The Hope that is Ours

"Let every man and woman count himself immortal. Let him catch the revelation of Jesus in His ressurection. Let him say not merely "Christ is risen!" but "I shall rise!"- Philip Brooks

Adjustments

"You can't do the same thing and expect a different outcome."

"Venture On Him, Venture Wholly...

...Let No Other Trust Intrude."

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,
Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you,
Full of pity, love and pow'r

Come ye weary, heavy laden,
lost and ruined by the fall;
If you tarry till you're better
You will never come at all

Let not conscience make you linger,
nor of fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness He requireth
is to feel your need of Him.

I will arise and go to Jesus
He will embrace me in His arms;
In the arms of my dear Savior,
O there are ten thousand charms!

Favorite Vacation Memories

I was able to get away for a short whirlwind of a weekend and below are some pictures. It was a much needed break and, though entirely too brief, it was fun and the time with family was much enjoyed. We live, we love, we laugh.

BLACK BEAR BLUFF CABIN

Jon, Renee and Cara

Outside view

STEEP driveway and roads coming in

View from inside loft (and what you wake up to in the morning.) Gorgeous Sunrise!

Jealous yet?

The Pro-Pool-Players. (Notice Renee and I didn't make the photo shoot ;)

Breakfast

Cara wearing her new birthday sweater from Grandpa Dierking. (It sure was nice to spend time with Cara without being interrupted by someone claiming it was 'their turn'.)

Preparing for the Great Easter Egg Hunt

Searching

Hmmm....

Can you guess who won?

Going for a hike

IN GATLINBURG AND PIGEON FORGE FOR THE DAY

Watching a man make fudge

They have interesting shops in Gatlinburg ;)

We tried out the Ripleys Maze of Mirrors; thought it might be kind of cheesy and felt a bit stupid going in with a bunch of little kids, but it actually turned out to be quite the highlight. So weird and confusing and hilarious. You seriously get so turned around in there and are bumping into mirrors and you'll see an image but have no clue where it's actually coming from because its being reflected off this mirror, which is reflecting it off this mirror, from down this hallway and yeah....at one point you can actually see the exit but have no way of knowing where it actually is.

This is actually a mirror they are about to touch. (Though the goal is to make it the whole way through without touching/banging into a mirror)

Rachel got a pair of 3-D glasses to help make it more confusing but found she didn't need them. It was confusing enough! At one point, while sneaking around Rachel saw some people on a mirror and they were moving. She continued walking, saw them again and reached out to touch the mirror/person and asked "Are you real?" .... lol. The person responded. I think she took the girl by surprise and Renee and I were laughing hysterically at Rachel.

Ah! Good laughs...Good talks...Good times...Good memories.
I'm thankful for my family.

True That

"We fear men so much, because we fear God so little." - William Gurnall

Bixby Humor

"Hope you enjoy the only day out of the year that is a military command."

Surprisingly, that was my Dad (not mom! ;) who stated something along those lines at the dinner table last night...

...the rest of us groaned.

In a Nutshell

"We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly...

...Nevertheless He saved them (me) for His names sake (Why?) that He might make His mighty power to be known." (Proverbs 106:6, 8)