I did not realize how long it had been since we gave a traditional update on our little family in south, so I’ll give one. It may be long. Life has been busy and fun. FIRST, in honor of my New Jersey-born husband, GO YANKEES!

 Jon’s hours have lightened up a bit. He did get to come home last night at 9 which is considered a bit early for him. He is a tremendously hard worker, and when he isn’t at work, he’s at home studying. I don’t know how he does it.

 I have started a new trend that I hope to continue (thanks to Amy) which is making a calendar with our dinner menus. Jon would frequently come home at the late hours, and we would eat dinner together at 10pm, but Jon would whip something up, so I am on a 4 week streak of cooking meals. I have been trying new recipes and having fun while doing it. I have even surprised Jon a couple of times. I think so far my best surprise was my Shrimp Tortellini Alfredo with homemade Alfredo sauce. It’s also a wonderful idea, because I can usually pack our lunches for the next day with our leftovers which of course saves lots of mullah!

 I have been trying to study a lot for my CPA exam. I am rebuked that I didn’t make a blog entry about my last exam, because we can’t rejoice in God only when things are good. I did fail my last exam by 3 points (which was supposed to be my LAST section). While it was a very hard blow to take, it was God’s will, and I must rejoice in His decision. I’m rescheduled to take the exam on the 28^th of this month, and I hope to be officially done after that. I’m also taking classes towards my masters. By the middle of December, I will have 3 classes completed, and I should graduate with Joey which would be loads of fun.

 Our little baby, Lexi, is doing well. She has been very sick this week, but I think she is finally feeling better. She will graduate this Saturday from Intermediate Puppy Training. We are rather excited. We will wait to start Advanced Training until after the Thanksgiving and Christmas season. While she still has puppy tendencies, she has learned a lot…her most notable “trick” is that she will sit on her pillow in front of the fireplace the whole time we are eating supper. Rather enjoyable to eat without having a puppy circling your feet waiting for droppings.

 Today, we are celebrating my nephew, Ethan’s FOURTH birthday! I can’t believe it. The picture below was taken by that awesome nephew when Jon and I took him and his sister Madelyn to the pumpkin patch and corn maze. Well, I must get back to work. Enjoy the small update.

 

As is tradition (or at least I try to make it tradition), we must take a look back on this special day (i.e. Sam’s Birthday). Unfortunately…or maybe fortunately, nothing too exciting happened on this day in history, so those that I found interesting, I will list.

The Moulin Rouge opened in Paris on this day in 1889 (significance? Sam & Ashley like Paris)

The top U.S. arms inspector in Iraq, Charles Duelfer, reported finding no evidence Saddam Hussein’s regime had produced weapons of mass destruction after 1991 (2004).

This day in 1866, the first successful train robbery of a moving locomotive occurred.

In 1663, the first Mennonites arrive in the U.S.

In 1847, Jane Eyre was published (significance? It’s Sam’s FAVORITE book)

In 1926, Babe Ruth set a world series record.

He doesn’t even share his birthday with too many famous people . . .pretty cool if you ask me . . . makes him super special. Here’s a few though….
Tony Dungy – former football coach for the Colts and a strong Christian man (significance? definitely not the football part, but I would concur with the rest….comment for Bobby Ray Smith).
Le Corbusier – Swiss-born French architect (significance? DUH he’s Swiss, he must be family)

So, with all of that, be sure to wish Sam a Happy Happy Birthday. Singing and abnoxious phone calls area allowed on this day only. AND, sad to say, all of my pictures of Sam are on my external hard-drive at home, so you will just have to remember him in your mind.

How many times a day do you use the word awesome? I know in high school I used it quite often. I also still use it today, but I have been challenged recently not to. Why? Well, what is awesome? Well, “producing awe”….so not too helpful yet, but the author continues to define what awe is. “Look it up, you won’t find any warm, soft synonyms for awe. They’re serious and threatening. Awe promotes fear and terror. Dread and fright. Awesome says ‘watch out!’” So, when you say that play was awesome….did you really mean to say that the play promoted you to fear and terror, dread and fight? Then it wasn’t truly awesome. The only truly awesome thing is our GOD.

In our rushed society, it’s so easy to have road blocks in getting to God…don’t get me wrong, God is easily accessible, but road blocks to our relationship in the sense that we have too many things on the “to do” list to read our Bible, or maybe we gossip rather than pray, or many other examples (from personal experience), but the author points to a verse in Isaiah 40:3, “Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; make smooth in the desert a highway for God.” When was the last time you “cleared the way.” I know for me lately, I have had to purpose in my heart and mind (because I believe you need both) to read God’s word and also to listen for Him. We’re so quick to pray with our prayer requests, but how often do we listen. Personally, I’m horrible at this, and it’s a MAJOR struggle to sit in silence and not day dream.

