not. Another inspection brought us to a terribly run down neighborhood with houses so delapitated it is a wonder how they didn't collapse under the flooding in the first place. The primary ethnicity in this section is african-american. Cops out on many corners trying to keep a peace with people who have nothing better to do than get into trouble. It took a bit of a detour to get back to the "safe" side of town because we kept avoiding streets with cop cars on them. Not a safe place for a young white family after dark. I was more shocked to see that there was an obvious "bad" side of town in a city that has a population of only 26,000. My ignorance is being exposed.
After a long weekend up north, we were relocated to central east Illinois, about an hour south of Chicago. Down here it is flat. Like a gigantic Willamette Valley that doesn't end. The flat land being so close to the great lakes mixes up the perfect recipe for some intense thunder and lightening rainstorms. Jeramie was driving in it in the dark. We could see flashes of lightening that made me think of the de-memorization pen on "Men in Black". Jeramie said the bolts are amazing. Multiple fingers all attached across the entire panoramic darkness. Veins of lightening all feeding off of each other from one side of the sky to the other. The kids and I were "home" by ourselves when we lived through our first mid-western rainstorm. It was loud only to be amplified more so by the shelter of the motorhome. It poured walls of water. It was alarming and at times scary. It was magnificent! Andon was the most upset. That storm spoke to him. We were singing "Jesus Loves Me" when he asked if he could have Jesus in his heart. I prayed for him with him and then he prayed himself. I asked him why he wanted Jesus in his heart right then that very moment "because Jesus is my protector, he makes me feel safe". I have since been brought to my knees, humbled that a 6 year old can get that. We talked about how scary the storm was and if God could make a storm so scary that we couldn't even imagine how scary Hell is. If the only reason we are on this journey was to experience this storm so that it will forever be written on my sons heart then it is worth every sacrifice, although, I will say, we are having a pretty good time!
Hebrews 10:16
"This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds"
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