2011 Gal Corral

The best way I know how to desribe Soaring Wings Ranch is that they create an environment where Psalm 40:2 can become a reality for kids in need:   "He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure."

I wrote more about it over at the Lulu site, but for me, that verse seems to sum up what God is doing for each child that has the opportunity to live at the Ranch.

God calls us each to care for the orphans.  Since the need is so great, this can take place in a miriad of ways, from adoption to foster care to giving financially.  The Ranch is just one way...but perhaps it is the way that God would love to have your involvement. 

You don't have to live in-city or in-state to be a Ranch Hand.  If God pricks your heart, we would love to have you on board!  Dues are $60 a year, and the money goes towards the house parents and kids, seeking to bless them in tangible ways.  Your level of involvement can simply be paying dues if that is all you have time for.

We had a great 2nd annual Gal Corral...getting the word out about the Ranch and how God is transforming lives there!

Favorite Things

Hello tasties!  You deceive me into thinking I can eat all I want of you since you include the word vegetable on the package....but, oh you are so good.

Hello new best friend.  I have waited my whole life for you, the perfect face wash.  You get the job done, including eye makeup, without making my face dry.  You are less than $8 and you smell good too.  Please stay available on the shelf forevermore.  xoxo

Oh I do love a new good scent and you deliver!  Your cute little trial size only cost me a buck.  But you and I both know you are worth more than that.  Here is to a smell-good summer.  I will need all the help I can get since my new home will be the baseball fields.

Now the title of this book may scare some, but not me.  Whenever I read it (which is basically like reading the word outloud) I feel like a child of God instead of like some wimpy insecure pitiful thing.

What are your favorite things right now?

The Ironic Injustice and Justice of the Cross

Goodness, that title sounds like I am about to throw out a three hundred page theological dissertation of the crucifixion.  I'll spare you! 

I kind of like this title too:  "The juxtaposition of injustice and justice at the cross."

But, now I sound nerdy and you probably have given up on me.  I just want to write these thoughts down as a way to look at Easter differently this year.  Fair?

Then hang with me for a sec.

Eric and I have watched back to back movies that had a common theme:  an innocent person was either put on death row or given a life sentence for a crime they did not commit.  I was shocked at how emotionally involved I got in wanting justice served.  I simply wanted the truth to come out so that everyone could go back to their families.

I am a first born daughter.  All of Kevin Leman's books on birth order would say that I have an extreme sense of justice.  I love right and I love wrong and I don't enjoy the hues of gray that tend to muddy the waters.  If a person is innocent, then by golly, get them out of their punishment!

But then I think of the cross.

Who would have thought that God's plan would look like this?

Jesus.  Son of God.  Perfection.  Kind One.  Truth.  Life.  Way. 

Was put on trial.  And not given a sentence of life in prison.  But immediate shameful death.  The only comparison we have in today's culture to the shame of the cross would be the shame of the gas chamber or electric chair. 

Yes, it was looked upon that badly.

But, Jesus didn't go to the cross with shame.  I noticed this for the first time last night.  Hebrews 12:2-3 says that he scorned the shame of the cross.  He despised the shame, looked down on the shame, and showed contempt for the shame.  Instead, he endured the cross because of the joy that was set before him.

Joy of being in His Father's presence again.  Joy of being able to make a way for God the Father to be restored in fellowship with mankind.  He endured the cross because he knew the coming joy was going to be that much more sweet.

So, was it unjust for an innocent man to be put on that symbol of shame, left there to suffocate? 

Yes.  Everything in me shouts yes!  Everything in me wishes they could have saved him and rescued him.

But, that wasn't the heart of God. 

God's heart was that justice would be fulfilled that day.  Sin was burdened onto His Son that day.  And He knew it was the only option.

God had been foreshadowing this day in stories for a long time.  Abraham and Isaac finding a ram caught in the thicket which literally became their horn of salvation.  The Passover in Egypt as those marked with the blood were passed over from the death of their firstborns.  It wasn't as if God hadn't prepared His people for this day.  For this way.

The culmination of justice had to occur now, with His spotless Lamb. 

Was it just for Jesus, a totally innocent man, to die?

