A rare nap with the girls = a handcrafted moment

So, yesterday was a day of sickness in our house. Finley just got over having a quick virus and I caught it and was down for the day, it slowed me down and I actually got to take a good rest/nap with both the little gals. This never happens, first of all, I am not a big napper and secondly, Ella has not taken naps for a year or so and suddenly since the heat here is so exhausting, I have found her daily lying on the marble floor trying to cool off and then dozing into a good afternoon nap. Well, as they were fast asleep on each side of me, I just rested in the moment and gave praise to God for these little beauties!!! Words cannot express how much I love these sisters (as well as every one of our children!!) 

God blessed me gently during this time and reminded me of a sweet verse I love to pray over my girls,

Psalm 144:12 says, 

"May our daughters be like graceful pillars, carved to beautify a palace."


As a mommy to 3 girls, I seek God and ask that in His grace, I would build them up and lay a foundation for them of love, prayer, grace and humility. Each day I pray that I would be a polisher of their lives, that they would be "finely graved and beautifully polished, adorned with grace and good works, particularly with modesty, meekness, and humility."

Since living in India, we have bought several intricately carved pieces of furniture for our home. I imagine the time and thought that goes into the process of completing such a piece of art. A skilled craftsman uses his hands to create with such detail a beautiful decoration that adorns a room and catches the eye of those who are in the room. These earthly creations remind me that we have a Master Carver, One that intricately carves our lives if we offer them to HIM and He thoughtfully beautifies us in order that He may be glorified!

I really love this verse!!! And as beautiful as Lilly, Ella and Finley appear on the outside, it is my desire that as they grow and are carved by the Maker's hands, their words, actions and lives would shine Christ and that He is the true beauty that would be magnified each and everyday. 


It is a BLESSING to see Lilly in relationship with her Savior. God is at work in her and to see with my own eyes this verse lived out, it just makes me WORSHIP! Thank you, Father, for carving and beautifying from within!!!

Bahuut Grace.

Bahuut (in Hindi it means "lots of") Grace-

 Each day that I awake, each moment that is captivated, I see God's grace abounding. It is an undeserving grace, I fall short day after day and I am reminded that we are living in this momentary affliction, and that God has a surpassing power that belongs to HIM alone. Grace is a surpassing power that He can only give.

 I have been camping out in 2 Corinthians this week just thinking on Chapter 4 and it is good. Thinking about how we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. (vs 11) That is grace. This is moment by moment... and praise the Lord it is moment by moment. I need Him in the good, the bad, the scary, the fun, the exciting, the crazy, and the calm moments. I have been reminded that we serve a FAITHFUL God, and as His grace extends to more and more people, it increases thanksgiving to the glory of God.

 It takes time to think about grace. I really am amazed at how God's grace extends to me personally, then to my marriage, my children, our family unit, our extended family, my friends, to the people that are in and out of my home daily, the villages and homes that we are in, the national believers, our churches, our countries, this world and how the Grace-giver's righteous right hand is assigning all of it. As His child, I am being inwardly renewed day by day, "for this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things, that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal") Vs 17-18. I need to hear these words daily. I need to hear them so I don't lose heart, as a child of God, a wife, mother, friend, language learner, a person in this world (this crazy world I live in) and as a daughter of the King.

 The days I am living can seem so real, so non-transient, I wake up to my husband (whom I adore), praying for me, then one by one, 1,2,3,4,5 sweet children crawling in my bed to snuggle and get their first morning hugs and kisses and we pray personally for each one, asking the Lord to extend His grace, His hand for our day, then as we get to breakfast, the rush of the day begins.

 And then I forget. I forget that this is just a momentary affliction, that I am being prepared for eternity, and so I think about the things that are seen, the things that are transient, and I can lose heart, because my focus is on those things. And then He renews me again and again so that His life may be manifested in my flesh. What an incredible God, whose grace is pure and good and immeasurable. And as His grace extends thru all the moments of the day, all I can do is praise and thank Him for His love.

 This really is a life lived in and by grace. I think it's good to just ponder them...

