Saying goodbye is not an area in my life that is comfortable for me. This Sunday my family will be saying "goodbye" to our church family at The Gathering Place in San Bernardino. I have attended church at TGP since July 1995. I wouldn't have known what to do at that point in my life without Pastor Larry and Sue Lee. They helped my family (5 kids and me) through the loss of my first husband, Steve. God puts people in your life at just the right time. TGP became my family's home and the love of God was poured out on our lives. It was there that love grew and the Lord brought my husband, Pat and I together.
Pat had gone through divorce and I was a widow. Funny how the Lord works - he brought two hurting people together, first as friends and then as a couple. My life was never the same. Pat and I married and had our daughter, Rebekah in 1997. She has always been such a blessing to our lives. At The Gathering Place, Rebekah grew up and is now 16 years old. The fellowship that our family had for so many years has been very rich. People have come and gone. 18 years is a long time.
When we first started there, there were two kids that we took under wing. They may have watched our love grow a little two closely and perhaps it did rub off on them a bit. Eric and Qi had their first child, Isaiah, just 22 days after Rebekah was born. Also born in October of that year was Hannah. Mike and Gloria were very good friends to Pat and I. We laughed alot with them. Then there were so many others that deeply touched our lives also. I would like to mention a few. Dave and Cyndi, Logan and Gabe; Gina, Nathan, Alona, and Ziann; Ed and Cathy; Mike and Rocio; Don and Maria; Mark, Tiffany; Gene and Lori; Patty and Bud; Rod and Carol; Erika, Toby, Lizzy and the boys; Tracy; Monique, Yaseer and their family; Suzanna and Leo; Lindi, Ashley, Desiree, Zachary; Pastor Tim, Georgeann, Sarah Grace, TK; Duncan; Mama Nancy; Bonnie, Bernice; Greg and Tammy; Larry & Bonnie Reeder; Tony and Dixie; Millie; Yvonne & Larry; Tammi, Tatum, Tyler; and the list goes on and on. I know I have skipped some important people, but it is late right now.
One thing I will always remember is that our pastor prays for everyone in the church. The 5:30 a.m. prayer times on Mondays and Fridays show the dedication of a pastor who loves the people he shepherds and the city where he lives. Pastor Larry is dedicated to the people at TGP and the people in the city of San Bernardino. He travails in the Spirit and does not give up. He is not afraid to share his life experiences to help someone to know the Lord.
It has been the highlight of my life for the past 16+ years to be part of the worship team at TGP. When I first started on the team, I was scared to death of being in front of anyone much less singing. Thank you to everyone who is on the team for blessing me with this opportunity. I will miss singing praises and worshiping the King of Kings and Lord of Lords with you. Qi, I will especially miss you. You have taught me so much. I love you my sweet little sister. May the Lord continue to bless everyone and may he bring new life onto the team.
In case anyone is wondering why we are leaving. It has been six years since we moved to Victorville. We commute 70 miles every day to work and also to church on Sunday. We have attended services at Horizon Church (Foursquare also) in Victorville on occasion, and a few years back Pat committed to a Pastor's In Training program there. We believe that we could be more involved in the community where we live if we attend church locally. We don't really have any friends where we live, they are all down the hill. As much as we love our church family, we believe the Lord has a mission for us here.
When we turned the calendar to February, the scripture on it said "You shall go out with joy and be led back in peace." Amazing that Yahweh would speak to us even through a calendar. We are excited to move on to the next phase of our journey and ask that you would please pray for us.
All my love, Stephanie
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Beach Day at Corona del Mar - February 17, 2014
So, yesterday we didn't have school/work because it was President's Day. While the rest of the country is freezing to death, California is having a warm winter, probably due to the earth's tilting from some earthquake. At any rate, we headed to Corona del Mar for a beach day. After all, the temperature said it would be 72 degrees. We gathered up our daughter's friend, Shayne, and our grandsons, Caleab and Cadence, and headed to the beach. When we arrived, the sun was shining and it was warm with a nice breeze blowing.