 This next passage declaring God’s awesomeness just has to be quoted from the book because it’s an incredible mental picture to think about the power and majesty of our God as well as the significant

             But God “stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in”(v.22). The word “heavens” describes all of God’s created universe,” and poof…as easily as you put up an umbrella, it was all there.

            Do you have any idea the immensity of the universe God spoke into existence? I’ve tried for many years to find a decent description. Try this on for size: We’re on planet Earth, and we are 93,000,000 miles from the sun. Imagine that distance as the thickness of a piece of paper. From the Earth to the sun, 93,000,000 miles equals a piece of paper.

            With that in mind, the distance to the nearest star is a stack of paper seventy-one feet high, with every single piece of paper representing 93,000,000 miles. (Stay with me; this is getting outrageous.) The size of our galaxy is represented by a stack of paper 310 MILES high (the distance from Chicago to St. Louis), with every single piece of paper in that stack representing 93,000,000 miles. That’s just our galaxy, and it’s one among millions.

            You say, “Oh, I understand that.” Well, think about this then.

            The KNOWN universe is a stack of paper 31,000,000 miles high with every single piece of paper representing 93,000,000 miles! Now for those of you who like math, there are 10.4 million sheets of paper in a stack one mile high. Therefore, the known universe is 31,000,000 miles of paper, with each mile representing 10.4 million sheets of paper and each sheet of paper representing 93,000,000 miles. Are you getting a headache?

           In every description we see of God’s reality, we are struck by the immense distance that exists between us and God – in power, in size, in ability, in majest. The gap is too great to measure.

 The rest of the chapter discusses God’s literal awesomeness. It discusses how leaders are only a “blip on God’s radar.” On earth, we stress because of what this ruler or that is doing….I know I certainly do, but I “not one of His purposes is ever delayed or frustrated – not even for a moment…No one influences God. No one impacts the Lord. No one changes His mind about anything. He doesn’t need you, me, or anyone.”

 I don’t know how to end a chapter review like this one. As our pastor at church says, I think I frequently put God in a box (in church it’s been Jesus we have been putting in a box), but I think I have done this. I have built and painted this beautiful box for God. I want to put Him in there so He is manageable, but why? My God is so powerful, but I want to control Him? He provokes fear and tear, dread and fright…but why? Because He is more powerful than we will ever be able to imagine on earth. Those against Him ignite His fury. Be careful when you use the word “awesome,” we can not begin to comprehend what it means.

Just as short re-cap of things that have recently happened to Jon and I. On Friday, I found out that the Lord let me pass my third section of the CPA exam. I will take my final section on August 29th which will hopefully be my last. I will need 13 additional college credits to optain my actual CPA certificate, so I have applied to get my Masters of Accountancy from BJU. I’m waiting for word if I am accepted or not. If the Lord allows, I will graduate in May of 2011 with Joey and Amy. Exciting stuff.

Jon and I have been praying for about nine months for a new car because about that time ago my radiator began leaking and our trusty mechanic told us that we had probably a year before it would need to be replaced because he put some stop leak in it. Anyway, we found a 2003 Toyota Highlander with low miles for a very awesome price. I tried contacting them on Friday, and I was able to speak with the owner, but then I tried back three times between Friday and Saturday to set up a time to look at it. NO response. I was beginning to get very discouraged. I started looking for different cars on different websites, and I kept praying that the Lord would let the lady call. She did. We went to see the vehicle, and we had it checked out by Toyota. We made an offer, and we will pick it up on Monday evening. I am SOOOOOO excited.

Now, back to studying. Check back soon for my Chapter 2 review of Gripped by God’s Greatness. I finished the chapter, but I haven’t gotten a chance to write the review….to wet your appetite. Do you know what “awesome” really means?

I have been learning some interesting things lately. The Lord has been working on my heart recently. I don’t think I can say that it’s on one specific thing, but the whole entire sanctification process. I started reading a book that mom and dad bought for Jon’s birthday. It’s called Gripped by the Greatness of God by Joshua MacDonald. There are many interesting things that have been puncturing my heart in a good way, but I will try to touch on a couple of things.

 

The first chapter is based on Isaiah 6:1-7 which the first portion reads: “In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.”