Yes.  Everything in me shouts yes!  He is our only hope!  If He hadn't gone to the cross, we would be lost in the mire of wrath forever.  Only the blood of a perfect man can stop the endless cycle of sacrifice.  With Him, the work can be finished.  Forever!

The injustice of Christ going to the cross was for the higher purpose of God's justice being served.

Who would have thought that God's plan would look like this?

From man's point of view, the justice system failed Jesus that day.
From God's stance, justice was finally served.

Oh, the great cost of my sin.
Am I thankful for this strange plan?

For God the just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me

Cute Things They Say...

We've been outside playing Stomp Rocket.  A way cool cheapo game that seems to entertain for like ever.  Love that. 

I've been thinking about all the fun sayings all the boys have been spewing and thought I would jot them down because heavens knows that my memory has not been my BFF.

1.  While at the dinner table, Sam was acting up and Eli looked at me and said, "Man, when is he gonna get saved?"  I guess he thinks that when Sam becomes a new creation that he will be the eptiome of obedience.  {We can only hope, right?}

2.  While at Targe', Sam was in the dressing room with me while I was trying on shorts.  He carressed my white dimpled legs with gusto and said, "Mom, your legs are just beautiful!"  {Yep, I love him forever cause I think he has been the only person ever to compliment my legs..I am sure there is some reason for that...}

3.  While at Kohl's, we always pass by the metallic silver mannequins that are scantily dressed in bras and panties.  Sam never fails to stop and rub them in their entirety.  This action throws me into a mild panic and I always want to call the manager, whom I know personally and beg him to take the mannequins down.  God is showing me that Sam's love language is touch...he loves to be hugging me...and he has always been one to put EVERYTHING in his mouth.  We just have to figure out how to deal with this before he starts dating.

4.  Sam hates it when I wear my hair up in any fashion.  He wants it down and begs me to take my hair down if it is in a ponytail.  Who knew lil' guys had such hair tastes?

5.  One child, who will remain unnamed, wants to have a professional sports team someday.  He will name them the Pacific Spermwhales and call them the Pacific Sperms.  God love his innocence.  Wish I could protect it forever.

6.  Another child, who will remain unnamed believes that babies are born out a mother's foot.  I guess if you have twins, one can come out of each foot.  If it is triplets, you are outta luck. 

Here's to preserving my memory!

Dust to Dust

Raymond Sidney Pitts, better known as Dock, walked into the kitchen ready for his wife's homemade biscuits.  She had been good to him all these years, creating life all around.  That life came in the form of three strong sons, three homemade meals a day, and three part harmonies.  Ethel was her name and she had been his bride for as long as he could remember.  Well, 76 years as of yesterday if specifics mattered.  To him, they didn't.  He only measured things by integrity and loyalty.

He brushed by her side to get a glass out of the cabinet.  He caught the faintest hint of her shampoo and remembered the details of the previous evening.  They had turned into bed around eight.  While facing the wall like usual, he received an unusual scolding.  She asked him why he always faced the opposite direction from her while going to sleep. 

He turned towards her, wrapped his arms around her frail frame and held on for all he was worth.

That was last night.  God had been good to give them the gift of companionship for 76 years.  He wasn't sure he knew of any others who had been given such a gift.

He sat next to Ethel at the large oak breakfast table and devoured his breakfast.  He never would tire of her cooking.  He smiled inside when he thought about all the times that his granddaughters would try to get her to write down her recipes.  Apparently, a "pinch" of this and a "pinch" of that was not exactly what they had in mind.

Dock felt rather sentimental, probably due to the previous evening, and decided to reminisce a bit.  Three sons.  Seven grandchildren.  Eighteen great grandchildren.  Two great great grandchildren.  Apparently, a long marriage wasn't the only gift that God had given to him.

After kissing Ethel's head, he went into the mudroom to don his overalls.  They were dirty, but that was to be expected.  Silly younger generation thought they had to wash something after only wearing it once.  That is probably because they never had to wash anything by hand.  Funny how you can have a different perspective on things when you were born in 1908.

1908.  Wow.  That made him 93.  He knew his math was still good because he was as sharp as a tack.  He glanced in the mirror before going out the back door and laughed at his dyed hair.  Well, if you are going to have a sharp mind, you might as well look the part!

