SNOW DAY

Here are a few of the pictures from our morning in the snow. We walked down to the river. Pearl must have thought we were going to see the ducks, because when we got there she asked, "What happened to quack quack?" To say the least we could find none for her to see.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Valentine's Day

There are many myth and lore about Valentine's day,
but I never hear what the bible has to say about a day
devoted to celebrating loving relationships.

There are over 500 verses in the bible that mention love,
but one that is not mentioned often is in Genesis 29.
The story of Jacob and Rachel where he worked seven years
for Rachel's father to gain her hand in marriage.

I implore you during this wonderful season of celebrating loved ones
and our relationships with them to read the passage in Genesis,
Genesis 29:1-30.



What does it mean to love? or maybe easier what is love? especially in
todays culture.

Would I work 14 years of hard labor to gain my wife's hand in marriage?
I hope I would not let myself get tricked.

I love my wife Brenda very much and we together work at better "loving God
with our whole hearts, souls, strengths, and minds, as well as loving our neighbors as ourselves" (Matthew 22:38-39).



Love is not just an emotion, feeling, state of being, or euphoria, but also an action, a way of life that shows integrity, honesty, truthfulness, passion (sometimes both kinds), and perseverance.

May we all love better each day holistically in a way that honors God.

Corben's Theological view Point

The web address for you to take the test:

http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=43870

You scored as Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan. You are an evangelical in the Wesleyan tradition. You believe that God's grace enables you to choose to believe in him, even though you yourself are totally depraved. The gift of the Holy Spirit gives you assurance of your salvation, and he also enables you to live the life of obedience to which God has called us. You are influenced heavly by John Wesley and the Methodists. Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 79% Emergent/Postmodern 68% Reformed Evangelical 68% Neo orthodox 54% Roman Catholic 54% Fundamentalist 54% Charismatic/Pentecostal 46% Classical Liberal 32% Modern Liberal 14% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com

Let us know where your results are.

My Theological View

You scored as Emergent/Postmodern. You are Emergent/Postmodern in your theology. You feel alienated from older forms of church, you don't think they connect to modern culture very well. No one knows the whole truth about God, and we have much to learn from each other, and so learning takes place in dialogue. Evangelism should take place in relationships rather than through crusades and altar-calls. People are interested in spirituality and want to ask questions, so the church should help them to do this. Emergent/Postmodern 68% Roman Catholic 57% Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 54% Fundamentalist 43% Charismatic/Pentecostal 39% Classical Liberal 36% Modern Liberal 21% Neo orthodox 21% Reformed Evangelical 18% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com

My Favorite Pics

This are some of my favorite pictures of Pearl over the past couple of months.
Mom and Dad want me to use the potty. I am using it as a necklace, but I have a feeling they mean use it in another way.

Mom was trying to clean and pack some stuff away after the holidays. How can she be mad when I am sooo cute.

Bring it on I can handle the truth.

What are you talking about this is my shirt. (Pearl uses a shirt any T-shirt will do like most kids us blankets)

Pearl is telling her baby that it will be OK, and she understands that it is hard to accept that we can not choose our family. But God will help us to love our family.

Loving It!!

I just got done doing one of the most exciting wonderful things in the world. I just came in from shoveling snow. It is so beautiful to look at the snow covering the area. Tomorrow morning we are planning a family walk around Bridgewater. I am going to take some pictures. So check back to see the beautiful pictures of the beautiful snow covering the world God made for us to temporally do His work in. This picture is old but the only one I could find tonight.

Can Time Stand Still?

