Not Our Story
Greetings, Friends and Family! Years ago I sent out a family newsletter at Christmastime. I decided to do it again this year only on my blog instead. It's been a fast and furious year for the Carnley's. Each year seems to go by a little faster and these kids just insist on growing. This life of ours can be crazy at times, but we are so blessed that we get to do it all together. I love this precious family of mine so much. We have seen God's hand work in so many ways through the years and look forward to all he has in store. We are grateful!Justin is going on 15 years at the Lufkin Post Office as a city letter carrier. He also gives guitar lessons, trains the up and coming student worship band at our church, and plays on the church praise team. He still enjoys gardening, cooking, and hunting and in his spare time he's been working on remodeling a room in our garage for Sidney to have her own space. He yielded a decent harvest in his big garden this year and has been taking our older kids hunting.
In August of 2017, I began working as the Preschool and Children's Ministry Assistant at Carpenter's Way church. I love my job! It's been a fun year of coordinating our volunteers, attending preteen camps, and directing our preschool vbs this past summer. I work with an incredible group of people and im so grateful. I'm also involved in a few women's community and bible study groups and look forward to another fun year.
We are going on our seventh year of homeschooling! I always said I'd reevaluate this decision each year, but so far we believe this is what is best for our family for now. I love the flexibility homeschooling offers us and how the kids can spend more time with their dad with his unusual work schedule. They started a new curriculum this year and my mom, 'Grams,' is helping teach them this semester during this time of transition. She has been a life saver! They are all doing really well and growing up fast.
Sidney turned fourteen last March and still loves to draw and write. She plans to spearhead a local youth theater program next year. She's very witty, insightful, and enjoys laughing as much as I do. It's been fun watching her grow into a young woman and see her character develop. She's a huge help with our younger children and enjoys being with them all (most of the time).
Lachlan. What can I say about this sweet, but tricky kid? He just turned twelve this past September and still loves everything magic. He enjoys learning new tricks, watching comedians and silly videos. He loves his family and is a good brother to his siblings. They all adore him! He's a growing boy and is now the 2nd tallest person in our family. We look forward to watching him grow and mature into a young man in the coming years. I know God has wonderful plans for this kid.
Our wild middle child, Paisley, turns eleven in January and is as energetic as ever. She enjoyed participating in a cheer class for three months this summer and has been active in her girl scout troup. She loves giving passionate speeches to us, dancing around the house, and spending time with her friends. If you see her on crutches, don't worry too much. She's a bit accident prone and does not slow down for anything. This girl loves Jesus and has such a compassionate heart. We can always count on her for Godly wisdom and encouragement when we're down. She hopes to be a speaker one day.
Gavin, our all-about-awesome kid, just turned seven and is the most excited little boy we've ever known. He LOVES people, video games, and looking "awesome." He hopes to be a police officer when he grows up and already keeps us in line over here. He has a great sense of humor and is full of life and happiness. 
Sadie, our little firecracker girly girl, will be four in January and is a perfect mixture of sweet and spicy. She loves dressing up and wearing my makeup. She's quite articulate and witty, and does not mind saying exactly what she thinks. She makes us laugh every day and brings so much joy to our lives. We look forward to seeing what all God has in store for her big personality.
This year, we also grew in number as we are now the owners of 3 cur dogs, Daisy, Luke, and Bo. Daisy is pretty chill and loves her Sadie. The boy pups are quite the opposite, but they are all turning out to be really sweet pets.
Life can be crazy and chaotic. We face challenges in our home just like everyone else, but Justin and I look at each other several times a week and say, "We're so blessed." Not with things, but with each other and our children. The kids really do have fun together most of the time. But more importantly, they are growing in their faith in God and understanding of His word and for that, we are grateful. God has brought us through difficult seasons and drawn us closer together as he's drawn us closer to Him.
It's been over three years since Justin resigned from our previous church at Oak Grove Baptist in Nacogdoches where Justin served part time as a worship leader for five years. Part of me misses those days of serving alongside Justin on the praise team. I miss all the wonderful people who loved us well, encouraged us, and helped teach and grow our young children in their faith. It was while we were there that God stirred in my heart to have more children who follow Christ and God gave us Gavin and Sadie. But in 2015, God moved us out of Oak Grove and that position in his timing.
We've been members at Carpenter's Way Church in Lufkin for over three years now. While we are very grateful that God brought us here, we honestly didn't expect to be here this long. We've been connected to C-way for many years in different ways and attended church here for a season before Justin took his last worship leader position, but in our minds it was where we would stay connected until God was ready to move us on. When we came back in 2015, we thought it would be no different. We looked forward to a time of rest and rejuvenation until God opened another door for us preferably in full-time ministry at another church. So far, that has not happened and we continue to pray for God's direction for our family. In the mean time, we have fallen in love with our Carpenter's Way family and are incredibly grateful for the many ways God has allowed us to connect and serve here even if it looks a little different than what we expected.
God has used all the pastors and many people of Carpenter's Way to teach us and grow us in our faith and it is such a blessing to be a part of a faithful and loving church family. We are also grateful for all those who pour into our kids and teach them Biblical truths that will carry them through adulthood. In today's culture of deceptive theology and unbiblical ideologies, it's very important to us that what our children are learning in their bible study classes hold true to God's word; the foundation of all we are teaching them at home.
As I reflect on all God has done the past few years and the ages of my children, I feel like I'm in the middle of a book and not quite sure how it's going to end. I've learned that even if our ideas and plans for our lives are commendable and holy, as God's kids, we have to lay all those good plans down and learn to walk in His. When we gave our lives to God, we made him the author of our story whether we realized it or not. He chooses where He wants us to serve and guides us each step of the way. We as a family pray for the grace, patience, and strength to let Him write the story of our lives, because it's not our story, it's His. We look forward to all 2019 has to bring as we prayerfully trust Him with all that is to come.
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