Bitter Sweet Christmas & New Year!

Wow I can't believe it is already 2012!! At any rate I'm excited to recap our Christmas and New Year's warm memories. This holiday season was BLESSED to say the least! A few days before Christmas Tyler and I were blessed with many visitors in our house! Claire Aaron and Jacob came to stay with us and it was quite COZY...to say the least! Everyone was such a good sport about me working, having to share a bathroom, and creative sleeping arrangments. The best part was having a house FULL of sweet friends that mode our tiny apartment their home. I slept in both days and woke up to warm coffee, left over breakfast and clean dishes. I mean seriously could you ask for better house guests. It was quite comical though that I would wake up and get ready for work and Tyler would then come home from work. Even though we both had to work our guest always had a Lutz to visit with haha! I was so thankful they came to visit because we don't have visitors often anymore. It was such a sweet time of fellowship and memories and it really made me cherish each one of their hearts, friendships, and impact they have in mine and Tyler's life! The next day we were able to enjoy the Staff Christmas party at Joe and Mel's! It was so fun and we were really blessed by the way Joe and Mel served us...it's really honoring to have leadership that loves and serves like they do. After dinner and dessert we sat around and talked about the greatest moments of 2011. As I was sitting across the circle from my Hubby I was overwhelmed with emotion and thankfulness. I saw a glimpse of God's unconditional love and sovereignty. In just a year God had blessed us with a marriage, being graduates from college, provided jobs for my hubby and I (not just jobs BUT jobs that fufill our desires and calling for his kingdom) and HE placed us on a staff that is SOLD OUT to his kingdom!! None of which we deserved but HE chose to orchestrate. I get overwhelmed with emotion just typing this all out.
Now as if that wasn't enough the next few days we were able to serve alongside the staff we love at our 10 Christmas Services @ BAF!! It felt like home being at the church serving food and visiting with everyone. On Christmas EVE Tyler and I opened stockings and exchanged our gifts for each other it was a quite night together that I wouldn't have traded for anything...perfect 1st Christmas together. We got to spend Christmas with Tyler's family and visit my Dad it was so surreal having Tyler with me the WHOLE TIME!! We did Christmas with Momma Shea and Daddy Jerry 2 weeks earlier but Christmas was a little bluer not seeing them Christmas day. It was for a great reason though they went to spend Christmas with Hannah and Sean in Kansas so they had a white Christmas in Kansas!! After all the excitement of Christmas was over we spent new years eve at Joe and Mel's with some of our favorite people we played some board games, ate to mush, and shared FUN memories! The next day was Sunday and I was so excited because Tyler was preaching and not only was Tyler preaching but it was the same exact day his Boppa was preaching in Kileen. This was so special to me because this was the Sunday Boppa was going to retire and even though we couldn't be there it definitely felt like God was giving us a way to be there in spirit. Side note: I really admire and look up to all of our grandparents. between the 4 of them there is 150+ years of marriage and solid Godly marriages that I will look to for inspiration for years to come!! Anyway Tyler did a wonderful Job on Sunday and we got to spend the afternoon having a sweet family lunch! Sunday night I was able to share with Mimi just how much I looked up to her and Boppa and how blessed their Church had been to have them as their pastors AND that Tyler got to preach "with" Boppa on one of his lasts Sundays. This may sound trivial but I know it's one of those memories that I will cherish forever!! All in all I'm sad to close the door on all the sweet memories and blessings of 2011 it was a simply bittersweet ending to the year. BUT for 2012 I'm claiming this verse for the LUTZ family: Ephesians 3:20 and anticipating what God has in store!

P.s. apologize in advance for grammar and wording errors...wrote this late after studying for 7 hours :)

The Lutz's