Not long ago my classes started for the spring semester of 2007 and usually the first week is really easy, just general introductions, but this semester was different. By midweek I had to read a whole book, and by the end of the week I had to read another. Also I had a bunch of other homework and so I was feeling frustrated. Then it got worse because I was waiting for Pearl to take a nap, and she didn’t. She just played in her bed and would not go to sleep. I was so frustrated and worried I would not get the work done. I was not in a good mood and I took it out on Brenda and Pearl. Later that night God reminded me I need to trust in him and that I was not trusting in Him with this homework. I asked God to forgive me, and help me make it through this. I cried out for God’s help. I also apologized to both Brenda and Pearl. The next morning I was watching Pearl. I was able to read an entire book well over a hundred pages as well as take notes on it and really learn what I was reading. I did this while I was watching Pearl and usually I can’t seem to get any homework done while I am with her, this is the task oriented personality in me, but I did. Then I realized I did all this in less then an hour and a half. I have never read that much, in that amount of time, and really took it in and learned from it. It was like time stood still. I saw where I was wrong, I asked God to forgive me, He did, and He helped me when I asked for His help. You see this reminds me of the blessings and woes in Luke 6:17-26 and especially 6:20 the blessing of being poor. This is not necessarily about money, nor is the rich in the warning later on, but whether we are being dependant on God or if we are trying to do it on our own.

Are we trusting in God to take care of us, obeying, and asking for help, or are we trying to do it on our own in this pull yourselves up by your boots strap mentality where most homes have a computer, 2 cars, and 2.5 kids who each have a cell phone U.S.?

If all things really are possible through God as Scripture suggests:

^NIV Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Then what is time? and can it stand still?

Cold

It has been so cold this week. Pearl has been looking out the windows and saying snow snow. We know she wants to go out and play, but it is way toooo cold. When the door opens she runs to it and than yells cold and runs back away from the door. The only bad thing for me about the cold weather that we have been experiencing is the fact that we had no water in the kitchen on Monday at all, and did not have water to the dishwasher until last night. Thanks to my Dad and his heat gun who came to the rescue. I did give him homemade chili for dinner though. I am not sure which he liked more not having to eat out (since they are still living at the Holiday Inn) or seeing Pearl. I know Pearl's highlight of the past few days was eating Mangos last night with her PapPap.

We are sooooo proud of you...

Pearl and I are so proud of Corben. He just got the results of his one week intensive class on leadership that he took last month at Asbury Seminary, and we knew it an "A". That gives him a cumulative GPA of 3.57. We were not surprised we knew he would do a wonderful job. He was also able to find housing for this summer that will enable Pearl and I to go down with him, and it will not cost anymore than if it was just him. What an answer to prayer.

God is an awesome God

God is an awesome God. He answers prayers in so many ways. I was riding home from visiting my parents this week while Brenda was driving and Pearl was sleeping and I was reminded on the radio that often we pray and are thankful for answered prayers, but do we stop and take the time to make sure the children around us see these prayers answered. As we continued on our way home I talked to my Aunt who was trying to figure out how they were going to pay for their son to go to Geneva College in Beaver Falls, PA and I did not know this, but I was calling because Brenda had found a scholarship possibility for her son through Brenda and I as alumni of Geneva. Praise God for answered prayers. Also we have been experiencing family tension and God again answered our prayers there, by showing us that we do not always need to face this head on, but let God fight our battles for us, and so he has and continues to do so. This is like the Exodus 14:14 passage of the Old Testament. This concept is not only seen in Exodus, but is also seen in 1 Samuel 8:20 and 2 Chronicles 32:8.

The amazing part is not only is God alive, active, and answering prayers, but that he fights our battles for us, and we are to be at peace with this. So what is the appropriate response, how do we honor God for this, we should make sure the youth in our lives, see how God is working and answering prayers.

The radio personality even gave simple examples of how to let our children know prayers are being answered, by writing them down on a list like maybe on the refrigerator and then write down next to them how God answered the prayer when He does. Children will be excited when they see how God is working. Children will be encouraged to pray because they see the results. This is not to take away from faith, but help infant faith to grow and seeds to be planted as well as watered.

Awesome! God is truly Awesome!

PukeFest 2007 Continues...

The puking never ends... Monday was dad's turn be sick throwing up. Then Monday evening/early Tuesday morning was Mom's turn, and then Pearl again on Tuesday night.

