Happy Birthday

 April 22nd, 1986 Lissa Diane Cobb joined our family. From the beginning we knew she was going to bring something different to our family!

At an early age she had a way of negotiating to get what she wanted.

 "How about if you......and then I will. ....."

She could be heard saying this to her sister, cabbage patch dolls, our dog or even to her parents.  The fine art negotiation has and still remains a strong gifting for her. 

You may have noticed that she has 2 S's in her name. There are numerous "S" words that describe Lissa.

                                                                                           

Servant of Jesus

Singer

Sister

Shouter

Sharer

Socializer

Speaker of the truth
Strong-willed
Sweet

Life with Lissa has and is, always an adventure!

She has a discerning spirit that often is right in sync with what God is teaching me.  As a mom, I adore that! Her dad loves that she is a huge Angels baseball fan and that she understands and love ministry and missions.


Lissa we love you and our so thrilled to be your parents!


May you know this day that:
God chose you before the foundation of the world.
He uniquely gifted you.
He wove you together in my womb.
He knows you by name.
His plans for you are more than you could ever imagine!
He will never leave you.
You are love and adored!


Happy Birthday, princess Lissa!

Cheers to the Struggles-Guest Blog

As 2011 comes to a close, I have been taking a stroll down memory lane and thinking about all of the year’s events- the good, the bad, and the oh so ugly. My mind then wandered to the start of my young adulthood- the 18-25 years. The things that stuck out to me were the relationships built, memories made and most of all the struggles.

You see, the struggles are bittersweet to me. Without struggles, I would have no stories to tell. I would have nothing to say about the jobs I hated, boys I dated, and credits rated.

When I was 19, I quit my job as a bank teller, watched my parents move a million miles away and take my sister with them, was in a long term relationship I knew I shouldn’t be in, and my finances were quickly becoming completely disarrayed.

Needless to say, I was STRUGGLING.

I remember thinking my life was over! I would forever be unemployed, lonely and poor (I know, quite the dramatic). What I didn’t realize at the time was what a loving God I had on my side, who had a much bigger picture than my small mind could see. There was a night when I checked and saw my account was negative and had no idea where I would come up with money to even cover the overdraft fees. I felt totally alone and was so embarrassed of myself and the life I was living that I didn’t feel like I had anyone to turn to. I threw myself on the floor and cried out to God in the most desperate of times. It was then I realized that my only solution was Him. 

I’m a tiny bit of a control freak and all along I had been struggling because I wanted to do it all on my own, without His help and His perfect guidance. This was the most valuable lesson I ever learned. Now I know that God isn’t some magic genie that will just nod his head twice and make my problems disappear, and after that night, I was still broke as ever and had a long road ahead of me. But only He could fill the missing pieces in my life that I had filled with other useless things. It wasn’t pretty.  It has taken years of counseling, a few financial freedom seminars, and loving and supportive family and friends to help me along the way.

You see, I wouldn’t be half the woman I am today if I never struggled. I’m thankful for every struggle along the way because it forced me to cling to my loving God in a way I never imagined I would have to. When I felt so alone, He was there. When I was poor and jobless, He provided. When my heart was broken, He healed it. 

In the years that followed I was blessed to experience freedom from past relationships and the bondage of debt, study abroad in London as well as serve in Cambodia, find a great job and come to love and understand the reasons God sent my parents to Corinth all the way in Byron Center, Michigan!

I’m sure you are thinking that my life couldn’t possibly be perfect now and by NO MEANS is it. At times, my life is still what feels like a chaotic mess, but on the other side of the struggle I can say that I know and believe in God who is so much bigger than any struggle I could ever face. I have learned that every challenge that comes my way is just that. A challenge. But with God on my side, I got this.  

“But I call to God, and the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice. He redeems my soul in safety from the battle that I wage.” Psalm 55:16-18

So, cheers to the struggles and to the many more that are guaranteed to come in the 25-30’s.

Lissa

Lissa Cobb is my youngest daughter and according to her my favorite one! She is deeply in love with Jesus, enjoys making yummy food, travelling to new places and is learning to be an Aunt to Drake Spencer Dixon.  

You can follow her on twitter 

A Sunset Can Change Everything!

Guest Blog

In my line of work, I can have some pretty stress-filled days. Residents come in the office upset on a regular basis. They could be bringing in complaints about anything from having a leaky faucet to their noisy neighbors that live above them, and it’s my job to ensure their problems are fixed and that they are happy and feel taken care of when they leave my office. 

One day in particular, I had an inbox full of emails from angry residents; the phones were ringing off the hook and I had a stack of files that never seemed to end. I suddenly felt like I was drowning and had no idea when I was going to come back up for air. I rushed from project to project trying to complete all the work ahead of me as quickly and efficiently as possible, but somehow, it never seemed to be enough. Residents didn’t seem to be any happier and I felt defeated. I clocked out feeling sorry for myself, and couldn’t wait to get home to sulk about my terrible day. I got in the car and began my drive home (which is 30-60 minutes depending on that lovely Southern California traffic), and saw the most beautiful sunset. I tried to ignore it, because I wanted to stay in my sulky state just a bit longer, but I couldn’t.

I pulled off to the side of the road and began to cry. In front of me was this beautiful skyline that only my amazing God could create. I thought about all the cars driving passed me, and wonder how many of them saw the sunset and thought of Him.

How could anyone see such a beautiful thing and not believe in such a big God?

I was reminded of when I was a kid and my dad would lift me up and let me sit on his shoulders. I always felt so special! He let me sit on his shoulders because he knew it would make me happy. I thought my dad was the only man on the planet who had the ability to do this, and I was the coolest, bravest kid for doing it! I looked at the sunset and felt the same way- like my Father painted this picture for me, and no one else on the planet could ever do the same! I was the coolest kid, with a dad who just wanted to make me happy.

On my way home I got a call from a friend who was also having a bad day. She was going through her list of awful things that happened to her and I just kept getting this feeling that I needed to tell her about my sunset. God was pushing me to say something, and like the 10 year old in me always does I would say “but I don’t wanna…” After going back and forth with God, I finally gave in and told her the experience I had just minutes before. Then we had one of those moments, the best moments that God gives, where she saw the same sunset and God showed her the same exact thing as me. I love those moments when God shows me His love and then asks me to show it to someone else.

I have been encouraged more and more to follow God’s nudges to share what God teaches me with others. It always seems so scary at first, but I know that God is not scary! He is a loving Father who just wants to lift me up on His shoulders!  Lissa