A Man of Good Intentions...

For most of my life I have been burdened with the mentality, "Why do today, what you can put off until tomorrow?". Why is it that some of us have good intention to do something, but in the end, our procrastination usually wins? For years, I have been battling this weakness of mine. Over 2 years ago I bought a book on how to overcome procrastination with good intention to read it, and somehow it continues to reside on my office bookshelf!

This morning I was convicted when I noticed that I have not blogged since 2009! Time really does fly...or should I say that I have a world record for putting things off? I am so thankful for the consistency of my faithful Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Hebrews 13:8 says, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." His love is unchanging! I am so glad that Jesus was not a man of good intentions! Can you imagine Jesus procrastinating? I can't fathom Him saying to the blind man, "I will try to come and give you sight in the next few days", or "I know I could cast out demons from you today, but I am going to wait until tomorrow." Jesus never did that! Praise the Lord for His perfect obedience to God the Father!

I know that if I am going to become more like my savior I need to cast my sin of selfishness and laziness at the foot of the cross. I do not want to be delayed in my obedience any longer! In 2 Corinthians 12:9 Jesus says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." then Paul replies, "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." I truly desire the power of Christ to rest on my life, don't you? I hope as I make strides in overcoming this weakness in my life that the Lord will become more evident because it is His power through me that is doing it!

"No, Madelynn, you cannot borrow the car!"

Have you seen the commercial with the little girl asking to borrow her daddy's car? The little girl is quite emphatic as she pleads with him, and then he says yes and hands the keys to a teenager who is almost grown up. It is one of those commercials that makes your heart swell as you think of your own babies and how quickly they are growing up! My daughter Madelynn is astounding to me with her personality and her ever increasing intelligence. One thing I know is that she can drive this little toy car as long as she NEVER grows up and asks for the keys to my real car. I have decided that I am putting her on restrictions from ever growing up... that goes for my son, Nehemiah too! "No, you cannot borrow my truck, Nehemiah!"

Cheese Toes

It looks as if Madelynn may be finally giving up her pacifier, but who would have known that she would move to her toes? I never cease being amused at this little girl full of personality! It all started when she took off her socks one day and starting cleaning the out the fuzz between her toes. She was so excited about her feat (no pun intended) that she began to stick some cheetos in between her toes for a snack. One by one she would insert a cheeto and then bring her toes to her mouth for a tasty treat! I know it sounds gross, but it was so funny that Kelli and I had to watch her as she ate one after the other so proudly.

Children are an amazing gift from the Lord. As the Psalmist said, we are fearfully and wonderfully made. My sweet Maddie Joy is by far no exception!

Children love to put things in their mouths. Madelynn's toes are just the tip of the iceberg to what we see daily. Recently, my wife noticed Madelynn had something in her mouth that she was chewing on. Upon inspection, Madelynn willingly opened her mouth to show her mommy a little green boogar on the tip of her tongue!!! She is not even 2 years old yet and Madelynn is already eating out of her toes and snacking on nose treasures. What will our little cheese toes do next?

Another Year, Another Opportunity

God's mercies are new every morning! Aren't you thankful that our merciful God blesses us with a new year as well? 2008 was definitely a good year, but I am convinced that 2009 is going to the best the Oliver's have experienced yet! I am not going give you a long unrealistic list of New Year's resolutions, but please note that I want to learn and grow closer to my Lord this year than I ever have before.

I often say that "Life is a Lesson". I do not want to excuse my mistakes in '08 as if they did not happen. Instead, I want to learn from them. I was convicted after the message Sunday morning of my disguised "laziness". I have always dismissed this weakness as nothing more than procrastination. Did you know that procrastination is "rooted" in laziness? Please forgive me if my laziness (procrastination) has ever hurt, upset, or disappointed you. I have genuinely asked the Lord to teach me how to overcome this weakness. I know this is going to be a difficult journey, but my God is faithful and His grace is sufficient!

I am so thankful that with another year I have another opportunity to learn and grow. "Each missed opportunity should be a reminder to listen to God, and learn to do as He says." Are you listening? I know that I am no longer going to wait until tomorrow, to do as He says to do today, which is the justification for a procrastinator. I don't want to be lazy anymore in my obedience to the Lord. Are you waiting until tomorrow too? Or are you listening today? He is always teaching, so let's take advantage of another year and another opportunity to listen and learn from our King!