Mom even ended up at the ER on Tuesday evening. She is OK and the doctors only found that she was dehydrated and little low on her potassium level. Me and Pearl know she is monkey enough for us, but we placed an order for more bananas anyway.

What a week, through all this we can see how awesome God is!!! and how amazing He is for making such a wonderful creation as the human body and even better, family.

PukeFest 2007!

Well, I think Pearl is feeling better today, Monday January 22nd, 2007 since she started throwing up yesterday around 2pm and did not stop until around 11pm that night. She even threw up one more time 2am on Monday. Boy was she sick. We took her to the ER last night and they said she could not hold liquids down because she was nauseated and then they let us she has an ear infection in her left ear. We also found out Pearl does not like anti-nausea suppository medicine and I do not blame her!

She still needs to get over her ear infection, but she is doing much better now.

I saw some interesting things yesterday as I watched 12 shirts, three pairs of sweatpants, and two pair of shorts, all my clothes I was wearing, get puked on. I saw how Pearl's needs are not always seen. It was obvious when she wanted me to hold her while she was puking she wanted her father to comfort her, but there was something else she needed, more foundational, more basic, and essential. Every so often she needed to hear her mom's voice. It comforted her on a deeper level. One time I saw this clearly was when she had to come down the stairs, away from our puke zone, where the towels and wash rags were, because she kept calling mom who was diligently cooking in the kitchen since our family was coming over for supper. Pearl got to the bottom of the stairs and yelled mom, long before Pearl could have seen her mom, Brenda responded, and that was all Pearl needed. Pearl heard her mothers voice and instantly turned around and started back up the stairs. She needed something that important, deep, and hidden.

Sometimes I think this is how we are with God. Maybe it is good this way and maybe it is bad, but once we recognize this we get to know God a little better, our relationship with him, and even get to know ourselves a little better.

May the lessons continue, just hopefully without all the puking!

Coming Home

We are soooooo excited. Corben is coming home today. He is going to try to make it before nap time. Pearl was a real trooper this week. There was only one time that she spazed out. That was last night, but after a phone call to Daddy and hearing hime sing to her in Hebrew she was fast asleep. Praise God for phones.

New Year

Well 2007 is here, and we are already off and running. Corben is away at school this week in Kentucky. I am praying that it will be a time of rest and renewal for him as well as a time of great learning. He is taking a class on leadership. When he returns he will be participating in the partnersteps program through the conference along with a member of our church, (praise God for her willingness). While Corben is away Pearl and I are working on taking down the Christmas decorations and cleaning the house. We were going to work on potty training, however due to her being sick over new year's and spending a day in the ER we are just working on getting her over her viral infection and congestion. She has not thrown up since Monday morning, priase God. I had to wash all of the sheets on Monday due to Sunday night in her bed and than Monday morning in our bed. Pearl, gotta love her. She is cute even when she pukes all over the beds.

Christmas

Well Christmas has come and has gone, but that does not mean we have to stop celebrating. We can and should celebrate anew everyday the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Some of my highlights of Christmas were:
1.Pearl going out and talking to all of the people and animails in the churches nativity set up on the front lawn of the church. She even asks to go and see Jesus a few nights.
2.Pearl telling us that Christmas is about Jesus.
3.Seeing all of our family and friends during the Christmas season.
4.Having Christmas breakfast for Pearl's Grandparents and Aunt Dottie, oh and lunch too. (due to the fire)
5.Attending the Christmas Eve Eve service at Concord UMC, what a blessing it was to sit in church with Corben.

What do trains have to do with Christmas & Jesus

After watching Polar express, again, I was wondering what trains have to do with Christmas...

I came up with a few comparisions between followers of Jesus and trains rides:

Following Jesus is like a Train ride because...

