Merry Christmas!!
Christmas is definitely my favorite time of year. I love Christmas music, Christmas cookies, Christmas presents, Christmas shopping, Christmas decorating...just anything that has to do with Christmas. More importantly, I love the fact that it's a time to celebrate the birth of Christ - my Savior! I find that it's so easy for me to get caught up in all the things that I mentioned and lose sight of what the season really means. Christ humbling Himself, becoming a man, giving up the glories of heavan, dying for my sins - doing all this and more so that a sinner like me can be saved. I'm so thankful for Christ! I can't imagine celebrating Christmas with out having Him as my Savior.
TJ and I believe family traditions help to make times more memorable. We have several Christmas traditions that we've establised, so far. Each year we exchange ornaments. My ornament came from Disney world, when we where there this past February. T.J.'s new ornament does not have any particular meaning. I just thought it was cute. On Christmas Eve, we eat what we call a "fun meal." This tradition was in his family before I was. It includes various finger foods, snacky stuff, or fruits/veggies. Then we watch a Christmas movie. (This year, my new favorite Christmas movie is Elf- so hopefully we'll be watching that with everyone). After the Christmas movie, we read the Christmas story from the Bible and open one present before we go to bed. We sleep in Christmas morning. When we get up, we usually open presents before we do anything else. We're too excited to wait until after breakfast ( I know we're like a couple of big kids). Of course, we only open one present at a time so we can ohh and ahh over everything that's opened. After presents are opened and the mess is cleaned up, we make brunch. Then the rest of the day we relax, enjoy our presents, and eventually make Christmas dinner.
TJ and I are eagerly awaiting our family coming for Christmas. TJ's parents, sisters and brother-in-law will all be here to celebrate with us. I know we will have a great time. We will post pics of them after Christmas. We hope you all have a great Christmas season!

Fall is the air, but the leaves are on the ground....lots and lots of leaves.

Today we set out to conquer the blanket of leaves in our yard. With living right next to the woods, we had plenty of them…

it was a daunting task...

Niko was even out there to cheer us on…

Alas, we finished the task that was set before us…

Now we just have to rake the back of the house. We also found it pretty funny that while raking the leaves others continued to fall from the trees around us. So, who knows what the yard will look like in a few days. Oh well, we wanted to get some of them up since my parents are coming in three days!!

TJ's Birthday

TJ's Birthday was last week. He turned 25. We first celebrated by going to Captain George's on the Sat. before his birthday. They have a big seafood buffet. TJ had wanted to go there for awhile. He loved it! TJ's actual b-day was the Thurs. after. Since TJ works so late during the week, we wanted to go Sat. so we could enjoy the dinner better than if we went at 8:30pm during the week. After dinner we went to see a movie. I ended up making TJ wait till the actual day of his birthday to open some of his presents. Here's a pic of what TJ got.




Not really…he wishes. This is what he actually got.

He got a couple oriental swords to decorate his office and a few other small things. The night of his b-day we had tacos (one of TJ’s favorites), and some friends showed up to help celebrate. We also enjoyed some delicious ice cream cake (another favorite). Happy Birthday TJ!!

A couple weeks ago TJ and I went to a costume/harvest party . We dressed up as Napolean Dynamite and Deb. If you don't know who they are, you probably haven't seen the movie. Anyway, we had so much fun getting our customes together prior to the party. We found out thrift stores were very helpful when trying to find stuff we needed to make our costumes complete. The night of the party we had a lot of fun with friends. There we some great costumes. Everyone was very creative! We played some crazy games, ate delicious food, and sang some wacky songs. Overall, we had a great time with friends. Check out some of the pics, you'll never guess who some of them were!

Since we have both friends and family native to the Detroit region, I'll keep this short...

THE CARDS WON THE WORLD SERIES!

The Logsdon Clan would have disowned us if we didn't put something on our blog about the world's greatest baseball team.

A few moments ago, I sat in my study and stared at The Vocabulary Guide to Biblical Hebrew, and then, I stared some more.....So, instead of doing the smart thing-going to bed, I convinced myself that cruising the blog-o-sphere would be more profitable than studying any ancient language at 1215 am (Anand, my starbucks connection, lied- he didn't give me decaf after all). An upon glancing at our own site, I realized that I had not posted in a while. So, Here you go.

Yes, I'm still alive and still a student (which means I'm half awake). As to how that is going... We are in week six of a fourteen week semester. This is extremely encouraging because I am more than a 1/3 done with this semester and have about 7% of my reading, papers, and quizzes completed...

Seriously, I am loving my classes this semester. The reading is very profitable and the languages are... challenging. In addition, I have the privileged of preaching on Oct 21 at our church in Williamsburg. There are a few texts in 1 Peter where God calls Christians "sojourners" and "strangers." What a theme to describe us! No matter our situation in this life, we know that this is not our true home. Our true home is with Jesus. In light of such a title, Peter tells us how Christian/strangers are to live in verses 2:11-4:11. I'm excited to dig into these passages. Needless to say, you won't see me post on the blog for quite some time.

well the "decaf" has worn off, I'm hitting the sack. 'night.

