Others First

Sometimes God has to teach us things that are HARD. We are THERE. After a sad event in which my mother in law felt the need to use her walking utensil to discipline the woman that she, in her very mixed up mind, thinks is stealing things from her....(go ahead..it's okay. laugh.......we are laughing to keep from crying...and we've done quite a bit of that, too.....it's funny until you have to clean up the mess it leaves......) ....We now have three weeks to move them from Ft. Worth to Midland. Looking at this overwhelming task is humbling, to say the least. Still, we know it will work....why? Because this is one of those God sized tasks that is IMPOSSIBLE to do in our own strength. In the past month we have had FOUR DIFFERENT MAJOR events with them.....including ........law suits, canings, car repairs, evictions, drama, Jim's cancer, EEEEETTTTCCCCC.
We had really been trying to set some boundaries. We had said that we would get us settled first (we are still in the church house) and THEN work on moving them next year.......NOT!!!!! God said, "Others first." That simple childhood lesson - ironically - taught to us BY our parents - is now needing to be put into place FOR Rob's parents. ...and it will.....God provided an apartment today. Good part of town, lower level, two bedroom. Two people were waiting in line for it after me. I prayed for wisdom....with that quick decision, I hope it was HIS will and wisdom at work. After calling around for days, touring places all Sat., etc.....I KNOW that this was our only option. ...Here's the tough part....Wanda's response, "I really wanted a condo" and "Did you get to see the caret? Is it as bad as this place?" Such gratitude. Thankfully, I determined a long time ago that these things are done "for the Lord and not for man."
Pray for continued wisdom, and for LOTS Of patience, mercy and grace. We are going to need an extra measure! My happy birthday will be on MOVING DAY....YEA!!!! What did you get??????I am getting my INLAWS!!!!! =0)
God is sovereign. Even in this....I WILL TRUST HIM! His faithfulness endures.
Love you all!
d

Ministry or Madness???

We are still learning. Yes, after 15 years in youth ministry, still learning. We overbooked the summer. pure and simple. It is so great to be home. Rob will be home from Creel, Mex on the 8th. In spite of our exhaustion and overbooked schedule, God has graciously demonstrated his LOVE, POWER and WORK in our lives and in the lives of others. What a blessing to be able to serve HIM. Between Community Rehab in Commanche, Super Summer sessions 2 & 4, DFW Dive, Camp Red Cloud and Creel, MEx mission trip, God HAS our attention. We want to make sure that our ministry is one of "BEING" not just "DOING" - Since this was our first summer in Midland, the summer was a combination of the "old" meets the "new". Next summer we will pare it down and listen for what the Lord wants us to cut/add.....We pray that our ministry will become more family friendly, as well, where we are ministering to the family instead of robbing students from their families. Look this year for our ministry to reflect more of the Deuteronomy model of family ministry. Parents will be called up to serve, lead and teach - especially in their own homes. Plan to see Crestview's student ministry as more of an EQUIPPING ministry for the families of students to redirect to the model that God set before us.
We are looking forward to what God is going to do through this commitment to a truly BIBLICAL model of ministry!!!! His revelation is real and our family is the one who will first feel the freedom in this commitment. Sometimes having an "OLD" youth pastor has its perks....we see how you, the parents are feeling and what you are dealing with. We miss our family time. We want time to BE what God calls us to BE as parents - and we know that you agree!
It is going to be a GREAT YEAR!!!

Home? Where is Home?

