Praise God for New Beginnings

Changes are a-happenin' here in our little family! God has certainly been busy, and I am so excited and thankful for each and every one of His gracious blessings.

For starters, the biggest change has been in my own personal health. After struggling with depression and anxiety basically since puberty and being hit with a very serious bout of postpartum depression after having Olivia, which only seemed to be getting worse and worse by the day, I finally went to see a doctor about it. Now, if you know me, you know that things had to be B A D for me to go to the doctor. I'm ornery that way. I have to either be lying on my death bed or literally dragged by the hair to go anywhere near a medical office of any kind. *Slight* phobia, you know... Anyways, I finally decided it was time. And I could not be happier... literally! Praise Jesus!!

Insert BodyLogic plug here: I just have to mention a few details about the help that I've gotten, because I know I'm not the only one out there struggling with these issues, and if even one person can get some help as a result of reading this, then it was worth the few inches of screen space. The network is called BodyLogic MD, and they have doctors all over the country. There is just one here in Arizona, and he is well worth the visit. The best part: EVERYTHING THEY DO IS ALL NATURAL!! They will have a very thorough blood and saliva work-up done to determine exactly what your problem areas are before you go in for your first appointment. They work with bio-identical hormones (not synthetic) to help balance out any hormone imbalance you might have. They also help get you on the right vitamins, and offer a few suggestions to make sure you're eating right. Let me just tell you, after about 3 days of starting the hormone therapy, I was feeling FANTASTIC. I have never felt this good in my entire life! And this new energy has finally given me the strength to eat the way I need to be eating, which in the first week alone led to a weight loss of about 5-7 lbs (not sure of the exact amount), and I am hoping to continue losing over the next several months. Where before I could barely drag myself out of bed, and some days not at all, I am now thoroughly enjoying my children, loving my husband, cooking for my family, cleaning house (and packing, details below...), and just altogether joyfully serving my God with a passion and love that I did not believe was possible a few weeks ago. God is so good!

Ok, moving on... the next big change: we're moving! We are going to be renting a house in another part of the valley so that we can be closer to Luke's office, a change we are excited to make. Just the fact alone that his drive will drop from an hour to about 8 minutes is enough to make us both jump for joy. Besides that, we will be closer to our families as well as "civilization" and all the conveniences that that brings. As wonderful as all these new things will be, there is definitely some bitterness mixed into the sweet. We will be leaving the comfort of owning a home and going back to renting, something that I had hoped not to have to do again. Yet, I am excited about the freedom that renting allows us, and we are definitely still talking seriously about moving out of state at some point. Also, I am thankful for the opportunity that this has presented for God to remind me that this (all of this) is not my home. It is only a house, and we are headed for something much greater! The other bit of "bitterness" that this move will mean for us is having to leave our dear friends at Calvary Maricopa. These people are so much more than friends. They have been our family in more ways than one, and are not so easily left behind as a house. Thankfully, we won't be too far away and will still be able to see everyone now and then; yet, knowing that we won't see their smiling faces every Sunday definitely makes my heart ache a little...

...which leads me to the next big change...

...finding a new church! We have already mapped out a couple churches to "try". I really hate that word when it comes to churches. Maybe "test" is a better one. We absolutely must test the church we attend against the standard of God's word, but to go around "trying" churches the way we try on clothes until we find one that suits us, or makes us happy, or, worst of all, caters to us is something that I believe is not beneficial to our growth or to the work that God may want to do in our life. That being said, we will most likely attend one of the other Calvary Chapels that are nearby, and I am so excited to see what God has in store for us once we get there. I have been very comfortable in my area of service, playing the piano with the praise band, at our current church. I am going to be so terribly sad to leave that. It is something that I have loved passionately, and something that I believe God has used to work through me. Perhaps I will find my niche in the music ministry again, or perhaps God has something entirely different planned this time. Whatever it is, I know He will be glorified and I know it will be a joy! I can't wait!

Of course, the kids are growing like little bean stalks, but other than that, I think that's all the changes I have to report at the moment. I hope that God has been as good to all of you as he has been to me and my family.

Love to all,

Tarrah