How Did You Die?

Did you tackle that trouble that came your way

With a resolute heart and cheerful?
Or hide your face from the light of day
With a craven soul and fearful?
Oh, a trouble's a ton, or a trouble's an ounce,
Or a trouble is what you make it,
And it isn't the fact that you're hurt that counts,
But only how did you take it?

You are beaten to earth? Well, well, what's that?
Come up with a smiling face.
It's nothing against you to fall down flat,
But to lie there -- that's disgrace.
The harder you're thrown, why the higher you bounce;
Be proud of your blackened eye!
It isn't the fact that you're licked that counts,
It's how did you fight -- and why?

And though you be done to the death, what then?
If you battled the best you could,
If you played your part in the world of men,
Why, the Critic will call it good.
Death comes with a crawl, or comes with a pounce,
And whether he's slow or spry,
It isn't the fact that you're dead that counts,
But only how did you die?

Edmund Vance Cooke (1866 – 1932)

Father/Daughter Retreat 2009

Hello, dearest Readers!!

Well, here, at last, are some pictures from the Father/Daughter Retreat put on by Vision Forum back in March-what a precious weekend my two sisters and I had with our beloved Father. Once again, I came away so encouraged and inspired, and blessed by each session and activity. I think my favorite thing was just spending the whole weekend with my Daddy-we talked and talked about all sorts of things, and just enjoyed being together-y'all, I am soo incredibly blessed in my precious father-he is soo wonderful!!! I am so thankful to the Lord for letting him be my own dear Daddy. Ahh...Praise the Lord!!!!!
Miss F. visiting with a little cutie...
Alrighty-to start out, lets see...Oh yes-once we got checked into our room, we headed over to the Grand Lawn (a delightful place where you play all sorts of father/daughter unity games) but, alas, it was raining, and had been most of the day, so everybody crowded into the building, and actually, we had the greatest time meeting people all afternoon!! We had a blast-Daddy got to talk and meet allot of Dads, and we girls got to meet some sweet young ladies and visit with old friends-it was fabulous!! Seems like sometimes you're so busy you don't have much time to meet folks, but this just worked out so charmingly. We did miss the games, though, but just loved the free afternoon to meet folks. Ah. So, at supper time, as it was still raining, :) we had our 'picnic' inside, complete with happy checkered table clothes and everything!
More Visiting....
Announcements, details...
We really enjoyed meeting these kind folks from AL-Dee and Mee, above with their eldest daughter, and...
the father and two of the younger girls.

That night we heard from Doug Phillips on What the Bible says about Fathers and Daughters and then from Voddie Baucham on Why Every Father is Leaving a Legacy Whether he Knows it or Not.

What one does for taking notes when one leaves her note book in the room... :)Uncle Marc and Amanda looking beautiful (and handsome :) Saturday morning. (It's always so fun to dress up for the tea at noon!)Mr. Baucham

And, that morning, we enjoyed hearing Scott Brown on Nourishing a Daughters Vision for the Home, Voddie Baucham on The Ministry of Marriage-Why Putting off Marriage to do Ministry is Unwise and Unnecessary, and then from Doug Phillips on How a Father Inspires his Daughter, and How a Daughter Honors her Father.

Then at noon we enjoyed a beautiful Victorian High Tea with fresh flowers and all sorts of dainty little treats. Our Table...
And the sweet folks we enjoyed tea with...

A cup 'o tea, dahlin'!
It was good to see the S. ladies and gentleman again...
My dear father, sisters and I at the tea...
We were so excited that we got to have tea with Uncle R. and A.!
The place cards were just beautiful...

After tea, they had some photographers ready to take portraits of you and your Daddy all dresses up-here's ours!Dee's Tea-oh, and you got to bring home the china tea-cup-so fun.

After the tea, we had the whole afternoon to just be with Daddy-it was soo delightful! He took us to the Butterfly Center,and we enjoyed walking along the beautiful paths at Callaway-everything was so wet and fresh and cool! I love rain...
The butterflies were amazing!
With friends...And more friends!
Walking along...

On the Edge
It was so cute to see daddies with their little girls-here, a dad takes a shot of his two small ones in front of some flowers...Look Dee!
Dee's picture of me and the fountain...
They had lots of tropical flowers that were so interesting...

Oh, there were tons of these-and they were so photogenic, too. Always happy to pose for all who wanted a picture of their wings! Very accommodating.
Visiting...
My beloved Father
These folks were so nice-we had a great time meeting them.Martha

It was so cool when they landed on you!!
Daddy enjoyed getting to talk to Mr. Doug some...With some of the Phillips girls...
It was so precious to see several hundred fathers and daughters who loved each other and the Lord, walking around and just being together...so refreshing to be among the Body of Christ!
"I know this scent' :) LOL...
With the C. young ladies...

That afternoon we went out with the C.'s at San Marcos.
Moi
Little Miss C.Drink Coke
Sweet girls...

'Sisters' :)
Saturday night Elizabeth Botkin talked about What my Father Taught me about Boys and Mr. Geoff Botkin spoke on How Hollywood is Stealing the Minds and Hearts of our Daughters and What to Do About It. We also enjoyed hearing from dads and daughters about what the Lord had showed them over the weekend-it's always so exciting to see the hearts of fathers and daughters turn towards each other! Praise God!!!! I am so excited!!!