 

When you think of the Christian walk, is holiness the first thing you think of? To be honest, it isn’t for me, and the only reason that I say that is because holiness feels so unobtainable, but what is IT that is SO unobtainable? Do we even comprehend what God’s true holiness entails? Can we comprehend it if we even tried? The book encourages you to be completely shaken to the core in awe of the God we serve. The portion of scripture quoted above is a glimpse at God’s Holiness….what’s cooler about that glimpse is that Isaiah got to see it first hand and then share it with all of us.

 

The first item that Mr. MacDonald points out that struck me was his analysis of the following phrase, “I saw the Lord sitting on a throne.” Here’s a series of quotes from the book. “Sitting — not pacing back and forth. Sitting — not wringing His hands. Sitting — not struggling or searching. Not God. Where was He? He was seated. He was settled. He was secure. He was certain. I wrote in the margin of my Bible, ‘Why so settled and so seated?’ The answer is: because He is in control. He knows it. Everyone in the throne room knows it. No one is worried (pg. 25).”

 

I personally wrote in the margin of the book that I need to remember this point daily. It’s SO easy to get caught up by the news, finances, family issues, and other concerns and forget that God is SEATED on His throne. He isn’t concerned. He is in control of EVERYTHING.

 

Okay, so this chapter had a lot that hit me. I mean even the comment, “with the train of His robe filling the temple.” The author used the example of Queen Elizabeth’s inauguration, but I couldn’t remember that far back, but I do remember Princess Diana’s wedding gown, and I remember the train being so long. It was a sign of regalness (if that’s even a word), respect, prestige, and any other lofty adjective you can think of. Our Lord’s train filled the temple….it wasn’t just the length of an aisle. It was long enough to fill the temple. Very impressive mental picture.

 

The rest of the passage reads: “And the foundation of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke, Then I said, “woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.”

 

Isaiah realized he was a sinner…a true sinner. He said, “I’m a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips.” Mr. MacDonald points straight at me when he wrote the following: “God forgive us for thinking, ‘You know, Lord, I think I’m a bit more holy than some of Your other followers.’ What a joke! Who cares about how you compare to the other guy? Who can stand before this God?” I personally struggle with this. It’s so easy to look at someone else and feel sorry for them because they don’t understand or see what’s right, but while I’m seeing what they are missing, I’m about to walk straight into a trial that will bring much pain and suffering because I am a sinner.

 

What terrible sin have you committed? Does it plague you? Did you know that it doesn’t have to? I know the Devil uses my past failures as an attack mechanism against my faith, but be encouraged by reading that second portion of scripture again…”Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.”

 

I told Jon I was writing a review about this book that I was reading, and he asked why. To be honest, I don’t know. I just feel compelled. The book is good so far, and I want to share it with you. Maybe you will learn something, maybe you will be encouraged, maybe you will be stopped in your tracks because we serve such a holy God. Here’s my final quote for the day from the book think about it and pray about it this week as you look at your life and realize your true state. “We are only prepared to receive and comprehend the grace of God when we have understood His infinite holiness and our incredible sinfulness.”

Yes, we are the strangers to you all. Life has been SO busy. I’m praying to survive until August. My goal is to finish my CPA exam by August, so please be in prayer that I can stay focused until then.

How much better can life be? I’m sitting on the couch with my amazing husband on one arm and my amazing puppy on the other. I’m a blessed woman. Well, I promise to write more later….

PASSING GRADE

YEAH. What a great feeling? How am I celebrating. Eating a big bowl of ice cream after my spin class and studying for my next exam. I have two more to go!!! Thank you for your prayers, but keep them coming. I have two more exams to go. The next one I will take sometime in July, and it’s the one I failed. The Lord truly blessed me with this exam as it’s supposed to be the hardest of the four. I truly need to thank Jon too. He made me a very intense study schedule, and I stuck to it faithfully…he even helped me study along the way. Thank you Jon. I love you, and I can’t wait to be a CPA like you!!!!

TWO YEARS ago yesterday…..I married Jon Sutter. Time has flown, but I have loved every minute of it…even the hard times. The Lord has blessed me far beyond what I deserve. For our anniversary, Jon took me to Outback which is one of my favorite restaurants primarily due to the unhealthy cheese fries. He also got me a beautiful bouqet of Orange roses with white daisies….awesome taste as usual. He got a special treat for dessert. He got some peanut butter fudge and chocolate fudge. He has been eyeing it for weeks, so I thought it would be an appropriate time to get some.

Here’s some pics of Jon’s office that I re-did for his birthday. I’m still working on the little accent pieces, but I hope you enjoy as much as he says he does.

Jon in his old office.