This past weekend TJ and I and some friends went to the annual Neptune festival here in Virginia Beach. The festival is a celebration of the locals gaining the beach back from all the tourists. Every year on the beach they have a sand sculpture contest. There are sand sculptures like you’ve never seen. What these people can do with sand is amazing! We also were able to see the word’s largest (record-breaking) sculpture. Unfortunately we don’t have a pic because it was dark by the time we got to it. In addition to viewing the sculptures, we ate some delicious New York style (whatever that means) pizza. We also enjoyed some ice cream that we ended up walking like three miles to. Actually, it wasn’t that far – although it seemed like it. This special ice cream place that T.J. wanted to go to was on the other end of the boardwalk. Oh well, I definitely needed the exercise anyway. Overall, it was worth the walk. We had a great time. And to end the evening, we sat on the beach and enjoyed a beautiful fireworks display.

Below are some pics of our recent trip to the Shenandoah mountains. We stayed three nights and four days at Massanutten Resort. We spent some time sightseeing in the national park. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get very good pics because of the fog. We still enjoyed viewing God's creation. While at the resort, we did some horseback riding. That was pretty enjoyable for most of the time, but at the end of the ride my seat was starting to become very uncomfortable. I don't know how our guides ride in those saddles all the time. Anyway, while there, we also enjoyed swimming, playing games, and relaxing. We also spent part of the day at their new indoor water park. We had a great time. Although, I think TJ and I were the only ones there who weren't kids or who didn't have kids. It was still fun, especailly the water slides. We also spent part of one day in Harrisonburg, which was a few miles from where we stayed. We went shopping, saw a movie, and went out to eat. On our way home we detoured through some of Virginia's countryside, which was very pretty. Overall, we really enjoyed our time away together.

Right now, Shannon and I are sitting at the beach, taking up the sun and sipping southern iced tea. Just thought I’d let you Midwesterners know……

Actually, none of that was true! “Deluge” more accurately describes Hampton Roads, today. Tropical Storm Ernesto is has been blessing us with rain for the second day…lots, and lots of rain. Sever Thunderstorm warnings, flood warnings, and tornado watches (believe it or not, tornados often form from Tropical Storms) have been in effect all day and all night. Many of my friends are not able to leave their homes because of the flooding. Makes you want to move to the east coast, right? Actually, I don’t believe there is any real danger from this storm. Chesapeake will NOT be on the weather channel—showing pictures of people sitting on houses. It ISN’T that bad.
I have always loved storms, especially big ones. I love to see the way humans react to it, too. In a storm like this, I think “This is God’s doing; man can not stop it, only run or hide from it. These storms interrupt all the plans that people make. God is breaking into the lives of men, whether they like it or not. Men can prepare, but can not stop it.
Psalm 107 describes the interplay between the Lord and men in the mist of adverse weather conditions:

"Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters, They see the works of the Lord, And His wonders in the deep. For He commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits’ end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, So that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders.

So, while underwater in Virginia, We exalt His name! What marvelous things our God can do. I’m just praying I don’t have to go to work today!

Well, we finally made it back to the midwest a few weeks ago. My sister Laura married Matt Gass, whom she met at college. Believe it or not, I actually enjoyed the wedding; it was the best kind--God honoring and short! Shannon and I both had the priviledge of being in the bridal party. Even though our five days in Illinois went unusually fast, we still had a great time seeing my extended family and First Baptist of Divernon. If I get the chance, I'll write more about our trip later.

August 12 & 13: Logsdon's First Camping Jaunt

Shannon, Niko, and I recently enjoyed our first

experience camping. James "the buttercup" Frohlich and his wife Jessica invited us to join them at First Landing State Park (30 minutes from our house) for the weekend. We had a blast!

Shannon and I have enough outdoor-loving friends that we were able to borrow all of our needed equipment for the weekend.

The park itself is rather nice--which had its own shoreline (although it was covered with hundreds of dead jellyfish).

For Niko, camping was a real treat. Because he rarely gets to run around outside for long periods of time, he did everything with us during the weekend, including hiking, driving for ice cream and, of course, going into the Ocean. I'm not convinced Niko liked the salty water, but he did enjoy chasing the waves everytime the tide receeded.

We will have more pics and deatails about our adventure (including seeing a giant mutant squidman on the beach) here on our website.

A Day of Great Importance

For those of you who did not realize it, Monday, August 7th was a very special day for Shannon. Yes, as of Monday, she has managed to stay married to me for exactly 2 years! For those of you who know me, you'll agree that Shannon deserves a metal or award for such a feat!!!

Seriously, anniversaries are important, of course. Shannon and I have seen God's grace and providence manifested innumerable times in these last two years. When we were wed, there were still many uncertainties about the future (i.e. neither of us had a job), yet our faithful Father has not let us down once since then. So, we once again bless the Lord for his goodness to his undeserving children.

Because I was working twelve hours on monday, we celebrated our anniversary on Saturday, going to our favorite restaurant and shopping, a little. Also, we will be getting away for an extended weekend in September because our packed summer schedule would not allow more time off from work this month. For this long weekend, we will be staying at a resort in western Viriginia, which we are eagerly anticipating.