Upon our arrival, Caleab and Cadence rushed into the water. Children don't seem to notice how cold it is. But this grandma was afraid they would get hypothermia. Grandpas don't seem to worry about that kind of thing. After 10-15 minutes in the water, grandpa took them to the tidepools and grandma rested on the blanket in the warm sun. When they returned from the tidepools, Caleab immediately headed back into the water. I asked him several times to come out but he didn't. So, I called his Mom and told him that she was on the phone and wanted to speak with him. Then he got out of the water and didn't go back in (all the way at least).
There were dark clouds forming above us and the sun was not seen again while we were there. It had been playing peek-a-boo, but then it was obvious that it wasn't going to come out any more. The temperature started to drop and I knew we needed to head out of there quickly.
I wish I could say that the drive home was without incident, but Caleab and Cadence both threw up in the car. It was a rough ride home. All windows had to stay open to keep Bekah and Shayne from joining in the situation. It was a bit cold, but everyone made it home safely. Thank God for his peace even through a day like that.
Upon our arrival, Caleab and Cadence rushed into the water. Children don't seem to notice how cold it is. But this grandma was afraid they would get hypothermia. Grandpas don't seem to worry about that kind of thing. After 10-15 minutes in the water, grandpa took them to the tidepools and grandma rested on the blanket in the warm sun. When they returned from the tidepools, Caleab immediately headed back into the water. I asked him several times to come out but he didn't. So, I called his Mom and told him that she was on the phone and wanted to speak with him. Then he got out of the water and didn't go back in (all the way at least).
There were dark clouds forming above us and the sun was not seen again while we were there. It had been playing peek-a-boo, but then it was obvious that it wasn't going to come out any more. The temperature started to drop and I knew we needed to head out of there quickly.
I wish I could say that the drive home was without incident, but Caleab and Cadence both threw up in the car. It was a rough ride home. All windows had to stay open to keep Bekah and Shayne from joining in the situation. It was a bit cold, but everyone made it home safely. Thank God for his peace even through a day like that.
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Our 17th Anniversary
We celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary yesterday. It was a very nice day. I usually don't make any purchases on the Sabbath, but made an exception yesterday. Pat and I started out the day by going to a bible store in Hesperia called "Christian Treasures Bible Bookstore." Pat has been in need of a bible for a very long time, so that was my anniversary present for him. At a Wednesday night bible study, his pages were falling out all over the place. It was time for a new one. On Friday after work I tried to find a Bible for him, but wanted him to be able to pick out the one that he wanted. A Bible is a very personal item.
We did find a bible, but he wanted to check out another store before completing the purchase. We went to Oasis Christian Store in Hesperia, but didn't find anything that he liked. So, we started back to the first store. On the way, we were talking about going to get a bite to eat. I remembered that there was an Italian restaurant that I wanted to try. I went online on my phone and saw there was a restaurant called "Julianos" in Hesperia. It had 5 stars. We decided to try it. I looked up the address and was amazed as it was the exact same address as the book store that we were returning to. God is so good.
We purchased his bible and went to lunch. The restaurant was very cozy and had a nice atmosphere. Italian music was playing and the smells were that of authentic Italian food. Pat ordered Chicken Parmesan and I ordered Spagettini with sauce, olives, eggplant parmesan, and mushrooms. It was an absolutely wonderful lunch. The food was great and it isn't often that my husband and I go on a date, so it was really special.
You know both of the places that we went were "off the beaten path." The Christian bookstore is privately owned as was the restaurant. The next time you are going out to eat or to make a purchase, consider the small businesses also. You may find a real blessing!
We did find a bible, but he wanted to check out another store before completing the purchase. We went to Oasis Christian Store in Hesperia, but didn't find anything that he liked. So, we started back to the first store. On the way, we were talking about going to get a bite to eat. I remembered that there was an Italian restaurant that I wanted to try. I went online on my phone and saw there was a restaurant called "Julianos" in Hesperia. It had 5 stars. We decided to try it. I looked up the address and was amazed as it was the exact same address as the book store that we were returning to. God is so good.
