Winning the Battle

My boys LOVE STAR WARS!!!! I mean, they are
obsessed with Star Wars! They will sit for hours
and line up their Star Wars figures and have
full on battles going on. Here are a couple
different battles that I caught on camera.

Whether the battle is far off. . .

Or you feel surrounded and like there is no way out. . .

God WILL make a way!!! We need to cry out to Him.
I want to share a story about a battle in the
Bible:

Last night I was reading 2 Chronicles 18 to my son, Jake.
This chapter is so good! It's about Jehoshaphat, King of
Judah, and how he allied himself through marriage with
Ahab, king of Israel. Chapter 17 talks about how "the
Lord was with Jehoshaphat becuase he walked in his father's
ways and sought the Lord God. They are about to
go into battle and a bunch of prophets tell Ahab to go
into battle and that he's going to win. Then the prophet
Micaiah comes and spoils the news by telling Ahab that
Israel will have no shepherd: basically- he told him
that he was going to die in the battle. Ahad didn't like
hearing that so he throws Micaiah into prison. When they
went to battle, Ahab tells Jehoshaphat to dress in the
king's wardrobe, but wimpy Ahab hides in his armor.
Everyone came after Jehoshaphat, but turned away because
all they were ordered to do was to find Ahab. I love
the end:

Verses 33 & 34: Now a certain man drew a bow at random,
and struck the king of Israel (Ahab) between the joints of his
armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, "Turn
around and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded."
The battle increased that day, and the king of Israel
propped [himself] up in [his] chariot facing the Syrians
until evening; and about the time of sunset he died.

God is in the battle- He protected Jehoshaphat because
he cried out to the Lord and yet Micaiah's prophecy
came true.

Moral of the story: We need to run TO God, NOT away
from God!

Dress Up Time

My boys love to dress up in all kinds of outfits!
Jake used to dress up a lot too, but it's not as
cool to him now. Here are some funny moments
in our house. . .

Luke- loves to dress up in all my shoes: this
time it's my cleats

Chef-boy-ar-Luke

"What's up, dude?"

Drew- "Put your hands up!"

What an outfit Drew: police helmet, rain boots
and a diaper

Nice hat Luke

Drew's mugshot: he is caught and convicted!

Drew goofing around

I am . . .

I am A:

CHILD of God
WIFE to my husband of 10 years
MOM of three rambunctious, wild & handsome little boys
SPEAKER who shares my passion for God and living
in His will and in obedience to Him
TELEVISION HOST for More Than Conquerors
(airs on TBN on Mondays at 8:30am Pacific)
DAUGHTER who is best friends with my mom
SISTER to my two siblings (Amy and Keith)
SISTER-IN-LAW to 5
AUNT to MANY nephews and 2 neices
FRIEND who is grateful for wonderful people in
my life
TEACHER homeschooling 2nd Grade
CHEF to my picky kids
MAID in my messy house
TAXI DRIVER running from one thing to the next
NURSE when my kids get hurt or sick
REFEREE for the fighting matches in my home
SOCCER PLAYER on Friday nights (love to compete!)
BIBLE STUDY ATTENDEE which I cherish
NURSERY SERVANT for Wed. night services (2-yr-olds)
CHURCHGOER at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills
SOFTBALL INSTRUCTOR locally and nationally
3-TIME OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST for USA Softball
3-TIME NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPION at the University
of Arizona

These are some of the things that I am. I know that
without God, all of these are meaningless. But with
God, these titles give me opportunities to speak
up about how great my God is, love others better,
use my talents to bring God glory and grow more
Christ-like daily! What would your list look like?

Beach Days

In the summer, the beach is the place to be to beat
the heat. And it's a good place to let the kids use
all their energy so they crash hard on the way home.
It's always nice to join friends so the kids have
people to play with and we can have some adult conversation
at the same time! It's a win-win situation. We have been
going once a week and the weather has been beautiful!
I am thankful for the waves, the sand, the sun, and
most importantly, great friends! Here are a few pictures
from a couple of our trips

Luke having fun

Cousins: Jake and Taylor enjoying the water

Friends and Family

Luke and Madilyn trying to boogie board

We had a big group this trip

The hardest part is getting everything out to the beach
and getting it all back to the car!

Luke jumping in the hole his brother was digging

My great friend, Kristi and me hanging out

Have some yogurt with that sand!

