Homeschool Conference

Just got back from a great homeschool conference in our capitol city.

It was enlightening.
It was fun.
It was exhausting.

Favorite things and greatest discoveries:

• My kids got to run and play and be kids. They played American football and ultimate frisbee. They weren't stared at or photographed. They could just be kids.
• I played games....games that involved not knowing the rules, painting the faces of the losers, and late nights. I laughed until my face hurt...bliss.
• I am proud of my kiddos.
• I learned I want to challenge them even more. I want to begin specializing in their interests and allow them to explore even deeper into what they love.
• My friends who homeschool are really amazing. They are doing some awesome stuff. They are my greatest resource.
• My kids got to have Slurpees.
• I got to have Starbucks. :)
• I was inspired.
• I don't like traveling without Louie. 

I leave again tomorrow. We're off on a visa run. I love my life.

Love from the islands,

Twyla

Bible Reading Plans

Hi! Wow, I've missed you all so much. I wasn't even gone a week and I feel as if it's been ages. I'm glad to be back. I have good news to start off this new day. I finally finished my 2011 bible reading plan!!  Yay for me! Ha! It's a great feeling to get through the entire bible. This was the first time I did it chronologically and I loved it. I felt as though I got the big picture this time around instead of bits and pieces of information here and there. I was blown away by the ending. The book of Revelation is such a party. It's a climatic happy ending for those of us who love Jesus and follow Him. I'm usually intimidated by Revelation (I have a thing about prophecy books), but this time it was wonderful to read how everything will be wrapped up and taken care of in the end. Praise Him!

I started the chronological plan again and it feels good to be back in the Old Testament. I can actually read long passages without feeling like I'm missing some huge biblical truth. Genesis and Job are great history/narrative books so I think I can actually catch up by reading big chunks of passages each day.  I'm sure I will be commenting on my reading so if you want to join me in reading the bible through chronologically this year you can print off the plan I'm using here. Don't be intimidated that you are starting late. Don't let the dates get you all crazy. I just finished Job, so technically I am only on Jan 15th.

Speaking of Job...oh.my.word. I must have rushed through it last year (I am always behind). I don't remember it being this good. I mean the whole bible is good right (sheepish giggle)? I just enjoy some parts more than others and Job has never been up there on the "I need encouragement, I'm going to read Job today" list. But as I read  eight days worth of Job today...yes eight, I was struck by the foreshadowing, or maybe it's prophecy (eek!). I don't really know what you call it, but Job speaks about the need for an arbitrator, a mediator, a redeemer.

He is not a man like me that I might answer Him, that we might confront each other in court. If only there were someone to arbitrated between us, to lay his hands upon us both, someone to remove God's rod from me, so that his terror would frighten me no more. Then I would speak up without fear of Him, but as it now stands with me I cannot. Job 9:32-35

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Surely then you will count my steps but not keep track of my sin. My offenses will be sealed up in a bag; you will cover over my sin. Job 14:16-17

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Give me, O God, the pledge you demand. Who else will put up security for me? Job 17:3

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I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth. Job 19:25

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"Yet if there is an angel on his side as a mediator, one out of a thousand, to tell a man what is right for him, to be gracious to him and say, 'Spare him from going down to the pit; I have found a ransom for him'-then...He prays to God and finds favor with him, he sees God's face and shouts for joy; he is restored by God to his righteous state. Job 33:23

It begins with knowing how much we need Him. We are a mess without Him. In the beginning of this reading plan I am struck again at the magnitude of what He has saved me from. He has saved me from the pit. He has redeemed me...paid for my sins with His blood. He holds none of my sins against me. He has answered His own demand of righteousness in me by putting up as a pledge His own life. He has removed His own rod (punishment) from me...the well deserved rod I might add. 

So in Job we have the question...who will save us? Who can take away such guilt? Only God can meet God's demands. The answer is coming...it's on the way. Do you mind if I spoil the ending for you? It's Jesus. He is the answer to my need for an arbitrator between me and God. He is the answer to meeting God's demands because He is God. He is the answer.

