Wow, so apparently when you don't blog for a long time, it seems as though time has flown by, which it really has. My last blog included one of our first ultrasound pictures of Hudson, and since he's 4 now, I'd say that last entry is a little old. Since that blog post, we obviously had Hudson in February of 2011. That Fall, I started teaching and taught for almost two years at Costner Elementary School. We found out we were expecting our second child in October of 2013.
Fast forward to May 2014 and we moved from our home in Gastonia, North Carolina, to Roanoke, Virginia. It has been so evident that our move to Roanoke was orchestrated by God, and we have been amazed to see how he has worked in our lives here. Owen was born in June of 2014, just over a month after moving here. When we moved to Roanoke, we planned for me to stay home with the boys. I have loved this transition, and getting the extra time with them that I didn't have when Hudson was a baby. I decided to start nannying during the school year for teachers, and now while staying home with our kids, I have kept two little boys in our home (at separate times of course, I'm not completely crazy).
And then there were three......what? Yes, we found out we were expecting baby number three last November, and not to our surprise, it's another boy. People often ask what we're having, and when I say a boy, I get lots of interesting comments, with the most common being, "Wow, 3 boys, wow, you're going to have your hands full". Newsflash, my hands were full, long before then, but I politely smile, and say, "Yes, I think so". We cannot wait to welcome our son into our family in July.....the countdown has already begun.
Since switching from teaching to being a stay at home wife/mom/nannny/Pampered Chef lady, a lot has changed. Obviously one of those big things has been finances. We're so grateful for everything we have learned through the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University. It has helped us to budget our money carefully, pay off debt, and begin to experience financial freedom that we hadn't experienced in the past. If you haven't been through the class, it is highly recommended. Then on top of that, I have started couponing....let me just say I love it! I was already pretty frugal, but the amount of money we have saved has been incredible, and the FREE STUFF is my favorite part! Even Hudson calls himself "the coupon helper kid". I love the reward systems, the points, anything I can earn that allows me to get more stuff for FREE. Which finally brings me to my point, and where I got my inspiration for this blog yesterday morning.
Yesterday I was sitting in my car while Owen napped, eating my free Panera bagel and drinking my free Starbucks, and a thought strikes me. I love things that are free and get so excited over cashing in coupons for free items. The more items I get for free, the better. I love a good deal, and I love telling other people about them, and helping them to save money too. It's a weird thing to do it seems, but I've really enjoyed being able to do it for our family, and share it with our friends and family members.
Then here comes the moment of truth, the BEST FREE GIFT that I ever received happened on Good Friday many years ago; now that's something to really get excited about! Romans 5:8 says, "God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners". He didn't ask for me to save up points, or turn in a voucher, or wait for me to be on my best behavior, he did it for me, before I ever even thought of Him. Now that is the greatest love ever shown.
Why is it so often we can't wait to share good news, of any kind, big or small with those around us, sometimes even strangers, yet it is so hard for us to share the good news of the Gospel? It's the one thing that is so incredible that we shouldn't be able to keep it to ourselves. Romans 6:23 says that, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord". I love that the New Living translation points out that it is a FREE GIFT. We didn't get it because it was our birthday, or Christmas, Easter, or another random holiday that we like to give/receive gifts on, we got it because He loved us! We didn't deserve this gift, and we definitely didn't earn it, yet he gave it to us anyways.
This was an aha moment for me yesterday, and not meant to be a condescending post in the least. I'm not writing to tell you, that all of you should be sharing about what Christ did for you more often, this is for me too. I too, am guilty of not telling others as often as I should about the amazing love of Christ. I hope writing this serves as a reminder for me, that the next time I get that free item, regardless of what it is, it pales in comparison to the FREE GIFT that I received when Christ died for me, so I could live with him. Now that is the beauty of this weekend. Taking time to reflect on what Christ did for us shouldn't be something we only focus on at Christmas and Easter, but every day throughout the year. It is the greatest gift that changed eternity.
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