Say cheese!

.

Please Pray!

Please pray for Dylan Davis. He is a 3-yr-old
little boy who has cancer and his parents (Christy
and Travis) just found out that it is Stage 3 and
has spread. Christy is a friend from church and I
found out through a friend last week that she found
a lump on Dylan's thigh last week. She went in
and they told her it was cancer. My heart breaks
for families like this, but I know we have a God
who knows everything and hears our cries. Please
pray for Dylan, Christy, Travis and the rest of the
Davis Family.

James 5:16: "The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous
man avails much".
Our fervent prayers are heard. We believe in a God of
miracles!

Also pray for Brielle Murray (www.briellemurray.com).
She is an 11-year-old little girl who lives in So. Cal.
and has Rhabdomyosarcoma, which is a malignant tumor
and is going through her second round of chemo. She
had been given a clean bill of health after 10 months
of treatment and a few months back it returned. You
can go to her website to find out more and to find
out how to pray specifically.

These families both know and love the Lord and need
our prayers during this difficult time. So many of my
little worries are nothing when I think about what these
families are going through.

Under Armour Team Pictures

The photographer, Steve Johnson, in Florida who took
pictures for the Under Armour All-American Game sent
me a couple pictures that he took of our teams! Just
wanted to post them! It was a great event for these
up and coming star athletes in our great sport of
Softball!
Team Undeniable (that was our team name)

Team Undeniable & Team Battle

The Fate of the Yellow Woodbee

"The Fate of the Yellow Woodbee": The Story
of Nate Saint and the Auca Indians is a book
in the Trailblazer Series by Dave and Neta
Jackson. The Trailblazer Books were recommended
to me by a friend. My son, Jake, is 8 years old
and I homeschool him. He loves to read and I was
trying to find something that he would really
enjoy and look forward to reading each day. Not only did
he look forward to reading this book, but I read it
with him and couldn't put it down. They are fictional
books based on true stories of Christian heroes from the
past. I haven't seen the movie about Nate Saint, "The End of the
Spear", so I bought it once I finished the book and now I
just need to find the time to sit and watch it. Nate Saint,
Jim Elliot, Ed McCully, Roger Youderian and Pete
Fleming lost their lives in the jungles of Ecuador on Jan 8,1956.
They cared more about sharing Jesus with an unreached
group than saving their own lives. I look forward to
seeing them in heaven one day! Now we're on our second
book: "The Hidden Jewel". It's about the missionary,
Amy Carmichael in the early 1900's in India. I highly
recommend these books and look forward to reading more!

After reading the book, Jake started playing his imaginary
games and this time he said he was a missionary who was
going to Japan to share Jesus with them. He said he also
was a doctor that was taking care of the sick people. It
was another reminder that what our kids take in (especially
in reading)will impact them in big ways.

FCA Camp in Oregon

Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) for the Northwest
had a High School sports camp in Forest Grove, Oregon
this week. The camp was held on the campus of Pacific
University. They had different speakers each night.
Ebo Elder (boxer on The Contender) spoke one night and Dan
Russell (4X State Champion Wrestler, and Olympic coach)
spoke, along with others. I flew out on Friday morning
to spend the day at the camp. I worked with a few softball
players in the afternoon and also spoke on Romans 12:21
at the evening session. The focus for the camp was "Change
Your Game" (Romans 12) and my session was about "changing
your win". I spoke about how I've experienced many victories
in sports, but Christians are called to "win" God's way: in
sports and more importantly, in life. I talked about
finishing strong and following God whole-heartedly to
experience the victorious Christian life that is available
to us. God has given his children victory in Jesus Christ.
This means He will bless us when we're obedient. This does
not mean the road will be easy. In fact, many of the
disciples in the Bible had to persevere through hardships
in trials. By God's grace and strength we can be victorious
in our trials. He will carry us through if we seek Him.
God's Word also tells us to store up our treasures in heaven
and to stay focused on Him and His priorities. The verse God
gave me for this group was Philippians 1:6. Paul was
addressing the church in Phillipi and he said that he was
confident that "He who began a good work in you will complete
it until the day of Jesus Christ".

Todd Gowin (FCA Puget Sound) and me

Todd's sons wearing some GOLD

Standing in Worship

The Worship Band

Listening to Levi share his testimony (wrestler at Boise St.)