"The Least Said, The Easiest Remedied"

Have you ever heard a phrase that just seemed to stay with you over the years? "The least said, the easiest remedied", is a phrase my late Grandma Barber used to say often. She was a godly woman who understood the dangers of the tongue and the devastation and destruction that can be caused by rumors or gossip. James 1:19 says "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry." Why is this so unnatural for us to do? Why do we always jump the gun and speak out of turn or get angry before we know all of the facts of a particular situation? I think it is because we speak before we think, get angry, and then say things that we can never retract.
Think about it, the less you say, the less you have to fix! I still don't have this little nugget of wisdom down pat, but I am challenged even today to work on it. We live a "broadcast yourself" society and I am convinced that I need to say less so that I don't have to fix more.
Have you ever said something that was misunderstood or misconstrued to mean something else? I am learning that even wall posts on Facebook can be misunderstood. A few weeks ago my sister-in-law had a post that said she was no longer listed as married. I reacted immediately and started a chain reaction of inquisition on this topic. It was a computer glitch that did not mean anything, but my reaction caused many to think otherwise. No worries, she and my brother are still happily married! See what I mean?
Today, I was reminded that I have to be careful what I write or say to even my wife on Facebook. I waited until I was 27 years old before I got married and I am pleased to say that my love for my wife increases everyday. I am challenged to be a better husband everyday and I am also challenged to edify and encourage her with compliments and sweet unexpected reminders of my gratitude of our love. "We love because HE first loved us." 1 John 4:19 You would think that my occasional encouragements through a wall post or facebook message would be a friendly reminder of the love Christ has given us, but even those motives and wordings can be misconstrued. I am learning how vast my potential audience is and that I must learn to discern that even innocent comments to my wife can be misunderstood. I guess my sweet grandmother was correct in her pearl of wisdom, "The least said, the easiest remedied." Let's work together to say less so that we can remedy less! For more information on this topic please go to zziiippiiitt.com

PS. I hope that I did not say too much in this blog...lol

My Own "Little Miah"

When I was just a toddler, my brother Dorian who was 2 years my senior decided to call me Miah for short. This nickname caught on quickly and has been used by my family and friends for as long as I can remember. I always find it funny that almost every week someone asks me if I have ever heard the song "Jeremiah was a bullfrog", and of course I respond, "Yes, almost weekly!" I guess I just have one of those names...I even was called Jeremiah Johnson by a co-worker several years ago. Now, kids who hear me called Miah start singing "Miah the Bee". I guess everyone has some sort of shortened version of their name, or a nickname that has caught on over the years. In fact, Kelli's grandpa calls me "The Sleeping Prophet", but that is another blog.
Today I introduce you again to my baby boy, Nehemiah Taylor. He is actually my own "Little Miah". I am so thankful that the Lord would allow me the privilege of having a son. Now he can carry on my nickname, Miah. I just hope some of his nicknames like, "Nehi"and "Puppy" won't stick too long. There is already a song for him too! My mother in law came up with "Nehemiah was a tadpole." Taddy is another nickname working its way up, but for now he will continue to be just my "Little Miah".

"Lolly Joy and Puppy"

I would like to introduce you to my sweet 2 year old niece, Carra. Many of you may not know that my amazing wife not only takes care of our 15 month old daughter and 8 week old son, but she also watches Carra 5 days a week. Wow! Carra and Madelynn have become the best of friends and it is hilarious to watch them play, fight, laugh, and scream together. Needless to say, there is never a dull moment in the Oliver house.
Carra, like Madelynn, is full of personality and honestly almost never stops talking! This becomes a patience builder as well as a sweet reminder of her intelligence and personality. For some reason she has always called Maddie Joy, "Lolly Joy". This nickname for Madelynn has stuck and is her official name as far as Carra is concerned. Kelli and I often laugh as Carra calls for "Lolly Joy" or kisses "Lolly Joy" on the head and tells her "I lub you so much, Lolly Joy". No doubt these two will be best cousins for life.
As many of you know, we welcomed Nehemiah Taylor into this world in September. He is beginning to show some personality and has started smiling and cooing! I am so blessed. Madelynn first began calling her little brother "NehNehyaya", but soon found "Bubby" to be a little easier to say. She loves her brother and kisses him each chance she gets. Once day I was holding Nehemiah and said, "Daddy loves his little Bubby". Well, Carra walks up to us and kisses Nehemiah on the head and says, "I lub you Puppy". As sweet as that sounded, I attempted to correct her by repeating, "BuBuBuBubby" emphasizing the "B", but she in return over emphasized the "P" as she repeated "PuPuPuPuppy". So that's it, "Lolly Joy and Puppy" are the nicknames assigned to my children by my beautiful niece, Carra. Could she be any cuter? Like I said, "Never a dull moment".