Monday we arrived at our house in Keller for the last stay. It is so weird how excited we always got as we drove into the neighborhood. Even the dogs were up and wagging with apparent doggie smiles.....Brock would say "we're home, we're home" - Tori would be texting every DFW friend in high anticipation of reuniting.....Rob and I both get a warm fuzzy feeling when we drive in to see the pretty landscape lights on the house and the manicured yard.....But, the question is...."Is it home?" - we then got out of the car and rushed in to find an empty shell where memories are the only richness that still exist. It's not 'home' any more....morein...it is just a house. God has new things for us. New adventures, new walls to paint and curtains to sew. New memories to create...all of them in a new place. It is so hard to make a temporary location feel like home for me. I need to refresh my understanding of what makes it a 'home'. It is the laughter and smiles, the sturggles and tears. It is the family time playing games and jumping on the trampoline. the early morning coffee and Bible reading, the late night times when Rob and I pray together. It is the things, as the cliche' says...'of the heart'......Home IS where the heart is.......It's true. ...and I am the most blessed of all homemakers!
"He who started a good work will be faithful to complete it....." amen

Summer CRAZE for the Watson Family

We have SOLD the HOUSE!!!!! Praise JESUS! Our closing date is July 17. Pray that it all goes as planned. We are learning to trust and walk in God's timing and provision. He is good....ALWAYS.

As for my daughter...wow...she is growing up! Tori got braces on Monday. Her smile is so beautiful. She just gives me such JOY! Sometimes I can't believe that she is turning 13 already on the 18th....then again...sometimes I can't believe she is only 13. She is so much fun. So mature in her thinking. So kind. What a blessing!

The Brock man....we've had a great summer so far together. He cracks me up. Tori is off and about in her already way to busy social life....and Rob is working - so Brock and I are getting some quality time together this summer. He's a reading machine and - of course - loves his video games. I feel horrible that I did not get him in tennis camp this summer. We've made up for it, though, in plenty of west Texas fun in the sun.

Rob is loving his job. He is spending more time than ever there - which is a challenge sometimes - but it is such a joy to see him being about to work with vision and have such a team of visionary leaders to work with. He loves the staff. They meet for coffee several mornings each week and just enjoy one another.

The coming weeks will be quite eventful for the Watsons.....to Brady for July 3-5, Rob preaches on July 6th, then To DFW to pick up vans and settle things on the 6th-7th, back to pick up students and drive them BACK to DFW for the Rangers and Six Flags on the 8-9, then returning vans to DFW on the 10th.....I fly out to Austin on the following Monday for the PALS conference then I fly to meet the family in DFW on the 16th so we can close on the house on the 17th. We will celebrate Tori's birthday on the 18th in DFW then back to Midland to pack and leave for camp on midnight the next night on the 19th.....We will be at camp Red Cloud in Colorado for a week, return for 5 days then Rob and Tori leave for Creele, Mexico onAug. the 1st (our 16th anniversary) for a week long mission trip. We have a couple of days down before I return to school on the 15th......Man...summer is flying by!

Well, I lost my cell phone for 5 days last week. At first it was weird....I found myself feeling strangely isolated. ....by the 4th day, I noticed that I was so peaceful. I wasn't checking for it unconsciously anymore. My drive time was quiet - even worshipful. I was on task more. It wasn't as bad as I thought. Although, I must admit that I was ecstatic when it turned up lodged down in between the seat in my car! On that note, I want to follow with a little thought that Rob shared at church tonight with the students. He is doing a study on simplicity - vs the chaos. This one really made me think:

Cell Phone vs. Bible
I wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several times a day?
What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text daily?
What if we treated it like we could not live without it?
What if we gave it to kids as gifts?
What if we used it when we traveled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go, "Hmmm, where is my Bible?"
Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill!
Makes you stop and think "where are my priorities"....
and by the way, No dropped calls!!!!

"Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all of these things will be added unto you." Matt. 6:33

2008 FADE Disciple Now Weekend - AWESOME!!!

God is SO Good! It was so much fun to see our group leaders 'do their thing' ...These are all students that we have seen grow up....in age as well as spiritual depth. What a blessing to see them share with our students the love of Jesus in such a passionate way!

Surrender.....

Main Entry:	surrender
Part of Speech:	noun
Definition:	giving up
Synonyms:	abandonment, abdication, acquiescence, appeasement, capitulation, cessation, dedition, delivery, giving way, relenting, relinquishment, renunciation, resignation, submission, succumbing, white flag*, yielding
Antonyms:	fight, victory, win

Have I? Do I? Will I? - Those are questions that I have had to ask myself lately. I SAY that I desire to be in complete surrender - and I believe that to be my honest heart - HOWEVER.....Have I? Do I? and Will I? - in EVERY area, that is?