 Grace:

 Saved by grace through faith.
Growing in an everlasting relationship with my Savior.
Forgiven for all my sins.
Being transformed into a new creation.
Worshipping the ONE TRUE GOD.
Set free.
Rescued.
Loved.
Beautified.
Sustained daily.
Raised in a loving, Christian home.
Married to my husband who leads our home as a servant of God.
Mommy to 5 beautiful children who love each other.
Living in India.
Seeing God at work in people's lives.
Blessed by having my dear friend homeschool our children.
Having a beautiful pool in India to swim at when we so choose.
Having an amazing house helper, cook and Auntie come each day to help me.
Skype.
Parents and Grandparents who love God and their grandchildren.
Peaches and watermelon in India.
Air conditioning in the desert.
Sunsets.
Rainbows.
Hugs.
Kisses.
Words.
A 5 month old baby.
Music.
My sweet sister friends.
Adoption.
Love.
Rain.
A little 3 year old girl who loves to sing and dance.

And the list goes on......

As I choose to acknowledge the graces, it generates thankfulness.

Introducing Finley Claire!!!

We are so excited to announce the beautiful arrival of

FINLEY CLAIRE DOBBS

Born on December 21, 2011
at 3:19pm, Bangkok, Thailand

8 pounds 15 ounces
20 1/2 inches

God has poured out an abundance of grace on our family and we are in awe of His perfect care and love. Finley is a beauty and is a testimony of God's wondrous works. We give thanks to our Holy Father and give Him praise for the miracle He has done in creating another life. The scripture that He gave to us during her birth was Psalm 105 and we will not cease to sing praises to Him and remember His deeds.
Please pray with us that Finley would physically grow strong and healthy, that her heart would seek the Lord and He would draw her to Himself as she grows spiritually, and that God's grace would be poured out abundantly in every part of her life as she learns to love Him and others. PRAISE THE LORD!!!

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Incredible Love

Love that restores, comfirms, strengthens and establishes, Love that cares, Love that is peace, A Kiss of Love..... Christ. The Faithful Creator has been reminding me of HIS love, that HE Himself lavishes HIS love on His children. We are called beloved!!!!! And this is the true grace of God! I have been humbled in so many different ways through so many different people I have met, so many different experiences I have felt, so many different sights my eyes have seen, so many different sounds my ears have heard, smells my nose have breathed in, flavors my tongue has tasted, and it is the true grace of God. So many stories. So much fullness.

One experience that has affected me the most this week has been meeting a lovely young British couple that are just precious. We have had the privilege to share a meal with them almost everyday since we have gotten here. This couple, Rachel and Will, and their precious daughter Lily, have intrigued our whole family. They are in the process of almost completing their adoption of Lily, an 11 year old girl from Burma, whom they fell in love with in Thailand at an orphanage. She is deaf and cannot talk and has a mild case of cerebral palsy. The way that we have observed the love that they have for this beautiful child is incredible! It has brought me to the Father, thanking Him for His love for me and for thanking Him for adopting me as His beloved. He has an incredible love that He promises to never withhold. The beautiful example this couple lives in the way they love this girl has done so many things to my heart. THEY just love her and it is obvious that she is a special gift to them.





It has challenged me spiritually to really meditate on God's increduous love for me, for His children and as I do, it has brought me to repentance quicker, to love others easier, and to be HUMBLED, which is my constant prayer.

It has challenged me to love my own family more selflessly. To see the 4 (almost 5!!!) beautiful, healthy, special children He has allowed me and Jonathan to care for as gifts, pure gifts to lavish love on is HIS true grace. When I think about His magnificent LOVE for me, a sinner redeemed, a sinner loved, a sinner being restored, it makes me want to love more deeply, to see these lives as gifts, as the GIVER says they are, not ever as inconveniences, not as annoyances, not anything but His little BIG delights!!!!! Just as He delights in me, I am free (because of His love) to delight selflessly in them, which leads them to the Savior!! I love His love, it leads us back to Him!!!!!! So, I have been humbled by this experience to incredible love.



Our own Lilly has been drastically affected by this opportunity to spend time with this family and observe them. Her heart is beautiful, and has been challenged as well. I never know how any situation will affect my children, and this one has been quite a wonderful one to watch Lilly be changed by. She has seen this love bestowed by Rachel and Will to their Lily, a love that my Lilly cannot take her eyes off of! My Lilly has seen a beautiful, vivid picture of adoption to one who was unloved, weak, and cast off from her own birth parents. My Lilly has had a growing passion in her heart to adopt one day, and the Father has really designed our girl in an amazing way, she loves to serve, she has compassion, she is selfless and she gets her need for the Savior. She has expressed her desire to one day adopt from other countries, needy, disabled children and to love them. I am brought to tears (JOYFUL tears) as I thank the God of love for how He has given Lilly this huge heart of love already. It is unique, it is love only from the Father, and she teaches me. I love being taught from sweet Lilly, oh how sweet it is to be taught by a little child of God, who has taught me not to withhold ANY love!