He headed to the garden.  Dock figured that God put Adam in the garden and told him to work it, so working the garden was good enough for him, too.  The weather was a perfect Arkansas May day.  Low 80's and a light breeze tempted him to believe that the offensive humidity of summer wasn't right around the corner.  But, after being a farmer his whole life, well, he just knew better.

Today, he would focus on planting more tomatoes.  He knew every member of his family ate them up like candy, so he wanted to be sure and have enough this year.  Perhaps tomorrow he would ensure that the okra got into the ground.  Gardening was a constant in his life.  He was born on this land and he always believed that being a good steward of it was the least that he could do.

Constants.  Yes, this land was a constant.  It was all he had ever known.

Jesus.  He was a constant.  Dock had seen it "all" so to speak over this past generation, but Jesus had never shown a variation or shifting shadow.  After living the Word for 93 years, he knew it was the only truth out there.

Music.  After redemption, Christ never failed to give him joy when singing gospel tunes.  He and Ethel had sang countless songs to the glory of Jesus.

Constants.  Death was a constant.  But that didn't scare him anymore.  True, he hated to leave his wife behind, but he would love to get a glorious glimpse of the One that had rescued him from the sin stained pit of darkness.

He needed to quit with all this sentimentality and get back to work. 

Grasping his side, he fell to the dirt, wondering when the last rain drop had made its appearance on the dusty surface.

And then that sweet familiar voice thundered in his being,  "Shake yourself from the dust and arise."

Apparently, he was going to receive more than just a glimpse.


{This is the story of my great grandfather's last day of life.  He was a man who passed down many traits to me including a love for land, a love for God, and a love for music.}

Have You Considered...

For me, writing is an addiction.  It is holy.  It is how I process who God is and how on earth by His grace I am supposed to reflect His glory.  Writing is healing.  Uplifting.  Joy Giving.

I woke up this morning at 5 am (no, that never happens) tempted to get up and write.  It is a craving, but the craving for another hour and a half of sleep won this round.  God gave me something to write about in the wee hours of the dawn, and I agreed, thankful that it would take a little research so that I wouldn't feel guilty about going back to sleep.

I love to write.  But I am not a good storyteller.  I have shied away from the art of story because, well, details and characters and plots are not my thing.  Researching Hebrew and Greek is a little more down my alley, even if I am in the early phases of learning.

So, when God gave me the idea to write about my Great Grandparents, from the perspective of my Great Grandfather, I was a little terrified.  I don't do story.  Not in the written word and definitely not in the spoken word.

I think God is keeping things simple for me.  He told me to tell my small story from the standpoint of my Great Grandfather's last day on earth.  This is a little tricky since I wasn't there nor was I inside the head of my Grandpa Pitts.

So, I think it will be a story embellished with who I knew him to be.  Part of me thinks all the details have to be perfect and the other part of me thinks that I will never sit down and write about him if I continue with that thinking.

On a different subject...

Last night, Eric asked Eli what story from the Bible he wanted to read.  The little guy chose Job.  I mean, really???  Eric asked him if he wanted the part of the story that Eric liked or if he wanted the beginning.  Eli chose the beginning.

Talk about a book you can wrestle over.

Sometimes hearing the Word out loud is much more powerful than reading it to yourself.  Last night proved the case.  When Eric said,  "Have you considered my servant..."  I had to pause.

Satan's authority falls under the governance of our Sovereign God.  We can rest in that.

But, does God know that we fear Him enough that He can freely offer us up for a period of testing?

Does that seem like a curse more than a blessing?  Once again, His ways are not our ways. 

I think we want to know if it was worth it.  For Job, who was stripped from loved ones, possessions and health, when the end of the testing came, was it worth it?

And I think that he might say that to know God in the right way...to know Him as Jehovah Tsidkenu (God our righteousness) is worth any loss that Satan throws our way. 

Do I fear God or fear the possible circumstances?  Am I one of whom God might say, "Have you considered my servant...?"

And that is scary to even type.  But, should it be?

The Unlearning of Self Conceit

For me, writing isn't something I can just sit down and do.  The house has to be quiet.  I can't have any background noise.  I need things simple so I can hear what the Holy Spirit might say. 

Background noise has made its way into the foreground.  Planning bake sales, photography sessions, Soaring Wings Ranch fundraisers, two bridal showers...taking boys to practices, going to my own singing practices, reading up on four separate bible studies...things have been very noisy. 

