Answered Prayers

I have not posted in forever so I thought I would update my blog friends on some exciting new things around the Howell house. Lance got a job! Praise the Lord!

He is working for Controlled Fluids in Beaumont. They build pumps and valves and stuff...I don't really understand it all, but that is why he is the engineer and not me :) His first day was yesterday. It is such an answer to prayer that he was able to secure a job in this really tough labor market. God was so faithful to provide for us while we were waiting and now He has sent this big blessing our way. We are so thankful to Him.

My bro-in-law & sis-in-law also had a beautiful healthy baby girl on February 9th. Her name is Brenlee Kate. She has a beautiful head of silky brown hair. Mackenzie and I have had a lot of fun spending time with her. This makes niece #2 for me,and I have a nephew on the way in April.

On another note, one of my best friends who has been struggling with infertility for over four years found out she is pregnant. I have prayed for her so much and care about her so much, and I was SUPER excited by her great news. She really inspires me.

Some of my other good friends have surrendered to the ministry and I know God has exciting things for their lives too. God is so good. In times like this when His blessings seem so real and abundant, I want to make sure and give Him the glory. He teaches us things while we are waiting so that when His time is made perfect we can glorify Him for his generous love.

My Stone

A good friend of mine and I were talking at Bible Study this past Sunday about how we feel like there have been a lot of tragedies lately. It seems like the enemy is really attacking right now. A few years ago when I was going through some tough things and feeling that way, I wrote a poem that was based on the story of David & Goliath because I felt like I had a lot of Goliath's in my life at the time. I thought I would share it with all of you too in case you feel like you are fighting a Goliath right now...

My Stone

"I defy the ranks of Israel," the young boy heard him say.

Then his heart began to race as he looked Goliath's way.

But the beats that pounded in his chest were not from rage or fear,

But from the call of God that fell upon his ear.

"I have chosen you my child; this battle you must fight.

Not with sword and not with spear, but with my power and might."

So courageous little David looked Goliath in his eyes

And approached the battle line, not shaken by his size.

He reached into his pouch and pulled out one round stone.

As he drew his sling, his hands were steady because he wasn't holding it alone.

And even while Goliath shot out curses on God's name,

The living God of David calmed his heart and held his aim.

Then across the line soared David's stone and struck Goliath's head,

And David's enemy, the giant, fell silent then fell dead.

I can almost hear the brutal blow and see Goliath fall

Because the call that little David felt has also been my call.

There are Goliath's in my life God is calling me to fight

Not with sword and not with spear, but with his power and might.

And just as God held David, I do not fight alone

So I'll march up to the battle line, draw my sling, and throw my stone.

To God Be the Glory

Well, the bullet fell out yesterday. As Lance says, it made it's way out like a really big splinter! KFDM Channel 6 got wind of the whole ordeal, and they called Lance and asked for an interview. Initially, Lance turned them down, but then he thought about how it would be an opportunity for God to get the glory for an amazing miracle so he changed his mind and called them back.

They came to our house today and did a story. Here is a link to the press release from the story. I hope this gives us the opportunity to share Christ with people we come across, not just from the news story but from opportunities to talk to people about it in person. To God be the glory for the things He has done!

http://www.kfdm.com/news/years-34529-leg-awhile.html

Four Years Later

Some of you may remember a post from this summer when I told you all the story about how Lance accidentally shot himself in the leg when we were evacuated four years ago for Hurricane Rita. Well, the bullet has finally decided to make its exit. Right after it happened, Lance had a surgery to clean the bullet fragments out of his leg, and his doctor decided it was too dangerous to remove the main part of the bullet because it was surrounded by important veins and nerves.

The bullet entered 2mm away from his main artery. Had it hit the artery, Lance would have almost certainly died very quickly. Or if it had exited his body, he could have very possibly bled out and died before we could have gotten him to the hospital. But neither of those things happened because God's hand guided that bullet right past his vital parts and stopped it before it could do damage by busting out the back of his leg. Now it is emerging as a very real reminder of the Soviergnty of our God.

Go Dogs!

This is one of my favorite times of the year. I love football season! I love the peprallies, the games, the excitement. It is so much fun! This is Jenna's senior year so I am trying to enjoy it because I know I won't be as involved after this year until Mackenzie gets older at least.

Each week I help Jenna make three gifts - two for her little sisses and one for her locker boy. Some of the gifts that people exchange get pretty extravagant, which I do think is wasteful. But I do love helping Jenna prepare cutely wrapped spirited gifts each week.

I also love the football games. I love cheering on my team and traveling with them to support them at every game no matter where they go. I love eating pickels and peanuts in the stands and visiting with my friends.