We purchased his bible and went to lunch. The restaurant was very cozy and had a nice atmosphere. Italian music was playing and the smells were that of authentic Italian food. Pat ordered Chicken Parmesan and I ordered Spagettini with sauce, olives, eggplant parmesan, and mushrooms. It was an absolutely wonderful lunch. The food was great and it isn't often that my husband and I go on a date, so it was really special.
You know both of the places that we went were "off the beaten path." The Christian bookstore is privately owned as was the restaurant. The next time you are going out to eat or to make a purchase, consider the small businesses also. You may find a real blessing!
Friday, February 14, 2014
Events of Today - Valentine's Day 2014
The pressure that our society puts on people is horrendous. Valentine's Day used to be a really cute, fun day for everyone. Those who do have a "special someone" in their life are expected to purchase chocolate, gifts, go to dinner, etc. I'm sure (as I have learned over the past couple of years) that Valentine's Day is totally pagan. It is very difficult to break free from these practices in today's world.
As an elementary school secretary, you would be shocked if you knew how much sugar was going to the classrooms on Valentine's Day. Kids consuming so much at one time....gross. And we wonder why they act like they do lol. My grandson ate so much in his classroom today that he threw up on the way home from school. WAKE UP PARENTS!!! These are your children. Is anyone monitoring and watching, or is it okay to give the students 4 or 5 sweets at a time just because they were brought to the room by other parents? Plug in to your children's education! Oh, and also remember that the school office doesn't know how to say "no" because they don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. So we consume way more sweets than we should also.
My 16 year old daughter has a boyfriend. She bought him a wallet and some chocolates. Her boyfriend bought her red roses because that is what she wanted. As two high school students, they did something nice for each other. One thing that Jack may have forgotten is that flowers need a vase and water. So all day long (as they were at school) the flowers were wilting more and more. By the time she got them home, they looked terrible and she was depressed. So, I looked online to see what we can do (she already went to bed). It said to put sugar in the water and give it three hours. We'll see what happens. Hopefully they will perk up a little by morning, even it is is short lived.
My husband and I don't celebrate this day anymore, but tomorrow will be our 17th anniversary. We will probably just hang out together and enjoy each other's company. At any rate, our society definitely puts alot of pressure on people to do certain things; at this point, I'm not buying into most of it. The best thing we can do is to truly "love one another." That alone is something that may take us a lifetime to perfect.
As an elementary school secretary, you would be shocked if you knew how much sugar was going to the classrooms on Valentine's Day. Kids consuming so much at one time....gross. And we wonder why they act like they do lol. My grandson ate so much in his classroom today that he threw up on the way home from school. WAKE UP PARENTS!!! These are your children. Is anyone monitoring and watching, or is it okay to give the students 4 or 5 sweets at a time just because they were brought to the room by other parents? Plug in to your children's education! Oh, and also remember that the school office doesn't know how to say "no" because they don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. So we consume way more sweets than we should also.
My 16 year old daughter has a boyfriend. She bought him a wallet and some chocolates. Her boyfriend bought her red roses because that is what she wanted. As two high school students, they did something nice for each other. One thing that Jack may have forgotten is that flowers need a vase and water. So all day long (as they were at school) the flowers were wilting more and more. By the time she got them home, they looked terrible and she was depressed. So, I looked online to see what we can do (she already went to bed). It said to put sugar in the water and give it three hours. We'll see what happens. Hopefully they will perk up a little by morning, even it is is short lived.
My husband and I don't celebrate this day anymore, but tomorrow will be our 17th anniversary. We will probably just hang out together and enjoy each other's company. At any rate, our society definitely puts alot of pressure on people to do certain things; at this point, I'm not buying into most of it. The best thing we can do is to truly "love one another." That alone is something that may take us a lifetime to perfect.
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