My ears hurt.

I just want to hear what Jesus might say.  There is one passage that He seems to keep bringing up.  I wanted to say "I get it already" when our pastor taught from it last Sunday.  It is Philippians 2:5-8

"Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself.  He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what.  Not at all.  When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human!  Having become human, he stayed human.  It was an incredibly humbling process.  He didn't claim special privileges.  Instead, He lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death--and the worst kind of death at that:  a Crucifixion."

Those words reflect the beauty and humility of my Savior.

And, after pondering them, I wonder if I reflect Him at all.

The self is such an interesting thing.  We have this innate desire for survival and blessing and well being.  There is no room for selflessness when the self is involved.  Perhaps that is why God calls us to die to our selves.

And so, when things are quiet enough for me to think and write, I wonder what this death should look like.  I know I am dead in Christ, for it is no longer me, but Him who lives in me.  But, I know that I fight the flesh of self on a daily basis.  I wonder if it truly died what Christ would look like in my frame.

I think it would be a beautiful thing.

And so I find myself in a place of self loathing which can be a good thing since it can lead to repentance.  But, what am I sorry for and how do I change?  I want to know how to live like Christ did...voluntarily emptying Himself.

How do I go about making myself nothing?

That is foreign to me, and yet, the word says that I am to have the same attitude as Christ.  I am to literally have the same mind on this issue.

I have so far to go.

CS Lewis says, "Now repentance is no fun at all.  It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie.  It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years.  It means killing part of yourself, undergoing a kind of death."

"Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."  John 12:24

It seems God's ways are full of irony.  To be the greatest, you have to be the least.  To live, you must die.  To love your life is to lose it.  To hate your life is to keep it.

Oh, God, give me the mind of Christ and invade my being by making me like Him.  The inner part of me that shouts self-preservation doesn't know how to go about being like the One who emptied Himself of everything that He had the right to be.

Give me grace to crucify the "I."

Can you help a girl out...

I am tossing around the idea of entering a photo into a zoo contest.  It would make my day if you would check out the lion photos here and tell me your fave!

The Day the Baby Chimp Stole the Show

The perfect day for the zoo!  Can I tell you how much I am loving this week "off?"  It has been so nice to have a calendar free for a change.  The boys and I headed to the zoo thinking that the crowds would stay away since it was going to be cloudy, but that didn't stop the masses.  The good thing was that since it was cool, the animals were willing to come out and play!  It was probably the best "animal" day we have seen yet!  I gotta tell you, I want to bring this little baby chimp home with me.  He absolutely stole the show today.  His momma is finally letting him go off and play a little by himself and he is eating his freedom up!!!

 Will someone tell me why orangutans love to cover themselves with something.  It is like they are 2 year olds that won't go anywhere without their security blankets.

 Well, you know I had to throw in a zebra bootie.  It was like the zebra knew I was coming...it was all posed for me, ready to model.

 Little Rock now has a penguin exhibit.  Big time, we are.

 What on earth happened to this eagle?  His eye is blind and he has lost a wing.  I don't know if something attacked him or if he has some strange disease...but it is a very sad sight!!!

 The spider monkeys look like they are in the throws of grief.  It makes me sad just to look at them.  Is this how they sleep?

 And...we're back to the baby chimp.  Because, really, he deserves a couple more pictures after the show he put on today.

 yep, he's a boy alright.

Thank you, God, for being so fun and creative!!!

Shoving Them Outside

I have come to full terms with the fact that my boys are ruined.  They hate the camera.  It doesn't help that their momma is obsessed with it.  So, I have set them free.  I don't make them go out for mini photoshoots very often.  Much to the depression of my little heart.  We simply gotta keep the peace around here.

BUT, today I snuck it up on them.  I ushered them outside before they had a chance to change clothes from church.  It didn't matter to me that they weren't perfectly coordinated...I just wanted pics of their cuteness!  I am in love with Eli's hat...and as you can see later, I think I wouldn't mind having my own Fedora. 

I love these boys of mine...but I still wonder if it is possible for ME to get a good pic of them...all smiling their natural smiles and looking at the camera.  sigh.

hope you are having a good spring break!
hugs,
becke'