The couch I bought for Jon’s new office.

The desk and fan are new for his b-day, and he picked the awesome paint color.

Yet another complaint…..no updates on your blog, so here it goes. You will get to read what it’s like a day in the life of an accountant married to an accountant……

 At 4am, your precious little pup peers over the side of the bed trying to claw your arm. Why? Well, a few reasons, hungry, needs to go outdoors, or smells daddy’s breath and wants to get closer (the last was a joke for those who were wondering). So, I quietly get out of bed to not disturb Jon and take Miss Lexi outdoors, feed her, take her outdoors again, and hopefully take her back to bed. Sometimes her energy level is a little too much to go back to bed, but she’ll sit at the end of the bed chewing on her bone if it is.

 At 7 (I know very late), I finally roll out of bed and make some semblance of a presentable person to head into work. My tired husband has already been up for probably 20 minutes….he takes much longer to get ready. SHOCKER, I know…it would take him much less time if he would let me give him a hair cut. Finally stumble downstairs around 7:30. Jon goes (faithfully) to check on his garden and remove any urchins that are eating his plants. I finish making the lunches that I started making at 4 when I brought Lexi downstairs. Then, off to the rat race.

 Now, this is the boring part….8-5. This is where you get the real taste of accountant’s life and a CPA candidate’s life. I log into my computer and after booting all necessary programs, I go to the NASBA website and check for my most recent accounting score. You enter your necessary information and then you get an error message. You get this error message because either a) your score isn’t back yet or b) you entered information incorrectly. Since it’s been three weeks since your test, you wonder “did I enter it incorrectly?” So, you try again just to be sure. After realizing your score isn’t there, I begin my day’s work. Usually spending my day in Excel or tax software, I get quite tired. Thankfully, I have access to Pandora.com that allows me to listen to my “Phantom of the Opera” radio station which has all Broadway musicals on it. Pretty awesome stuff to keep me going through the day. As I write this, I’m singing Under the Sea…or now…L-O-V-E  by Nat King Cole.

 After working for about 3-4 hours on spreadsheets and what not (which is really more exciting than it sounds), you need a break, so what’s the first thing you would do? Okay, you’re probably not as insane as me, but you think to yourself “I wonder if they posted scores while I was working” that’s right, you go through the same routine as before checking the scores, re-checking to make sure you didn’t mis-type your info only to be disappointed to get your score back. After that disappointment, as you listen to I’m 16 going on 17which is NOT from Mary Poppins Jon….(He tries to see if I know my musical movies), you decide to eat lunch which varies from tacos to sandwhiches…today being a taco day….typically with a CPA study book or lecture open during that hour. Today, however. I’m shortening lunch and breaking out of work early, say….3:30…Anyway, back to the typical day. Work for another 3 hours or so…it’s 4:30, you can’t wait to leave… and what would you do? Good, you’re catching on. Check those scores!!!! Keep in mind, you already have been informed by a blog regarding CPA release dates that it’s unlikely your score will be out before June 20^th, but they may be wrong, right? No scores. ;-( Work a little more, run out of here at 5:00pm. Fight traffic on the interstate. Open the door to hear whimpering and excitement from a caged animal. Rush to let her out and burn some energy. I’ll skip a few hours because it entails studying, cleaning, or cooking, and who likes to hear about that?

 SO, now it’s 9pm. The garage door opens which immediately causes Lexi to go sit by the door with her tail wagging (when she wags her tail her hips wag too, so it’s rather humorous). She is whimperingincessantly until Jon opens the door. Jon arrives home from yet another late night at work. His poor firm missed the memo on when accountants are supposed to have busy lives and when they aren’t. Anyway, dinner table discussion = business purchase pursuits, depreciation schedules, any other random accounting topic that can come up, and of course if Lexi has been good or bad since I have been home. After dinner clean-up, Jon goes, as he faithfully does, to check his garden. Disappointed that no veggies have sprouted yet he comes in to try to wear Lexi out. He and Lexi do sprints the lengthof our living room (from couch to wall). As both start wearing down, it’s time to head to bed. Did it work? Will Lexi “sleep in” in the morning? Sure enough. 6am rolled around before hearing a peep out of Miss Lexi. Well, that’s the day in the life of two accountants.

 Someone may be sorry for pestering me about an update. Writers must write in their own timing.  I will try to do a true update soon. Life’s been a bit busy in the Sutter household, but very exciting.

I will write about them later, but here are the links to the pics.

Day 2: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=256507&id=603205205&l=d094940d61

Day 3: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=257129&id=603205205&l=03307c9267