T.G.I.F.

.....hey, just thinking out loud after I typed the title, I wonder how long our country will "tolerate" using the term TGIF, after all.....it does have God in it and we have to be politically correct....(ok, that would be a whole nother post).

So yes.....it's Friday. I am pretty spent. I am wrapping up the last of tie dyeing for my first fall festival. I actually am excited and nervous at the same time. You know, we all want to be "liked" in a new crowd....it's all part of our inner need for acceptance. So I have dreams of grandeur for tomorrow's event *insert dream like music*.... My booth will be the "hot spot". It will be most colorful tent of all, like a rainbow.....we will have music playing but only if I can find a battery operated boom box....and btw, apparently asking my kids to help me find a "boom box" was like asking to locate a vintage crank phonograph by the way they scrunched up their faces.
OK, back to my dream......We will be swamped with shoppers......long lines....I will have to post "SoRrY, SoLD OuT" signs to the disappointed folks who missed out. *dream music fades out*
WOW, I have set the expectation bar pretty high, huh? Actually....in all honesty.....I really just hope that God blesses us with no rain. That's all. I just think it will be fun to do.....and if all goes well, I can start participating in all the outdoor festivals next summer. The ultimate will be saving up enough money to finally get my dream car.....a VW bus! How cool would *that* be!?! All decked out with bead curtains.....I am thinking orange would be the best color for me....whoops, I ventured back into dream state.....

OK, so back to reality......if I can remember to bring my camera and fresh batteries, I'll post some pics of our tent/booth. :) Remember, teeny prayers for no rain!

Fridays are often times for most people to wind down.....for us, it starts winding back up. My older boys go to our church's youth night, Ground Zero. We live about 40 minutes away from our church, so it's a little bit of a hike. GZ usually is from 7-9:30ish, so we are really only getting back home well after 10, which is clearly past my bedtime. I can remember when I wouldn't even be caught dead being seen at a nightclub before 11pm, and now if someone invites us to go out, I think that after 8 is outrageous.

So back to GZ and being in the taxi cab mode of motherhood. Sometimes I moan and groan about gas prices and/or how the traveling back and forth is taking away from any little "me" time....I know that sounds selfish, but this is my blog and I am trying to be as honest with myself as I can. Some Friday nights, I just want to stay in my jammies.....rent a good flick.....and snuggle in bed early.....but I have this little voice inside that talks to me and reminds me of a few things. You all know that voice.....some call it your conscience, some call it intuition.....I call it God's soft whisper (even though sometimes it feels like a poking, nagging jab in my ribs.....you see, I am being honest) He reminds me that although it is sometimes a drag to be driving them back and forth.....I could be driving them back and forth to a drug rehab facility, a hospital for chemo treatments, picking them up from a police station, etc. I am reminded on how I am so lucky to have teens who are on fire for God and want to be surrounded by other youth who feel the same. I am reminded of when I was 15 and almost 17.....and I certainly was no where near God or any place close to learning about Him.

Now don't get me wrong, I am totally aware that part of the whole GZ deal is the social aspect......let's be real, yk? Sometimes I am laying on the car horn in the driveway.....waiting impatiently for H to flat iron his hair or G to make sure he sprays his final blast of his cologne.....but the bottom line, is that they want to be where God is. And the ministry at our church knows how to relate to these kids with their preaching and the music. They address real-life issues that our youth is faced with and they connect....The youth pastors/leaders are "youth" themselves.....they in their twenties and know all about iPods, Facebook and texting.......they certainly don't use "boom-boxes" at their events.

From the outside, you might see this group as a bunch of radical kids with their blue hair, piercings and tattoos......but these kids have such a vibrant passion for God and I am so thankful that my kids are part of it all. I am not naive to think that my kids are going to be like Wally and Beaver Cleaver in life just because they attend a Friday night event.....but what I can find peace with, is that I am doing my best to make sure they are surrounded by kids who are more of a positive influence. Being within a circle of friends who might help my kids second guess their actions and decisions and/or know that they are going to be held accountable for making poor choices. It's tough enough growing up in this day, but having a strong group of Christ-following peers can surely help when they are faced with the "not so Beaver Cleaver" world.

I was watching one of my favorite preachers, Ed Young. He was talking about how when Joshua (in the Bible, Joshua.....not my Joshua, lol)....brought his people into the promised land of Canaan. They reaped all the blessings for themselves, but they didn't invest in the future generation with teaching the Word. (Judges 2:6-10) The story tells about a generation that did not know God and who were chasing other gods. That is what I believe is happening now.....our society is really wrapped up chasing other gods such as money, materialism, etc. We are in "Generation Me"...... Of course I am not saying that we should not aspire to have success with a nice home and belongings, but we shouldn't be chasing it and/or making it our sole goal. We should make our main focus serving (chasing) God and the blessings will come. Anyway, I don't want to go off tangent, I just feel, that now that I have children.....I am realizing that it is our duty to raise up this next generation knowing God. These are our future leaders, teachers, and CEOs and it can't be all about "us"......it's about them.

So with that said.....I have a busy day.....I need to finish up this last pile of tie dye (and again being honest)....I can say that I do not want to see tie dye for a while. My hands and fingernails need to get back to somewhat of a normal human color..... and I will be able to relax and know that I don't need to freak out when one of the kids is drinking a Mason jar of Crystal Light, and not mistaking it for fuchsia dye. I can go over my list for tomorrow and check it twice. I will go out and gas up the van for tonight, and look forward to browsing mindlessly through Target for a couple of hours in between drop off/pick up.

So yes....I do thank God for Fridays....and Saturdays.....and every other day He gives me. :)

~Michelle