Delp Christmas Flashback Pics...

This Christmas it was hard to see my grandma who is in her 90s.  She always had her hair colored and done so nice and it was a bit of a shock to see her all white and slumped in a chair.  It was humbling  to watch her and even have her not really know who I was.  Michael and I were talking afterward and noting that her life brings glory to God even though she is in such a frail state and that He still has a purpose for her being here- He has not taken her home yet.  

The Invisible Woman...

Before Christmas, a sweet lady who has become a sweet friend and mentor sent me a book before she left to move back overseas.  The circumstances of her and I meeting this Fall were God ordained.  We have skyped once since she moved overseas and she has such sweet words of encouragement and wisdom in this season of motherhood.  On the same day I received this book, I got an article from a mentor friend about the same thing.  I think God is trying to teach me something lately. 

The book is the Invisible Woman- When Only God Sees by Nicole Johnson.  I have been struggling the last few months with motherhood.  I feel like I have been having a motherhood mid-life crisis.  I love my sweet little ones the Lord has given me and yet there is at times a longing for more- more serving more ways to be involved in ministry outside the home.  I know they are good desires but they have become cravings and have blinded me to my main role of motherhood at home.  Face it, we as mothers do not get pats on the back often.  Our children scarcely or may never rise and call us blessed and I know I was beginning to feel lost in the shuffle.  I know my role is to support my husband in ministry but often I felt like I was the one left at home while he went out and met with people and did real ministry.  Was I desiring the praise of men or applause?  I am still thinking through all those things.  This book challenged me that God does see what I am doing and my work in doing dishes AGAIN and wiping noses and changing diapers is to His glory! 

In the book she mentions how no one really knew who built the great cathedrals in Europe- many gave their whole life build something they would never see finished.  They lived with the applause of God and worked as unto Him because only He sees!!!  She says that our invisibility is love’s most beautiful gift.  My prayer is that I would see my job as a mother as building a cathedral in little hearts as unto the Lord!  She says, “Invisibility is not inflicted upon me, it is a gift to help me truly serve.”  “The deepest satisfaction of my heart is found in the faith to work and build and love for a greater purpose than my own.”  She says “invisiblity is love’s most beautiful costume, given only to its choicest servants when they are really serious about serving.”  She says, “invisibility is no longer a disease that is erasing my life.  It is actually the hard cure for the disease of self-centeredness.  It is the antidote to my stubborn pride.”  A challenge is for us all to think of ways to be anonymous and to truly love and serve our family and others in invisible ways- expecting nothing in return.  My prayer is that we as moms remember that God sees our labor of love- that our invisibility is a cure for our pride and a beautiful act of love given by Him.  May we see and encourage invisible women around us that they are great builders to the glory of God.

A passage that a friend shared with me on this subject- Heb. 6:10- “For God is not so unjust as to overlook your work and the love that you showed for His sake in serving the saints, as you still do.  And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”  Philippians 2:4-8- “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but to the interests of others.  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but made Himself NOTHING, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death- even death on the cross.”  And another I read today- Colossians 3:17- “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

House Help?

Every other Tuesday night- Lydia and I have been cleaning for Gigi in her apartment.

Lydia brings her vacuum that she got for Christmas and I bring my cleaning supplies and we clean for Gigi.  She is a hard worker too!

Crazy Matching Cousins...

Forts and Bed Tents...

Lunchtime Listenings...

This month our family is working on the hymn- Crown Him With Many Crowns and memorizing Proverbs 30:5- "Every word of God proves true- He is a shield for those who take refuge in Him."
During lunchtime, thanks to my sweet friend Laura's Christmas gift- we are listening to Little House in the Big Woods- one chapter at a time and thanks to the audio book- I don't have to read it- I can just eat lunch and listen too! :)  I am amazed listening to this book and the hard work of these pioneer women on the frontier!  And I think I have it rough not having a dishwasher! :)

And thanks to my friend Laura again- she has all these great recommendations- I have really been enjoying a group- I AM THEY... that she told me could be streamed for free with Amazon Prime!!

Love new books to read and things to listen to!!!

Yum...

The Big Hill...

