Who Am I?

That the Lord of All the Earth Would Care to Know My Name?



How awesome is it that the Lord of all the earth really cares about each of us in a way that no one else can? That He not only cares for me, but has plans for me, plans that serve His purpose and not my own. That if I'm obedient to those plans, He will pour out His blessings on me in such a mighty way that I can only stand in awe!

We have seen this and experienced this every day since we began following His plan for our lives. Before that, even though we sometimes experienced great happiness in the events of our lives, it was only fleeting. That's because there was no joy in that happiness. Just a temporary feel good moment in time. Once God began drawing us back to Him through his awesome servant, and our only son Austin, we began to see, little by little, the joy that He had planned for us. But, being the know it all that I am (was?), I figured I could do anything and everything on my own. I didn't need anyone else's help (I'm still not fully over this affliction!). But God was always there, waiting in the background, for us to realize that it was His plan that was being executed, not ours. What an amazing gentleman! That he would make plans for us and then not get upset with us when we refused them. When we tried to do it our way. Instead, He just waits patiently for us to turn to Him.

Jerry's Team "The Rockets" (You had to know that my boys would be called the Rockets!)

And when we do, boy does he pour out the blessings! In our case, we have been allowed to see things and experience things that we couldn't even imagine. Working with children though various ministries at church and in the community. God has placed certain children and parents into our lives to serve His purpose, woven into a complex plan that affects our lives and theirs to His Glory! There's a reason for each and every one of them. He taught us to love them and privileged us to be loved by them. Thank you God for that blessing!

We have been honored to lead children's church, to take kids camping, to church camp, and just spend time with them. He's also given us the opportunity to work with kids in the community though baseball, coaching and at one time administering the entire league (over 1200 kids) for Limestone County. Each team had its purpose and each person was a part of God's plan for every other person that was part of the team. Through this opportunity, we were given many opportunities to be a positive witness for our Lord Jesus. I'm proud that I think we did a good job in this regard and left the position with many friends who have no doubt about where we stand in matters of worship (oops, I better go back and re-read Ephesians chapter 2).

Finally, we have been honored to help minister to 100 to 175 kids a year at Isom's Chapel through the Upward Basketball and Cheerleading Ministry. I've coached, Connie's coached, and Austin's played for several years now. We celebrated our season this past Friday night with a huge Awards ceremony, complete with a clown (not me) who had an awesome way of sharing the Lord's plan with the children and their parents (and us too). The night was somewhat of a mixed emotion for me, personally, as Austin was too sick to attend. Throughout the season, Austin had the job to announce each player for every game each week as they ran through the tunnel and onto the court. Austin would have loud music playing and would make a big deal out of each one. He wanted to do this Friday night one last time, but was too sick. (We've both been very sick for about a month, that's why this blog hasn't been updated much lately). But on the positive side, we were privileged to know tha at least 10 people came to know the Jesus I love that night and dedicated their lives to Him. And that is why we work so hard in the Upward Ministry.

BTW, Lily Grace loved spending every Saturday at the gym. She even learned to say "baacketball." She thought she was the center of the universe, sometimes wandering onto the court during a game or practice and just looking at the players as if to say "Here I am, notice me!" She even helped me with a few halftime devotions. We were so proud to be able to share this "little blessing" with our Upward friends.

"A Little Early Suntan on the Nose?" No, not exactly. Connie and Lily were racing to the mailbox and well, let's just say there was an accident. The details escape me right now.

Love,

Jerry, Connie, Austin, and Lily Grace