As wonderful as this anniversary was, we look forward to celebrating our marriage for many, many more years to come. (Maybe next year you should sent Shannon the award!)

The God of break-lines and of broken cars....


Just yesterday I was telling a friend, while we were charging the dead battery of his car, that automotive problems seems to be God’s chief tool to test my spiritual walk with Him. In our family we joke that we have a curse when it comes to cars….

Today, I took my ’96 Grand Am in for a required Virginia State Inspection (which I knew needed to have a fixed hole in the exhaust system-only 75$). The mechanic called me about an hour later telling me, “You need a new car.” I was dumbfounded. The curse has struck again. It turns out that he was exaggerating… kinda. Throughout the conversation, I learned that I needed two new brake-lines, new brakes and new calipers, and a few other things, totaling over half a grand in parts and labor. He said that the rust is so bad it will cause problems later, too. So, just to make sure, I drove back and looked at it myself. Sure enough, rust had eaten the back brake-lines. It was so bad that when they touched it to check, it broke.

This isn’t a good way to start a morning. Anxiety, impatience, frustration, and helplessness, started to creep in my heart, as usual. No one likes to pay that much, or take the time and frustration to fix it or to ask friends for rides while their car is in the shop. Yet, in my soul I have an animosity more than most towards broken cars. Despise is a good word.

The Bible says that all things work together for good for those who are true Christians (Romans 8:28). Yet, if we are honest, most of us see an apparent disconnect between this truth and our reality at times. How does having a broken car work out for my good? On a larger scale, how do trials in general work out for good?

First off, we must remember that we are only creatures and that God is God and He has the ability and right to do whatever He wants (Job 38). He is much wiser and smarter than we are, too. So, when our trials, big or small, seem to workout badly instead of for good, we don’t see the big picture. For example, Shannon told that when she was a kid, she broke her arm. It turns out that a second doctor had to re-brake her arm weeks later because the first doctor set it improperly. Now, to Shannon, breaking her arm a second time did not seem good. Yet, despite the pain then, her arm shows no sign of deformity today. In my favorite poem by John Piper, an excerpt reads, “Beware…God is kind in ways that will not fit your mind.” We must trust that God is good, even when we don’t see or understand it.

Secondly, God often brings us trials to reveal who we are inside and what we are trusting in. Once again Piper’s poem, which retells Job’s trials and loss, puts it well,

The Lord has made me drink
The cup of his severity
That he might kindly show to me
What I would be when only he
Remains in my calamity.Unkindly he has kindly shown
That he was not my hope alone.

When we get frustrated over little things like cars breaking down, we reveal that we are putting our trust in material things, money, etc. Whenever I have car trouble, I start to feel the stress of not being able to handle the situation. Yet, God wants us to trust in Him to take care of the situation. He wants to have His rightful place-1st place- in our lives. Often, He will move things that are in the way of that goal. We should be grateful too, because there is nothing better than trusting God completely and enjoying who He is and what He has done for us.

So, at the end of this day, I hope to praise the LORD that He made my brake-line rust, knowing that He did it because He loves me and is drawing me closer to Him. I guess that the curse is a blessing in disguise.

Last week, Shannon and I left for New England so that I could be in Mark Rosedale's wedding. Mark has been a close friend of mine since junior high school and was also my 'best man' for our wedding. His bride, Lynn, is from Dover, New Hampshire. We had a great time seeing Mark and getting to know Lynn a little. The wedding went beautifully.

During our extended weekend, Shannon and I had a chance to do a little sightseeing. Although we were too far away to visit Acadia National Park, we did see quite a bit in lower Maine. I was very impressed: it is one of the most beautiful places I've seen so far.

The day after the wedding Shannon and I saw four lighthouses, such as the one pictured. The warm, yet overcast, weather made the day ideal for viewing the gray, rocky coastline. Once again, we marvel that all this could be made with merely a word.

Monday morning, before we left for home, we even tried our hand at kayaking, which was an experience we enjoyed. (we have more pics on our website)

The only challenge of weekend (other than lack of sleep) was the fact that I was stung by a wasp the day we left for NH. Over the process of two days, my leg continued to swell and redden. The night before the wedding, we considered the emergency room, but settled for benadryl, an ice pack, and nine hours of sleep. Thankfully, the symptoms began to subside.

The trip home was as uneventful as the initial journey north--for which we are thankful. Overall, Shannon and I had wonderful and refreshing weekend seeing old friends and enjoying God's creation.

WEBPAGE OR BLOG?

Bloggin' seems to be the hottest fad on the World Wide Web today. Yet, the question must be asked, "why do you need a blog if you have your own webpage?" Shannon and I feel that both will be usefull for us. Our Webpage will be the fountainhead of our pictures, links, and big news (http://tjandshannon.googlepages.com). On the other hand, we plan to use this blog for quick updates and correspondence with those loved ones and friends who are both near and far. With that in mind feel free to reply or comment on anything we put on this blog, as long as you write with a spirit of Love. :) We look forward to hearing from you!

Thanks for visiting us!

Love,
T.J. and Shannon