School was out today- so we hit the Elementary School's hill close by.  It is a BIG hill.  We went fast.  Lydia and I flew off and I am a little sore because of it.  Jonathan flew off his sled and I was sure he had really  hurt himself but he walked away- Thank goodness!  Josiah just sat at the top of the hill and screamed.  He is not a big fan of cold and snow.

Snow Week...

 

Flashback

 Flashback of some pics from Christmas that I have been too busy to post yet.

 And a little game night for New Years Eve with Fishing Game and Richard Scarry game for the little ones.

Christmas Newsletter- so now it is January...

Christmas Rumblings from the Lyons Den

Christmas 2015, Hebrew Union, Cincinnati, Ohio

Looking Back… 

• In January, both Michael and Erin enjoyed a visit with some sweet friends from seminary who had been serving the Lord for the last few years overseas.
• In February, we welcomed Josiah Patrick to our den; supposed to be born in March, he couldn’t wait until then.
• In March, life felt a little chaotic and overwhelming, as we adjusted to Si-Si being in our family- and juggling the demands of three?
• In April, we enjoyed celebrating Easter and the Resurrection of the Lord- always a special time to ponder and look toward!
• In May, we enjoyed warm sun, flower planting, and a family trip to a retreat called the “Springs.”
• In June, we enjoyed the beach with Erin’s family- to Duck, Outer Banks we vacationed happily- though Lydie says she likes the sand but not the raging sea.
• In July, Jeremiah splashed the pool with more lessons at swim ministry; then Jeremiah and Daddy had some “boy time” camping (where they’re pretty sure they saw bears, lions, and maybe even a dinosaur).
• In August, we went to a Marriage Conference in Louisville and enjoyed picking blackberries at church and swimming in the church pool.
• In September, we celebrated our 10^th anniversary and enjoyed attending a parenting-counseling conference in Florence, Kentucky.
• In October, we took a little getaway with sidekick Josiah to the Great Smokies.  Josiah enjoyed assisting his parents hike a 10 mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail- actually he had it easy.
• In November, we enjoyed a visit from sweet TX friends, the Proctor family, and enjoyed refreshing fellowship while the little ones played happily.
• In December, Michael is grading, while we enjoy making cookies, gifts and other Christmas festivities: but most of all our family is gazing on Advent- the coming of the Messiah- our greatest treasure who came as a babe in humility!

Year’s Reading Recommendations…

Ah, reading, one of our greatest pleasures as a family…or addictions? Here is a selection of those that stand out the most this year:

From Michael: On the Priesthood, Chrysostom; The Compelling Community, Dever; Simply Jesus, Wright; Onward

Moore; The Quartet: Orchestrating the Second American Revolution, 1783-1789, Ellis; Unbroken, Hillenbrand; Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania, Larson; Ancient Israel’s History, Arnold & Hess; Hidden Riches, Hays; Life and Society in the Hittite World, Bryce

From Erin: True Beauty, Mahaney; Mom Enough, Desiring God; Side by Side, Ed Welch, Good News for Weary Women, Fitzpatrick; Glimpses of Grace, Furman  

From Jeremiah:  Charlotte’s Web & Stuart Little, White; Magic School Bus books; Jesus Storybook Bible & Audio, Lloyd-Jones; The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lewis

From Lydia:  Going On A Bear Hunt, Oxenbury; Go-Dog-Go & Are You My Mother?, Eastman; Favorite Parables From The Bible, Butterworth & Inkpen; Song of the Stars, Lloyd-Jones.

From Josiah:  Any book I can chew or my big brother and sister like to read!