There was also some fun games played that kept everybody in stitches. :DWe said goodbye to everybody that evening and left early that next morning-it's always so sad to say goodbye to everybody-ah, how one desires longer visits! :) It's also exciting going home, to see the rest of the darling fam, and to start/keep doing the things that God has called woman, and more specifically, daughters, to do. To be reminded, refreshed, encouraged-having learned new things, new ways to be a more effective, joyful, submissive, productive, godly daughter, who rejoices in being in her father's house and under his authority-who takes hold of and revels in the HUGE sphere God has put us daughters in, and as one who seeks to serve her family, and further her father's vision for the glory of Jesus Christ. Oh, my goodness, girls-we have a massive responsibility. We have soo much to do-so little time to do it. This time of daughter-hood in our father's house (for the majority of us, Lord willing) will pass. May we be vigilant, diligent, and wise daughters!!! I want to go re-read my notes-I'm so excited!!! God help us!!

Love a blessed, happy, encouraged, convicted, inspired daughter,


P.S. Here's a picture of our Father and Mother. The Head and his Crown. May God help us daughters to be the Polished Corner Stones.

Day Trip with Mike, Kress & the Chilluns!

Good morning!! Well, a few weeks ago (before Esther came) Mike and Kress and Mikie III and Carlos were all going to the beach for a relaxing little day trip, and they invited me to go along as a nanny!! I was super excited, of course. Simply thrilled. Being an Aunt next door is so much fun! I'm so blessed. :) They were very dear for letting me go along!

So, bright and early, we head out toward the Great Deep with a beach umbrella, our swimmies, floaties, strollers and coolers and other beach-y stuff, ready to jump into the clear, cool waves....Ah. Bliss. We're finally here...dig your toes into the cool sand...you can hear the waves come crashing up, clear and green, and then, sometimes, they are blue, or white...a sea gull flies right over our little camp-the air smells crisp and tangy, and the babies cry and laugh and nap and play in the water...you close your eyes, and you feel the sun shine down on you, urging you to go float on the waves, and taste the salty water, and plunge into it's deep, swaying rhythm...

The ocean. It is one of the most beautiful gifts God gave us, I believe. He is so kind and good!!Mike dear and his cast-net...

Kressy dear The sea gulls (or whatever those are, LOL) were so beautiful!! They didn't seem afraid of us, either-they came right beside us and would swoop down and eat our discarded pizza crusts! Critter (Mikie III) was in awe. :)
Isn't this a neat picture!!? I was so tickled! That's our pizza crust it's got there...I prayed the Lord would help me to get a picture of one when it would swoop down right near us, and He did! He is so sweet and thoughtful to us...

Husband and wife enjoying the waves together...aww, just precious.Mike and Critter made a sand castle, which Critter then felt the need to promptly sit upon. Haha!! Ham Child.
Little Shell (this beach was so nice!! There were tons of beautiful shells, nice waves, mostly elderly people reading in beach chairs, and tons of room!! The Lord really blessed our time."Look, Mike!!! There's another one!!"
LOL, Carlos is soo adorable!! Here he is, enjoying a snack of seaweed. :)
"Is not My word like fire?" declares the LORD, "and like a hammer which shatters a rock ? Jeremiah 23:29

He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. Psalm 40:2

Shadows and Sand
This ship that passed by was absolutely colossal-huge!!!
A surfer with no waves...Critter's crashed...These little birds were so beautiful...
Kress told me those little things you see on the rocks is the same stuff that would attach itself to the bottom of their boat when she was growing up in the ocean. I'm sure that was a real ordeal trying to scrap them all off...But they are kind of pretty, in a way, aren't they? :)OH, and, look, y'all!!! I saw dolphins!! Up close!! How cool is that!? There were, like, maybe 10 of them, all jumping in and out! It was really neat. And----Here's the highlight, well, fishie-like-highlight thing that happened that day-I was walking out to about my waist, and heard Kressy, back near the shore, shouting something to Mike, and they both were trying to tell me something, and were coming out to where I was-then, I turned back, and saw this thing swim off real quick-it was a shark!!!! A real, live one! Isn't that cool!!!? I was in the water with a shark!!! Kress said she saw it swimming all around me, but I was looking for shells and didn't see it-she went to go get Mike 'cause she knew if I discovered it on my own I would have freaked out, which I'm sure I would have-she was so sweet to do that. Anyway, very neat. They said it was too small to kill me, but could have taken a chomp or two if it had wanted too. Kress, (who knows all about sharks and things, having grown up in the Caribbean and lived on a boat) said it was chasing schools of fish. I'm so grateful that the Lord protected me, and let them tell me instead of me seeing it!! Anyway, that was exciting.
That afternoon, a huge, beautiful storm came up...it was so amazing to see lightening against a dark blue, grey sky...and watch the waves turn different colors...As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.
Mark 1:16-18

And, I shall end with a man fishing on the rocks.

That evening, Mike took us all to Kressy's favorite, Olive Garden, and we enjoyed a huge, delicious meal before heading home, sure to dream of the salty waves and the great, deep ocean, and of sunshine and babies and dolphins and sharks and orange shells...Ah. It was truly a day to remember.

Thank You, Lord.