I pray that I will be able to follow Christ with reckless abandonment and trust HIM for every need, desire, care.

By the way...Have I mentioned lately how MUCH I LOVE CRESTVIEW???????? The women's retreat is "Jesus and Chocolate" - doesn't get much better than that! haha We are doing a skit with the staff wives. They are all SO HILARIOUS! We were all laughing so hard that I almost lost my dinner! What FUN and encouraging friends! They truly are a blessing.

Mercy Day Again....

....One thing to say.....
Another Mercy Day.
I'd appreciate it if you all would speak a little prayer. Today was just a plain ole hard day. Multifaceted.
Does ANYONE want to buy a lovely house in the Keller ISD? Let me make you a deal!

What is a Valentine?

This post is a Valentine Tribute...which may nauseate you...but is, nevertheless, appropriate...

What is a Valentine?

Well....it is not all roses and chocolate (which, by the way is not on my diet)...It is not all romance and sweet talk (although those things are nice additions)....A Valentine is.....

A man who is devoted to God, family and others - in that order...
A man who prepares your children's lunches every morning - and even draws pictures on the lunch bags for them most days....
A man who spends Thursday mornings (for now) at the laundrymat doing everyone's laundry b/c the washer does not work well in the house where you are staying.
A man who double checks the locks on the doors every night before he goes to bed.
A man who uses his Christmas gift cards to buy things for everyone else.
A man who makes sure that you never have to worry about whether your car has gas or not.
A man who prays with you before falling asleep.
A man who takes out the trash.
A man who brings you coffee some mornings.
A man who doesn't complain when the house is messy - and who helps pick up.
A man who coaches his son's basketball team.
A man who encourages you.
A man who says nothing when you are on a much needed diet but decide that you want to eat one of "Bob's Big Burgers" instead of a salad.
A man who NEVER misses his daughter's games.
A man who cleans out your closet for you!
A man who irons his own clothes....AND YOURS and the KIDS!

Shall I go on??? I could...and for days.
Never forget that the love language of ACTION is more powerful than WORDS. May I never take my VALENTINE for granted!

We celebrated early. We attended the Madrical Dinner at Greentree Country Club. It was a FABULOUS presentation put on by the Lee Choral (one of our students, James, was "KING JAMES".... The night out was a treat from our new friends, David and Misty Baker. (David is a Chris Yeargin twin!) We had a great time! Sorry for the blurry pic....

7 POUNDS!!!!!!

Okay.....CRAZY!!!! I LOST 7 POUNDS THIS WEEK!!!!! Thanks to the Lord - He is so FAITHFUL! I just committed to put Him "FIRST PLACE" and it was amazing how my eating habits changed. I began to be able to not only CHOKE DOWN all that water, but even enjoy it...and, I never thought I'd say this...but I have decided that I LIKE fat free milk! It is true! I did not do a great job with measuring everything and weight things, but I was just leaving off extra carbs by eating one bun chicken sandwiches instead of jalopena burgers at Texas Burger, etc...and I cut all of the sweet tea out (which is SAD....I think I was addicted) ...but YES...7 LBS! I was prepared for the worst since I had not written things down well....but it all worked out, I guess!What an encouragement! Just about 50 more to go....Man, I never thought I'd have to say that....but it is true. Pray that I can stay focused on what God's best for me is and how He wants me to take care of His TEMPLE.

We had fun last night. Kerry Mackie was in town and came over for dinner and I let Tori have 3 friends (two guy buddies, Coby and Jeremy, and her bud Megan). They had so much fun. I fixed dinner for them and they watched (or didn't watch) a movie. I'll post the pics. Coby is Tori's BEST friend out here and has won our heart. He is a doll. He and Tori look so funny together when they hang out b/c Coby is LITERALLY shorter than Brock and comes to T's shoulder or less. They have a great time together. His mom, Eva, is my best friend out here.
I'll get the pics on. They are cute of them building a pyramid in the living room! (Guys had to be the flyers b/c in the 7th grade, they are smaller!haha)

....In the FIRST PLACE........