On Our Minds This Past Year… 

This year, we recount all the ways the Lord has blessed: we have much to be thankful for over the year.  It begin with the last day of December 2014, when God provided us a van, after praying for one for 6 months!  Then we praise God for the birth of Josiah Patrick and his sweet spirit, who came on Feb 28.  Though things have been “adventurous” with 3 kids in our apartment, we are thankful Josiah has been a good sleeper and content with the flow of our family.  We are thankful too for celebrating 10 years in marriage: where has the time gone!?  We are thankful for parents that watched our kids so we could get away in the Smokies for three days and recharge ourselves with miles of hiking!  We are thankful how God has provided for us financially when Michael’s stipend for school ended and how God gave Michael a dissertation proposal idea very quickly.  We are grateful for the people of God placed in our lives who encourage and strengthen our walk with the Jesus.  In addition, God has faithfully brought women into Erin’s life that have been huge blessings this year to mentor and grow her.  We are thankful to see evidences of grace in our children’s lives as they grow to understand who God is more and more!  These are just a few blessings or ways we see God at work over this last year and look forward to what He will do and teach us in this new year!

News from the Lyons’ Den…

Dad & Mom:  Michael in his free time ^(ha!) loves to read, play, and wrestle with the kids. This year he led many family hikes in our neighborhood woods, Mt. Airy.  He presses on in balancing school, church, work and writing. He continues to learn what it means to simply be faithful to the calling God has placed upon him. 

Erin loves running (without the kids!), walking with the kids,

 

as well as play dates with friends.  She is learning more about homeschooling in anticipating Jeremiah’s arrival to Kindergarten next year.  She has enjoyed canning with sister-in-law Laura and reading good books when she can (Go-Dog-Go doesn’t count…).  God has been teaching her about depending on the Lord for each day and praying for a joyful heart in what seem like long days as a Mom with young children.  He has been kindly reminding her of the calling of motherhood and showing her the idols of her heart that can easily become demands.

Crazy Kids:  Jeremiah will soon be 5 in February: this hardly seems possible, we’re pretty sure we just brought him home from the hospital last year!  Jeremiah is all boy: He loves playing in the dirt, chasing his sister, building Legos or blocks, and playing trains and dinosaurs. But most of all, he loves to knock Daddy to the ground and wrestle the evening away. Jeremiah enjoys listening to Audio books during his quiet time and he loves learning during “homeschool preschool.”  He is on the cusp of reading if Mama can just get organized.  Lydia is almost 3 (in February).  She loves to soothe and rock her baby dolls, read books with her big brother, play house or build a nest for them to sleep in.  She also loves to sing and dance.  Right now, Lydia loves picking out her own clothes and likes to “look pretty” or tell Mommy she looks pretty.  Josiah-well, he just follows the others!  At 9 months old, he crawls and gets into everything, following big bro and sis everywhere.  We have already caught him playing in Lydia’s little potty a few times ^(nasty!).  He is a happy and sweet little man.

School/Jobs: This year Michael had his dissertation proposal accepted in April and now is officially in the research/writing stage of dissertation.  This process will most likely take 2-3 years depending on how much time he has available. Michael still works at the Hebrew Union library, teaches a graduate course in Hebrew, and has prepared students for Akkadian reading classes.  This fall he also traveled to a Methodist Seminary in Columbus and enjoyed teaching Bible classes to their pastors-in-training. When he was not writing or teaching, Michael continued to work part time at our church. Meanwhile, back on the farm, Erin keeps working at home (have you seen her flowerbeds or freshly mowed lawn!?).  J  She has been encouraged on long Mondays with a few Subway lunch treats dropped off by her husband!

Church: 

We continue to be encouraged by fellow believers at our church, ECC.  This year Michael has taught through all the prophetic books, while also encouraging areas of discipleship at the church.  Erin has enjoyed getting to know fellow moms at Thursday Morning Moms and loves to organize “park days” in the summer.  She had the privilege of co-leading a women’s Sunday School study on Titus & 2 Timothy this Fall and continues in our

home a book study with a great group of youth-girls from our church. We are richly blessed by the people of God at ECC.

 

Seeing and Savoring Christ in Christmas…

In Ezekiel, the prophet describes how the presence of the Lord will return to a new temple. The presence of God—God with us—is seen as the only hope that will turn the brokenness of the people around.  At Christmas time it is the presence of God with us, the culmination of the prophets’ hope that we celebrate: Immanuel, God with us—he is here.  The glory of the Lord himself became a man. Here is hope for our brokenness…and his name is Jesus. Join with us in this new year and pray that our family marvels at the glory of God in the Messiah above all else, for only in Him will our family thrive…and yours too.