Today Julie's mom passed away after a long illness.  The thing that I always appreciate in this situation is the knowledge that we will meet our loved ones again who have gone to be with the Lord.  Life has all sorts of things that come unexpectedly but even those things which you think you've prepared for as much as you could still can throw you for an emotional roller coaster ride.  I guess that's about all I can really say for the time being but I do pray that God brings comfort to Julie's family and all the relatives involved in the situation.  God bring Your peace which passes all understanding and let the pain of this present situation be swallowed up in victory.  God bless you guys and may you be able to do all that you need to do not just well but perfectly as God gives you grace.

You know I've been having a blog now for some time and one of the things I like about it best is that it's an opportunity to be transparent about things.  I was thinking of the scripture where Jesus was saying what's the Sabbath for?  He addressed an issue here which I think it really relevant.  He shows how we've been given this day now what are we going to use it for?  I see this as especially good when it comes to the Internet where so many have an alternative lifestyle going on.  Many have created a persona which is decidedly darker than that which they present in daily life.  Most of this I think is because of abject cowardice where they think that they'll never be found out.  I think this is a joke for a number of reason.  Just watch the news...if stuff happens that brings your life under scrutiny they dig up all the stuff you've done on the net and yes, that will be used against you.  The bible says it clearly that the stuff you've done in the dark will be shouted from the housetops at one point or another.  I'm thankful for Righteousness and for God's forgiveness but at the same time I don't see that as a freedom from responsibility...quite the opposite.  I think it totally inappropriate to run around talking about your sexual exploits if you're married and I find it pathetic to see people that are supposedly grown up talking about their ability to do drugs and get wasted on the net.  Funny they never seem all that proud when they are talking to their parents or others they claim to respect.  It's dangerous and stupid to nurture skeletons in your closet if you can possibly help it because the longer their hidden the nastier they'll get.  I think the net should be a tool to show who you really are and what you believe and not a chance to spread lies about yourself and create a fake persona.  I guess I think that if you're ashamed to show your page to everyone you shouldn't have it in the first place.  I know it's a free country and you can say what you want but it all comes down to wether or not we're abusing our freedom of speech by pushing every ungodly lifestyle we can think of or taking this freedom with responsibility.  Nobody is perfect and nobody is free of skeletons in the closet but I guess it would be nice not to be an idiot and spout garbage on the net that can be all too easily found.

Yesterday we gave up our two miniature Dachshunds for adoption.  Honestly it's one of the most painful things I've had to do in a while.  There's several reason why we had to do this not the least of which is our looming trip to Japan which would have left us with no one who could watch them.  My dad utterly refuses to do that no matter what the loss would be like for the children or whatever...as usual he seems to serve only himself and anything else is nothing more than an inconvenience.  I have known that this would become an issue at some point since the last time we left mom watched them the whole time but this time she is joining us when we go.  I think that I underestimated how painful it would be for all of us.  Last night I prayed with the kids as they cried themselves to sleep and I find myself endlessly haunted by their memories wherever I go in the house.  It's not that they were easy to deal with in some respects but at the same time I figure there were some things that I could have done to make it easier...I guess hindsight is always 20/20 right?  My dad's never liked them and that really has helped me make this decision with mom.  I wanted them to be free of my dad, be free where we can't seem to ever be free.  I think of what it would be like to be free of the endless feelings of disapproval and such that have made life so hard for us all.  I think we just hoped that the dogs would bring some freedom from all of that and that just never happened instead they became a further difficulty in that it was one more thing for my dad to gripe about and disapprove of.  I know that I know they are free and happy now with someone that loves them as they deserve to be loved.  The person who took them is highly recommended by the dog's vet and only keeps Dachshunds herself.  I just wish that made it not hurt.  I miss them...I miss them terribly and everywhere I turn I can see them in my minds eye, not the difficult stuff but the good.  I think I can safely say we all loved them very much.  I know God will look out for them...help us Lord to let Go.