I hope you'll join me on this adventure of reading the bible through this year. Who knows what wonderful observations we will make together. If you are joining us, let us know. If you are all caught up to February 8th, don't judge us. :) Let us know how it's going. This is going to be fun!

Love from the islands,
Twyla

Day Thirty: Top Ten

The top ten things I want to leave you with after thirty days:

1. Delight in your weaknesses. This last month has taught me the great strength that comes from admitting your weaknesses. There is a great dependance that comes from knowing your weakness. Weaknesses remind of us how much we need our Jesus.
2. Confess your sins. Eeek! Does that sound scary to you? It is scary, but it is freeing. Confession must be done with someone you trust and respect. It must be done with someone who loves Jesus and passionately follows Him. If you don't have anyone around you that fits that description, then look for them. Try a new fellowship. Do what you can to get yourself surrounded by people who love Jesus and love His Word.
3. Learn from those who passionately follow Jesus. Imitate those whose lives inspire you. "...take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you." (Phil 3:17) 
4. If you are a single woman, DON'T SETTLE FOR "JOE CHURCH GOER." Are you tired of me saying this? I hope not. If you passionately love Jesus then you will regret it. Of course no one is beyond Jesus' reach. And that guy may yet find a passion for Jesus, but BEFORE marriage is when you have the choice. 
5. If you are a single guy, DON'T SETTLE FOR "FLO CHURCH GOER." See above comment. Also, when you are in the position to be serious about marriage don't wait around. Live by faith and pursue a woman who is chasing Jesus.
6. If you are a family, will you look for the lonely around you and love on them? "God sets the lonely in families... " (Psalm 68:6) He will set the lonely in your family if you are willing. Be willing!
7. Enjoy The Word. It is a privilege to hold the entire Bible in your hand. Open it each day and find out what adventure awaits you in the pages of His Word. If it intimidates you there are countless resources that will help you on your way to diving in to His glorious adventure.
8. It's ok to be excited about Jesus. It's ok to talk about Him and let other people know that He is amazing! Our culture is throwing extremes at us. Everyone is ok with extremes when it comes to being "green," eating natural or college football. But being a "Jesus Freak" is not acceptable. Why? Why is it not acceptable to be excited about Him? The bible is full of great examples of the extreme life in the kingdom of Jesus. See Moses, Joseph, Ruth, Esther, David, Jonathan, John the Baptist, the disciples, Paul, and Hebrews 11. The best thing to remember, you are called to live like all of these people. The lives of these men and women are not just stories to enjoy, they are to be an example of how to live in obedience with Jesus.
9. I want to share more about our work here, but I will do it in a private blog. If you are interested in getting included in that send me an email and I will invite you once I get the blog up and going. It will be invitation only and I don't want to bug you all with invitations if you are not interested. So, let me know. I don't exactly know when that will get up and going. I am going out of town twice this month. I will send you updates on the progress of the blog if you send me your email addresses.
10. This is not good-bye! This is just the end of the commitment to write for thirty straight days. I want to continue to write the Team Castro blog, but not every single day. My family misses me. :) I'll probably continue in the same format. I will write a little about everyday life, a little about what Jesus is teaching me and a little bit of videos and photos. The videos were my attempt to stay connected to you all each day while still having more time with the family. I hope to write at least once a week, but will try to write more often if my schedule permits.
    
    

    So here we are. It's the end of the thirty days. I had so much fun. Thank you for tuning in. I hope you will keep reading after today, but if not, thanks for hanging in there with me on this experiment. 

    
    

    Love from the islands,

    Twyla

    
    

Day Twenty-Nine: Water

Maybe you are flipping through facebook and just stopped in to the blog today on a whim..."What does this chick have to say?" Or maybe you came on purpose, wondering, "What does this chick have to say?" Which ever it is, will you take the time to dig into the Word with me?

The book of Ezekiel (yes, Ezekiel) is an intimidating book. I didn't read it...AT ALL...for a long time. But a few years ago I worked up my courage and jumped in. I wasn't going to let a book of prophecy scare me. So I began with fear and trembling. And you know what happened? I didn't understand it. Ha! It's a lot of crazy psychedelic visions.