God is doing such a work in my heart and life! He has presented me with some trials which have been refining me...and oh do I need lots of that! Refining is not fun, but the outcome is victorious when I submit it to God's sovereignty and just TRUST. Sometimes familiar passages become cliche if we are not careful. I allowed this to be the case for me in the case of Matt. 6:33. I committed it to memory years ago..."But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all of these things will be added unto you".....hallelu hallelu-u-jah How many times I have sung it and not absorbed the depth of meaning to it. At forty, I find myself seeking simplicity...maybe b/c my memory is already fading, or the eyes are squinting a bit more....but mostly because I have decided that life is just to short to obsess over the details. I've never been a good detail person, therefore, I have been guilt ridden over them most of my life. "I should've" "could've" etc. I am learning that all of my efforts to try to be all things to all people have failed me miserably. I have one and only one loyalty...Seeking GOD and HIS Righteousness. I am learning...slowly to trust that HIS plan for me INCLUDES the best plan for my children, marriage, my job, my friendships, even my care of my body! He IS in the details and b/c He loves me so much, HE will take care of the details as long as I just keep SEEKING HIM....daily, hourly, moment by moment, in every breath, every thought, every worry and every decision. He's got it covered. Praise GOD that I don't have to be a detail person! Now...THAT is something to say Hallelujah about!

I have started First Place which is a God centered approach to life in general...and includes an eating plan to help me to take care of my body, HIS temple. I have even chopped my hair off! SIMPLICITY is a wonderful thing! Seeking HIM is confidence building and peace giving b/c if I only do what HE calls me to do, it will be successful - at least if I lean on HIS power for every step! Keep me in your prayers....Donna's on the move toward righteousness....at least I am committed to SEEKING HIM in the FIRST PLACE!

Mercy Day

Some days are just GRACE all over the place. Some days we need so much MERCY. Today was a MERCY day.....After such a fabulous start to our new life in Midland, I found a really negative attitude today on my first day at Lee. It has to get better. 5 rats in my new classroom (the ones that I SAW), NO new friends on my first day, exhaustion and overwhelm just seemed to take their toll. My back hurts - tile floors in my room. Classroom resources are almost nonexistent. I was 'shrugged off' at lunch today....I felt like a 7th grade girl who wanted to run to my car and cry after everyone gathered with their 'groups' to go out to lunch. Man. I haven't experienced that in a long time....if ever. I probably had it coming. I will forever be more mindful of the 'newbies' on campus.....that is for SURE. I miss LD Bell. I miss the comfort of my friends in my department. I miss a room full of resources. I miss students who loved me. I miss a staff where I had already 'proved' myself. I miss confidence. I miss the copy room! (we're on our own) I miss colored paper. I miss having a colored printer. I miss open purchase orders. I miss contained rodents. (???) I miss getting paid on the 20th. I miss my messy desk. I miss internships. I miss my teen moms. I miss Bannister's references to 'getting on the bus' (we had a stupid bus evacuation drill today to see how fast we could get OFF of the bus.......I thought that was quite ironic......) I miss my parking place right by the door. I miss Linard, our custodian. I miss having a dicut machine not only at school - but in my room! I miss portfolios. I miss Felita's tuna fish. I miss her hugs, encouragement and servant leadership. I miss craft fair. I miss having to be rescued from convo. I miss lunch runs with Jen. I miss having Pat to remind me about dates and meetings. I miss CTE campus funds and walmart credit cards. I miss portfolios. I miss knowing what I'm doing TOMORROW. I miss my sweet students. I miss L.D. Bell.

I am so thankful that His mercies are new every morning.

Psalm 90:14

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

Love to my Bell Family - Donna