Speaking

Allyn with the "Gold"! FCA in Washington

The FCA Coaching Staff

Some of the High School Athletes at Camp

Under Armour All-America High School Softball Game

This week I went to Florida for the Under Armour
High School All-America Softball Game run by ESPN Rise.
We were in Orlando and the game was played at the Walt
Disney World Fields. When we arrived Sunday night, we
were given a bunch of Under Armour gear (love it!).
There were 30 girls (split into teams of 15) for the game
and I was one of the coaches. I attended the inaugural
event last year and was excited to work with such top
talent again. We changed into our Under Armour outfits
(polos and shorts) and headed to Opening Ceremonies.
They had speakers, music, Mickey and the best part
were the fireworks at the end! After a great dinner,
we called it a night. The next morning we went to the
fields for practice and for focus groups. Under Armour
wants feedback from up and coming athletes about their
product. In the afternoon we had a couple hours at a
theme park (I went with a bunch of the girls to Hollywood
Studios and rode the Rockin Rollercoaster). That night
we had another dinner with Under Armour, ESPN Rise and the
team. I spoke to the girls that night at dinner about my
experiences and how they can continue to be the future of
our sport. Lovie Jung (my Olympic Teammate in 2004 and
2nd Baseman in 2008) flew in for the game and came to dinner.
At the game she was a celebrity coach, so it was fun to
visit with her.
Tuesday was game time! The game was taped and will air
on Saturday on ESPNU. The analysts for the game were
Michele Smith (my teammate in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics)
and Garland Cooper (Northwestern superstar). It's a great
experience for these young athletes to be on TV playing the
sport they love. Many of them will be at Division I Colleges
next year and we may see them again on TV at the Women's
College World Series. My team lost 2-0 on two home runs.
After the games we headed to Epcot Center for dinner and front
row seats for the firework show over the water. It was
a busy 3 days, but I enjoyed it so much. The event was
top notch. Under Armour and ESPN take pride in the work
that they do and it will impact these girls for a long time!

We all were meeting for the first time!

Opening Ceremonies

Mickey came out on stage at Opening Ceremonies
(Too bad my kids weren't there!)

Under Armour Focus Groups

(The girls on our way to Hollywood Studios)

In front of the Rockin' Rollercoaster at Hollywood Studios
(It's the one ride I went on)

Coaching Staff: Mary, Me, Skeeter and Garland Cooper (ESPN Rise)

Michele Smith taking a minute to smile for the camera

Visiting with former teammate, Lovie Jung

ESPNU Commentators: Garland Cooper, Mike Gleason and
Michele Smith (my former Olympic Teammate)

Posing with some players from my team: Undeniable

Faith and Works

"Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

But someone will say, "You have faith without your works,

and I will show you my faith by my works."

James 2:17-18

These verses are a great reminder that true faith will

lead to action. And faith in Jesus Christ will lead to more

love, kindness, giving, serving, praying, etc. One thing I

hear often from people who don't go to church is how they

see people they know who go to church and act completely

different outside the church walls. The Bible tells us God's

children will be known by their fruit. The Bible also says

that the "fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,

kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control".

Our faith is known not only by our words, but more importantly it is shown

by our actions.

A Day in the Life of my Car Rides with a Screaming Kid!

Everyone that knows me knows that I am a happy

person most of the time. I like to laugh and like
to smile. Well, my 2-yr-old son, Luke, has been
quite the opposite in the car and at home the past
year or so. He is so laid back and happy when we're
out and my friends think he's so good, but I keep
telling them how crazy he is at home and in the car
with his screaming tantrums. I finally started putting
the camera video on him just so I can look back and laugh.
It keeps me from going crazy! So here it is- a look at
my car drives! To my friends who call when I'm driving-
this is what you are hearing! Enjoy!

Why I love the summer. . .

When you're a homeschooling mom of 3 busy little boys,
the summers are the best time of year! Here are some of
the reasons I love summer so much! Of course, they all
have to do with keeping the boys busy so I can keep my
sanity!
Here are some reasons why I love the summer. . .

Lazy mornings in our pajamas watching cartoons

Root Beer Floats!

Guitar Lessons (Luke can't wait to get his
hands on the guitar)

Swinging

Playgrounds

Climbing

Hanging

Fun at the Beach

Time with Friends

Pizza on the Grill (by my friend Heather)

Pool Days


And the best reason for all these busy activities: