Why We Call Our Blog the Miracle of More

The miracle is a beautiful image of Ephesians 3:20--more than I can ask or imagine. Every day is a miracle. Every moment is a miracle. Specifically for our family, the miracle of more is our family growing in ways I would never have imagined when we first committed to adoption 8 years ago. But, the greatest miracle is the change in ME!

If you have questions about adoption, our work in South Africa, or spina bifida, please email me at rbmattox@bellsouth.net

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Excited...and....SICK!

Something I don't do much anymore, please pray for me. ;)

The exciting news first:
Josie-Tatum and I have multiple opportunities to share our mission next week. On Sunday, we've been invited to another church to share with a children's choir about our mission.

Then, next week is VBS at our church. Every night Josie-Tatum and I will share with all of the children a little bit about our mission. AND, the entire mission offering from VBS will go to our work in South Africa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, please be in prayer for me. If I had to stand in front of people right now, it wouldn't be possible.

I know that the enemy wants my joy. The day before God started really "showing up" this week, I went to the doctor with a UTI. Nothing, new, I've have them before, many times before. Only this time, the pain was so intentse my blood pressure was 164/100. So, as the meds have begun to work, the blood pressure has come down. But, last night I started with chronic diahrreah. (Sorry, for any mental images you may now have formed.) I am assuming this is a reaction from the medication....Please start praying with me. I have so many opportunities to serve JESUS this week, I need to get better.

Thank you,
Robbie

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Guess What I Found In My Bible

So, you all know Josie-Tatum and I are planning to go to South Africa on a mission trip. You all know that I had no idea where the money was coming from. God has proven Himself to be the Wonder-Working, Awe-Inspiring Jehovah-Jireh from the moment we made the committment.

Thanks to my new friend Addie, I'm reading "If You Want To Walk On Water, You've Got To Get Out of the Boat." This morning, as I was praying with my Bible and meditating on truths found in the book, I felt a prompting of the Holy Spirit to give a gift to a friend, a small gift with her BIG need, but a gift of faith when we, too, are fund-raising. God promised me that He would be faithful to provide our needs if I would be faithful.

After my prayer time, I went upstairs, searched her blog, and made a $100 donation via Pay Pal. I immediately left work, and you know what I found in my mailbox....you guessed it...an anonymous $100 donation for our trip.

As if that was not affirmation enough, we've just completed a cake fund-raiser, and one more person called to find out if it was too late to order a cake...Nope, she called just in time. That was another $15 profit.

After school today, I sent my oldest daughter to town. A friend had given me some scrap gold. Whitney called, "Guess what! You've got $105 more."

What a blessed day, Josie-Tatum and I were discussing. God had blessed us with $220 all in one day. As I was talking with Caleb about the LORD's provisions, he said, "I have to admit, Mama, I didn't have much faith in you. I didn't think you would pull it off." Yeah, he said it.

Then tonight, guess what I found in my Bible just before bedtime....


just guess.........


did you guess yet?????????????

$500!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You read that right! Not $5. Not $50. But $500! Thanks to another A in my life. Thanks to my Wonder-Working, Awe-Inspiring, Jehovah-Jireh! If you want to walk on water, you've got to get out of the boat.

So tonight, when we were praying together, Josie-Tatum said, "You're right, Mama. God is good."

All the time, Baby!

The LORD has done great things for us, whereof we are glad.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Giving Them To Jesus





As I was waking Josie-Tatum for school this morning, I shouted, "Hip, hip, hooray, it's the last day." And, as soon as I said it, I was reminded....that across the loft upstairs, Brandon and Caleb were preparing for their last day, their last day of school--ever.

Where did the time go? Just twelve years ago, I was waking Caleb up for his last day of kindergarten? Just twelve years ago, Brandon's mother was alive, getting him up for his last day of school, knowing she had little time left. How much she would like to be here on this day! I grew very emotional.

I know that change is necessary. I know that it is our job as parents to prepare our children to become independent. God has entrusted us with them, so we can in turn entrust them to Him. We truly don't want them to be dependent on us forever, but today, for just a minute, I wished they weren't all grown up. I miss the little boy Caleb, with spiked hair playing with Batman toys. I am saddened when I think of the years I missed when I didn't know Brandon. I wished I had been given more time with him.

But, I am soooooooooo proud of my boys. How many mothers can say the worst thing her 18 year old boy has done is get suspended from school because he forgot a knife was in his truck. How many mamas of eighteen year old boys were given big bear hugs today, kisses, and lifted off the floor? How many mamas of 18 year old boys hear, "I love you," every day. Thank you, Jesus, for my boys.

Thank you for their determination to stay away from drugs and alcohol. I know there have been moments when they were offered. Thank you for their desire to be successful. Thank you for Caleb who has already signed up for the Navy. Thank you for Brandon, who is headed to UGA, who wants to be the kind of teacher BH has inspired him to be.

Thank you, to you, my blogger friends. Thank you for the many prayers you have prayed for my family. Thank you, that I can trust you to continue to pray for these priceless treasures.





Brandon was blessed by two special guests tonight. Praise the LORD! Years before he became part of our family, he lived with his mother's best friend and her husband. Mr. Jerry and his brother-in-law drove 2 1/2 hours to visit with Brandon tonight. Following graduation, we all went out to dinner. It was wonderful reunion for Brandon with "family" he's only seen twice in the past 8 years.

Mr. Jerry and Mr. Link arrived in our hometown a couple of hours before graduation was to begin, but the boys had to report to the high school. Ellie and Mr. Link became fast friends. He gave the girls gifts, and within minutes Ellie had him in "time out" at the bottom of the stairs. They took Tigger to the hospital because he was sick with a broken tail. After dinner tonight, I was given to greatest of all compliments from Mr. Link. While I had only met him hours before, he gave me the sweetest hug and said, "You are a remarkable lady, and I have fallen in love with your family. May I please come back to visit?" Isn't that what I hope and pray for, that others would see Jesus in us, and be drawn to the Jesus who walks with us everyday??????????????



The rain, and the rain, and the rain. Did I mention that is has rained this week, everyday this week? The rain forced graduation indoors, a totally packed gymnasium with over 200 graduates, each allowed 6 guests. The boys were incredibly hot and miserable, drenched with perspiration by the time graduation was over.


Caleb with his girlfriend, Casey. Casey is a junior and served as an usher for tonight's graduation.


This is what life is really like, living with Caleb and Brandon. Caleb is horsing around with House. House is Brandon's future roommate at UGA.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

My Kindergarten Graduate


Can you hear the "AWWWWWWWWWWW" of a couple of hundred people, when she walked to the microphone and said, "When I grow up, I want to be a missionary and help orphans." If you'd like to join her and encourage her with a small request, check out her blog by clicking here.

Like Brothers, Like Sister....She must have taken a few goofy lessons.

She can perform the Rock-N-Roll Handjive.

And, she wowed her family by welcoming everyone in Chinese. She is the most bashful of all of my children, and I never dreamed she would have stood at the microphone with a smile!

Her brothers graduate from high school on Friday. Pray for Mama. :)

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Daddy's Birthday Dresses

Aren't they beautiful?


How could a daddy not have a happy birthday, seeing two princesses come out of the dressing room looking this beautiful?

But, serioulsy, yesterday was Stan's 46th birthday. We took a Dolphin Boat tour. (I highly recommend it. Click here it you'd like to learn more.) We got out on the boat before I realized my camera battery was dead, so I am sad to report I don't have photos.

After seeing the dolphins, we went out to eat, and since we were in Brunswick, we did a little shopping.

It is such fun to dress little girls. (I am, sometimes, a material girl, but click here to be reminded I am sometimes a spiritual girl, too.) And, for Josie-Tatum, we have such fun looking for shoes. She enjoys spending her own money on shoes, and has LOADS of flip flops. She enjoyed trying on lots of shoes yesterday, and happily brought home this pair.



But, when you wear AFO's, it is difficult to find shoes that fit, and rare that you find "cute" shoes that fit. It breaks my heart when Ellie comments that Josie-Tatum has pretty shoes, and she doesn't. So, when Josie-Tatum tried on these shoes, and we realized Ellie's braces would fit into a pair of those shoes, too, we had to buy them.


Ellie was so excited. We actually found 2 pair of shoes that fit her well with her AFO's yesterday..at Target, of all places. On his birthday, Daddy waited patiently as we tried on about 10 different styles. And, much to our surprise, we brought home 2 styles. The loafers that we found were such a good fit, I went ahead and bought pair of that exact same style, so we have a new pair when school starts next fall.

And, one more photo just to make you smile.


Thank you, LORD, for your blessings!
Robbie

Thursday, May 14, 2009

New Blog

Okay, so I've officially lost my mind. Well, maybe it was official the day I tried to shoot an ant off of my toe with a water hose....only I was pressure washing the house, not washing my car...so with the pressure washer I shot the ant of my toe, and lots of skin.....I digress.

I've begun a new blog Anticipating the Inconceivable: Ephesians 3:20 Moments
God has continued to do more than I can imagine, and I decided I needed a place to share those moments with the world....in a place just for those moments.

So, go over and take a peak.
And, if you have an Ephesians 3:20 moment you'd like to share. Send it to me, and I'll post it. We can encourage one another in the body of Christ.

Love to my blogger family!
Robbie

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

If Only....

You could have been here tonight when Ellie said her prayers. It would make you laugh much harder.

She began, "Jesus, thank you that I was a good girl today............. well.............most of the time."

And, I'm not sure what she prayed beyond that, because I was too busy stifling my laughter.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Anticipating the Inconceivable

Living Ephesians 3:20, once again God has done more than I could ask or imagine.

Tonight, at church, one of the ladies in our church walked to the front and gave a challenge. She challeneged the church to sacrifice one lunch meal a week and give Josie-Tatum $5.00. She said if JT's little 6-year-old friend could sacrifice $5.00, then surely each person in the church could.

I wish you could all have seen Josie-Tatum's face, as, at the end of the service, people started coming to her or calling her name and giving her $5.00. Someone asked, "How much money did you get?" Her face lit up when she said, "I haven't been able to count it all yet." I can only imagine how God is growing her faith.

God is good!

Robbie

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Consider the Lilies





I thought of these verses when I was taking these photos of the girls.
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; And yet...Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If God so clothe the grass of the filed, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more cloth you?

God has once again showed up in our lives, exceeding, abundantly more than I could ask or imagine. Do you see the total for our mission trip today? Do you remember what it was last week?

Since last Thursday, we've received donations, a discount from the missionaries in south Africa, a transfer into our account from another member of the mission team, and the ending of a fund raiser...with a total of the week of $1,290!!! How's that for a week? Isn't that just like our wonder-working, awe-inspiring, Jehovah-Jirah?

As you enjoy the other photos of the girls, join me in anticipation of the unimaginable!




Sunday, May 3, 2009

Ellie and the Young Author Go to Nashville

Nashville, GA, that is.....

Stan's cousin got married this weekend, and we had a wonderful time at the wedding. Ellie and the young author attended. (You'll have to wait until the end of the post to meet the author.) We saw family, of course, and some friends we haven't visited with in a while. The reception was at a lovely place called Shadow Oak Plantation. How many weddings have you attended alongside zebra, gazelle, emu, and longhorned cattle? We also ate some of the best wedding food we've ever tasted.

Didn't my girls look lovely?






I have a family shot I plan to put in my header at the end of week.

The girls had fun dancing with their daddy.


And the young author is.......
JOSIE-TATUM


Our elementary school takes part in a young author's competition in the state of Georgia. Josie-Tatum entered a story about titled, "My Gotcha Day." Her story won for her classroom, then for the entire kindergarten in our school where there are 10 kindergarten classes, and finally has won for the kindergarten in our system. Now the story moves on to regional, district, and state competition. Whisper a little prayer that her story can bring attention to beautiful families created through adoption!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Ellie Min Chun

Ellie Min Chun
Josie-Tatum's MeiMei