Catching Up: Stage 2

I figured I better hurry up and get John Reagan's Pre-K Graduation pictures on here before he starts kindergarten.

We will start with his school picture!

And his "school" graduation picture!
I just love these two pictures!

Now for the big night!

I am putting the below picture in for you to see Mrs. Steffanie, who is so very shockingly from Tennessee. I say that with sarcasm because we are confronted with something that says Tennessee or Nashville or oddly enough Rutherford on almost a daily basis. I think I have mentioned this before, but just in case...the funniest part about this is that in Tennessee his favorite nursery teacher was Ms. Stephannie from Thibodaux, Louisiana.

The kids quoted a few bible verses, sang songs, told us what they wanted to be when they grow up, got diplomas and medals, and had cake afterwards. We had a great time! John Reagan said he wanted to be Batman when he grew up. We aren't really sure why he said this. He has never seen Batman or heard much about Batman. He is a big Ironman fan though. All we can figure is he got the idea from his Batman umbrella that Nana bought him or he watched the movie somewhere and we weren't told about it. Who knows with him!

What a great experience his Pre-K year was. His last day of school they sent a binder home with alphabet artwork that the kids had worked on all year. It also included pictures of John Reagan throughout the year along with his height and weight at the start of school and the end of school. They really did a great job with everything.

I have been having a hard time with the idea of my little buddy starting kindergarten this year. I am not prepared for it. I would say wish John Reagan luck, but I am the one who needs it, not him.

The Journey

I have not forgotten about catching up on everything, but I must stray away today for something on my mind.

As I was sitting in church Sunday I began to pray for our preacher. He was saying that Sunday was one of the days when he didn't "feel" the power of the message in him, and he was talking about how we cannot live by our feelings. In the midst of my prayer the Holy Spirit quickened me that what the preacher was struggling with was necessary for the day as part of his current journey. This led me to begin thinking about the journey he and his family are on. It is a long story that involves LOTS of information. To keep the story simple, they are serving as interim pastors at our church and are having to step out in faith to bring about some necessary change.

The Holy Spirit then led me to thinking about how serving God is a journey...in everything we do, everywhere we go, in every mountaintop experience, and in the valley. Daily we are on a journey to "press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14)" that is set before us. I am guilty of letting daily life get in the way and cause me to lose focus on what has been set before me. Every aspect of our past, the valleys and the mountains, have brought us to where we are and who we are. And every aspect of the current moment we are in is preparing us for what is ahead and what God desires of us. As I was sitting there reminiscing and allowing all of this to sink in, I was flooded with such joy. The realization that our joy is in the journey brought such freedom. It is not about surviving. It is not about just getting through. It is about the journey.

We are at a point in our lives right now where if we lose focus even for a moment the struggle immediately appears, and we begin to sink. To be able to step out of what is right now and look at the whole journey brings freedom. Our joy is in the journey and not what our feelings are.

I tell you, this is something I need today!

The title "The Journey" sends my thoughts to a young lady who is truly on a journey. Her whole blog is entitled "The Journey." I know many of you know about Katie, but for those of you who don't, check her blog out: http://kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/. She is a young lady from Brentwood, TN whose journey is taking place in Uganda, Africa where she is running a ministry to feed and provide schooling for as many children as possible. She is also the mother of 14 Ugandan girls. If you do check her blog out, I encourage you to go through the archives and read from the beginning. What a story she has! What a journey she is on!