Jonny and Brax have been affected as well. Brax has made true friends with Lily. He has constantly tried to communicate with her with learning sign language, and saying "cool" and "you are my friend" and "love," it has been not only precious but has made me laugh because of his cute expressive personality, who so much wants to make sure Lily knows she is his friend. She even signed to her parents that she had made friends and they could go sit down (A FIRSt experience for Lily!!!)
Jonny has insisted he sit near her for every meal. And Ella, oh sweet Ella, picked out lots of barettes to wrap up and give to Lily as a present and insists that she wears her hair the same way as her!!!! So cute!




Jonathan and I have been taking this time to pray about God's family vision for us and I believe He has shown us clearly and very simply, to love deeper, to love incredibly and to love like HE loves us. PERIOD.

FUN in the SUN!!!!!!

We arrived in Thailand last week and have been relaxing beachside and poolside for the entire time, praise the LORD!!!! It has been truly a sweet blessing to be here. We flew out of India and had a fantastic flight to BKK, then hopped in a taxi-van and drove 3 hours down to the beach. We stopped by MCdonald's on the way and had our first real beef hamburger in almost a year, a BIG MAC, baby!!! Jonathan ate 2!!!!! We arrived to a brand new cottage and have been lavished with blessings. The kids immediately made precious friends, we have eaten GOOD food, our laundry has been taken care of for the entire time, and we have been building sand forts, collecting shells and swimming til we are water-logged!






The Father has cared for us so well, and has been refreshing our souls through His word, through fellowship with other believers and through prayer!!!





God has been teaching me about HIS care, HIS tender care that is fatherly and gentle and never-ceasing. His Word is truth and it tells of His mighty love, his strong hand and outstretched arm, that cares for us. His love has drawn me closer to Him and I thank Him for His gentleness with me, with our family, and it brings me to worship. Truly to worship.

The Boys' Birthdays!!!!!!

Happy 7th Birthday to Jonny!!!!! "J-Dawg" was born on June 5th, 2004, 2 days early!!!He was a bright-eyed 8 pd 2 1/2 oz cute little boy who has grown into one of the most adventurous smart, kind, handsome little guys I know!





He celebrated his birthday with a pizza party,

cake and cookies,

his friends,

playing nerf guns,

Mcdonald's,
and games!

On his actual birthday, he went to a week long camp in the mountains! He came back with a skateboard and lots of cool stories!


It has been a complete blessing to watch this boy grow in his love for Jesus, his obedience to the Word and his compassion for others. We pray that God would continue to draw Jonny daily to Himself, overwhelming him with grace to love his family, friends and that the Father would grow a love in him for the nations. We praise God for Jonny's life and pray that his life would be used to glorify God! We are thankful for how God made him and uses him in our lives everyday!!!!


Happy 5th Birthday to Braxton!!! Braxton was born on July 7th, 2006, 2 weeks early, weighing in at 8 pds 8 oz!!! He came into this world with the same cute chubby cheeks he has today!



It has been a wonderful 5 years of laughing( he is hilarious!!), singing (he is the musician of the family), dancing (he has rhythym!) and playing imaginary superheroes (he totally could be a character from Star Wars under all that skin!) I am convinced he will be a musician or filmmaker when he grows up!



More than anything, we pray that God would use his life for HIS glory and Braxton would love the Lord with all of His heart, soul, mind and strength and he would hunger and thirst for righteousness and be filled overflowing!!! We pray that Brax's strong willed personality and amazing imagination would be used to influence others towards Christ and one day disciple others to follow God. We praise God that "B-ROCK" loves Jesus and has a desire to tell others about Him!

We celebrated with pancakes for breakfast,

Mcdonald's for lunch,

homemade pizza for dinner

and special starwars cookies/cake per his request!





We played games with his new nerf gun and bay blades!



We had to postpone his little party until he felt better cause he was sick.
So, a few days later, we celebrated with his very best friends, Micah and Levi, and went to Mcdonald's and then to an arcade and bowling! It was a hoot, there are 2 bowling lanes on a third floor of a building in our city, it was a first for all of us!!! :) They had so much fun and he felt completely special!