I love scores that are so close and plays that are so important that it brings the stands to their feet. I love watching halftime. I love holding my breath as they throw Jenna up into the air in a cheer. I love the fight song. I could say more, but I will spare you.

Mackenzie loves it all too. She gets to do a lot of special things, like dance to the fight song out on the track because Jenna will carry her out there. Next year will be different when Jenna graduates so I am hoping Mack is soaking up every minute of the "special treatment" this year :)

I just thought I would share a picture of my precious daughter and beautiful sis. I love football and I really love both of you! Go Dogs!

Gabriel's Story

Today during my quiet time, God gently reminded me of a story that I wanted to share. Some of you may remember Gabriel Iancoluvich. Gabriel was a foreign exchange student who lived with Lance and his family for a few years while we were in college. He was here from Romania to attend Lamar. Believe it or not, his dad (who was born and raised in Romania) was a Southern Baptist minister. Gabriel loved the Lord, and one day he told us a story that I will never forget.

He said that during the late 80s and early 90s, Romania was involved in terrible civil struggles. It was not uncommon for fighting to break out in towns across the country when community leaders disagreed. One day, near his home, his dad witnessed a terrible scene.

A young boy was playing with a small ball toward the back of his house, which met up with the side of the town's square. The ball rolled out into a paved area between some shops in the square, as there were no fences. The boy followed the ball, but as he ran after it, he found himself in the middle of a skirmish. He was caught in the crossfire and fatally wounded. His father ran out of the house when he heard the gunfire erupt to retrieve his son and bring him safely inside. But it was too late, he saw his son only 50 yards away, laying prostrate on the ground, his blood pouring out.

The small skirmish concluded as quickly as it had begun, and people had already gone on to move about their business. They had become so accustomed to such activity that they seemed hardly shaken. But the father rushed to his boy's side, picked up the small child in his arms, and screamed to the crowd, "Get off my son's blood! You are walking in my son's blood!"

Gabriel said that when God first brought him to America, he thought of that story and how seeing blood had become so ordinary for his people that watching the boy die made little impact on their daily life. He also said that he believes Christians in this blessed country are guilty of the same, but on a larger scale.

We go safely each week to our air-conditioned sanctuaries to be filled with the Gospel message, a message that many of us have heard all of our lives. Some of us may even feel entitled to being made to feel good on Sunday or to certain rights we feel as Christians we deserve, like the right to worship to a certain type of music or the right to meet in a certain room or place.

If we are fed with the Living Word and the Saving Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who loved us so much that He poured out His blood for us, but we do nothing to show that His sacrifice has impacted our lives, then brothers and sisters, WE ARE WALKING ON HIS BLOOD.

We do not deserve His love or His grace. We do not want what we deserve. But because He loves us so much, God watched His son bleed for our sins on a hard wooden cross. Today as this message ways heavily upon my heart, God I repent of complacency and self-righteousness that have left me walking through Your Son's blood. I do not want to live as I am unaware of the great sacrifice or untouched by the grace through which I am saved. Instead, I want to do whatever you ask, whether easy or hard, because you loved me first.

Happy Birthday Mackenzie!

Mackenzie is four years old today! She has had a great birthday. On Saturday, Lance & I took her to Gator Country to celebrate her birthday. She loves alligators, which I have always thought is unique for a little girl. We don't know when or why her fascination with the animal began, but we know she loves anything alligator, including eating them.

Birthdays are always a big deal around our house, and the birthday boy or girl gets just about anything he/she wants. So when my precious little four year old asked for an alligator cake, I was determined to make it happen. If you have known me for very long, then you know I am not very artisitic. Nevertheless, I took on the project as a labor of love. You see, I had to make it myself because store bought is just not the same according to my husband who cheered me on from the couch. (Easy for him to say.) It actually turned out better than I had expected, and it was a huge hit with the birthday girl, which made every bit of the work worth it.

This birthday feels like a big one to me, and it is almost bittersweet. She seems more like a little girl than a toddler now. She will even be joining us in church from now on, as she is too old for the nursery. And she no longer uses a nuk!

We have been preparing Mackenzie for months that 4 year olds don't use nuks (our word for pacifier) because I am ashamed to admit she still used it during bedtime. Which means that tonight is the first night of her life that she went to sleep without one. She did really good. She cried a little, but not as much as I had expected. I hope the next few nights as we transition through this are as easy as tonight.

I am so proud of the little girl that she is becoming, and I pray everyday that she accepts Jesus at a young age so that she has a lifetime of serving Him. Happy Birthday Mackenzie! I love you!