The Splish-Splash of Little Fins...

That's right! The first addition to our family is now at home! We just adopted a cute Betta named "Red Baron." He's super cute and lives in our monument jar. The rocks are from places that Shannon and I have gone together, like Bolivia and beaches in the US. We also have some sand from Moonstone Bay up the California coast. But don't worry, we've cleaned them and got the water tested at Petco (for free!) where we purchased our new son. (Petco is a pretty cool place actually; they have a lot of resources to first-time pet owners with free FAQs available in store.)

In the Old Testament, the wandering Israelites and their forefathers set up rocks as monuments to signifacant events, usually acts and signs of God's love toward them. We decided about two years ago to adopt this custom to remind us of God's testimony of provision and love for us. So we've written down dates of significant events that have occurred in our lives together. God is really awesome. I'm glad that we've adopted this custom.

Chris Baron gave a sermon on monuments at our church about a year ago. It was a very powerful testimony of God's power in Chris' life and a challenge for us to remember what God has done for us. I know that I usually remember the bad things that have happened or my failures. It really is a discipline that we must develop to remember the good God has given us. If we don't do this, then we will find ourselves far more susceptible to the lies of the enemy and miss out on the joy that God offers us. ~Michael