Titus 2 Blog Party

I just discovered Michelle's blog - She Looketh Well - today! Michelle is hosting a Titus 2 blog party, a chance for us to meet other bloggers and have some fun. Go check it out! So, anyway, here is my Titus 2 Blog Party post and introduction. Hi, I'm Nancy Burton. I'm a new blogger, since the first of the year, and still getting the hang of it. In fact, I didn't know how to even put those links above until today and I had to ask someone how to do it. I'm a Christian, a missionary wife, and a home school mom. Right now we are "prefielders", still getting ready to go. We are scheduled to depart for language school in August and are pretty excited about the adventure God has us on. He is using this time to stretch us and grow us. We have made incredible friendships, learned more about the internet, computer programs, writing and corresponding, budgeting, flexibility, trusting, and waiting, just to name a few areas. Trusting and waiting have been in the forefront. The one thing I am constantly reminded of is that I am not in control, nor am I supposed to be. I have been forced to trust God more and wait on Him more than I ever have before. I am sure this will serve me well when I get to Africa. I started blogging because my teenage son kept encouraging me to try it. He was having such a good time with his blog, keeping in touch with his friends from far away that I thought it might be a good way for my friends and family to keep up with me, especially once we leave the U.S. I still haven't decided on a permanent name for my blog (suggestions, anyone?) or gotten around to learning how to personalize my template. Even though I am new to blogging, I have already discovered some cool blogs and benefited from the wisdom that others have been willing to share on their blogs.

Praying Scripture

I like to pray Scripture verses. It's something I learned from one of the Beth Moore Bible studies I have done. When I first heard someone use Scripture in prayer, it seemed new and different to me, but I realized that as long as it is in correct context, what better way to know you are praying in line with God's will? And there are so many amazing verses of praise to God that I can use to lift up His name! It has also helped me to become better at memorizing Scripture. Imagine being in the middle of a prayer and telling God to hang on a minute while I find that verse I wanted to talk with Him about. Praying Scripture really added a new dimension to my prayer life. Recently God gave me Psalm 63:1 to pray for myself and my family: "O God, You are my God, earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water." I pray my children will earnestly seek Him and that they will have a longing and a thirst for Him. I also pray that anything other than God that they might turn to for satisfaction in life will be like David's "dry and weary land" and will cause them to turn back to God for true satiety. I'll just share one more. Proverbs 21:1 states "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases." I am praying this for our nation's leaders, all of them. Whether I voted for them or not, whether they are Christians or not, God is in control. So I pray He will direct their hearts for His glory and the good of our nation.

A week or so ago we went up to Columbia, Missouri for part of our ministry partnership to meet with some families and old friends. It was a great time of renewing friendships and we were so blessed to get to fellowship and pray with people who have meant so much to us over the years. One friend took this photo of us before we left. No, Daniel did not have a growth spurt. He is standing on the hearth.