1. For both the journey has just begun when you get on
2. Sometimes you go through the city and see Jesus everywhere other times you go through the country and think he is nowhere to be found
3. You are always moving on the train it is just sometimes it is toward Jesus or away from him
4. There are other people on the train and Jesus gives us help by having people with us
5. It is your choice to get on or off the train and the same for following Jesus
6. You get drink and get fed on a train just like Jesus who is the bread and water of life
7. The train has guidelines to obey and so does Jesus
8. You can take things on a train with you, but the space is limited. It is the same when we follow Jesus.
9. There is only one ticket you need to have to get on board and with Jesus it is similar, you need to believe He is Lord and Savior who died on the cross and rose from the dead so that all who believe may have a restored relationship with God
10. The tracks that the train ride on are narrow and with Jesus his path is similar
11. There is a conductor on the train to help people follow the rules and Jesus provides help like this for His followers
12. Trains can span enormous gaps using bridges and Jesus helps us do the same
13. The foundation trains ride on, the stuff underneath the metal tracks are big pieces of wood and large spikes just like the foundation of following Jesus with the big piece of wood and spikes used to nail him to the cross
14. Trains are like following Jesus because they both have there doors open for anyone to get on

Posted by Corben

It's begining to look and smell like Christmas

We are all decorated. With the exeption of our real Christmas tree which we will go and get more than likely next weekend with my parents. They will not be able to get one this year due to the fire at their house and the fact that they are still living at the Holiday Inn and will more than likely still be there until January. But hey there is a pool and Pearl loves swimming with her Dad and Pap Pap.
We are having a Christmas open house this weekend for the congregations of the two churches Corben serves, our family and friends. So that is why it has been smelling like Christmas around the Russell house this week. Bonnie, my mom and I have been baking cookies this week for Saturday. While Grandma has been making candy at her house.
Pearl is getting excited about Christmas. She has been dancing and singing with our 4 1/2 foot santa that sings. She has also been giving him lots of hugs and when she goes to bed she says bless you to him on her way to bed. Her Grandpap Price says that is because she is trying to butter him up for more gifts.
Pearl loves to drive around and look at all of the lights as we travel about during this Advent season. She ooo's and aw's the lights as we go past, but I've noticed that if she has oooed once she does not the next time we pass the house. Not sure why, but I do know there is a reason in the mind of hers.
Pearl went to see her first movie at a theater yesterday. We took her to see Santa Clause 3. She did great and liked the movie. Well the first 45 minutes of it than she fell asleep and woke up just in time to watch the credits and out takes. The movie was good and has a good message if you listen. I won't say any more incase you want to or are planning to go see it.
Well better get back to backing cookies and cleaning the house while Corben is at his men's breakfast and Pearl is spending time with Grandmas Price.

Busy Busy

Life has been busy busy busy at the Russell household these past few weeks. There was trick-or-treating with Pearl on a vey wet Halloween this year. This is a picture right before our little elmo went out into the streets and turned into a soggy elmo. She had a blast though and did not want any help carrying her pumpkin. Pearl and her dad are still eating the benefits of her wet walk door to door.
Shortly after Halloween we found out that Light up Night in Bridgewater is Saturday, November 18th. So we have been getting ready for that the past couple of weeks. The decorations started to go up little by little and Pearl got excited more and more. The only battle that we have had is taking the decotations off the tree. Other than that she has not been bad. She is so much fun to watch as she explores everything. We have a bust of Santa holding baby Jesus that is sitting at her eye level. She is always looking at it and saying baby. I told her the other day that it was baby Jesus that Santa is holding. She stood looked at it for a whily and now everytime she goes over to it she says Jesus points to Santa and than baby and points to baby. We still have some work on this one.
Christmas is going to be soooooo much fun this year with Pearl. I can not wait.
Last week we went to visit Corben's family for an early Thnksgiving and Chirstmas with his brother and his family. It was great to see the family and Pearl loved playing with her cousin Jared and Alyssa and seeing all her grandparents and great grandparents on Corben's side of the family. She doesn't get to see them often.

Here is Brenda!
My Beautiful Wife :-)






Posted by Corben