At the end of Ezekiel, however, I stumbled across some interesting passages. I don't have a seminary degree. I don't know all the ins and outs of theology, but I do know that the Spirit lives in me and He taught me a great lesson in these verses. I know that we interpret scripture with scripture and in my opinion what I'm about to share can be backed up with scripture. But if I'm wrong, I'm sorry! Write me an email and set me straight. I need it.

In Ezekiel 43 the glory of God returns to the temple. His glory fills the temple. It's a beautiful picture...

"...and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory....The glory of the Lord entered the temple through the gate facing east. Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple." (Ez 43:2,4-5)

As I read these verses, I thought, "But now I am the temple (1 Cor 6:19). Do I look like that? Is the glory of God that amazing and wonderful in me? Am I radiant with His glory?" I prayed, "Lord, if this is true in me, help me to believe it. I have not thought of you radiating from me...filling me yes, but not radiating. If it's not true in me, then help me. Show me how to radiate you."

That in itself would be enough information to chew on for weeks, but as I continued to read I came across chapter 47. The vision continues. We are brought back to the temple. But now something amazing is happening. Water begins "leaking" from the temple. It is coming out from all sides. And then the water begins to increase. At first it is just ankle-deep,then knee-deep and then waist deep, until it is a river that could not be crossed. The water is now deep enough to swim in.

So I begin thinking, if the temple is me, what is the water?

"'If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said streams of living water will flow from within him.' By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive." (John 7:38) 

The Spirit is the water? Then what is the meaning of the water being ankle-deep, knee-deep, waist deep and so deep it cannot be crossed? In my imagination I know that there are times that the Spirit is more active in my life. Whether it is because of sin or a life-changing event (like moving overseas), I fluctuate between being filled by the Spirit and being indwelt by the Spirit. Indwelt...that is a strange word. It means that the Spirit is permanently present in me. I know He is in me always, but He is not always filling me. I want to take time each day and make sure I am ready for Him to fill me completely.

There are times that life gets to me and I'm dry. I went through a hard time when Chloe was first born. She had "colic," that's the name for "I don't  really know what's wrong with your baby...she just cries." I was so worried, I couldn't sleep. The Spirit was just ankle-deep those days. Then I've had days of just surviving...getting through school without raising my voice, making yet another peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and doing another load of laundry. There was nothing really wrong, but the Spirit was just knee-deep those days. There are also the waist deep days. I love those days! Those are the days that Jesus and I are moving through my days and I am watching Him do wonders. Maybe it's just being patient in school or sharing with a friend. But those days I see Him, I chase Him and I can't keep my eyes off of Him.

Then there's that part about the water being a river. It's so deep you can swim in it. A river that cannot be crossed means you can't touch the bottom because the water is rushing too fast. That imagery makes me want to kick up my heels and see where this torrent will take me. I want to do a big old unattractive cannon ball right in the middle of that river. Again, Peter comes to mind...

"Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord!' As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, 'It is the Lord,' he wrapped his outer garment around him and jumped into the water." (John 21:7)

If I'm to move with the Spirit in this river, I must live by faith...faith that Jesus is the only way to life, faith that He can live my life better than I can, faith that I will not be afraid but follow Him wherever and to whomever He goes to. When I live in this river, when I allow His currents to move me then I will truly be a temple that the Lord gushes from. I want that. I want His Spirit to touch others. I want to well up to the point that I splash all those around me who don't know Him...

"...whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:14)

And what happens when I live by faith and Jesus' Spirit is splashing those around me? Ezekiel 47 continues...

Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live...Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing. (Ezekiel 47:9,12)

If I am filled with the Spirit then He will give life to others through me. When He is free to move wherever He wants and touch whomever He wants then those around me will be touched by Life. Because Jesus is Life (Col 3:4). I will be used to help others bear fruit "because the water from the sanctuary flows to them."

The only way I have found to live by this faith is to each day sit before Him and remember all He has done for me. When I remember He died for me and rose again to destroy the power of sin in my life, I am filled with gratefulness. That gratefulness propels my faith (2 Cor 5:14-15).

As I am ending this commitment, I want to make sure you know it is because of Jesus that I live in hope and joy. He is my life (Col 3:4).

Love from the islands,

Twyla