Agree to disagree? Pt. II

I spent Saturday and Sunday praying that God would move on the heart of George and he would show some compassion. That and the silent treatment seemed to get him to understand this was not something that was negotiable, and I wasn't bending. Having never been abused as a child, and always having another family member step in and take care of him even when his mother was unable to, George doesn't understand the concept of child abuse or neglect. He can't imagine it happening to children right under his nose, or worst, that he's related to.

While the king of the castle may have the ability to make and set decrees, it is always the queen who is able to turn his head. Without arguing, or causing a scene. Without neglecting my wifely "duties" and leaving my husband high and dry. While continuing to show love, fix his plates, get his clothes ready in the morning, but voicing my concerns, he listened. So now I am on a hunt for our girls.

My aunt (who is now home from observations at a mental institution) is the only key to finding where the girls are. After getting through Dorian's lessons this morning, I have decided to pay my aunt a visit and seek information on the whereabouts of her ex-husband (who is either keeping the girls, or knows where they are). Armed with the assignment of guardianship papers my cousin originally signed and we had notarized, I will make it very clear that if the girls are not returned to me (their legal guardian), I will contact the local authorities and report them missing. This too, requires a hostile takeover, and I refuse to let them go this time.

Agree to disagree?

What happens in marriage when you are faced with a life altering decision, and you and your spouse do not agree on the direction to go. Biblically the husband is the head of the house, so all final decisions rest with him, but what do you do when you know the decision he may have made is the wrong one? Before the girls left, I knew their mother would not be able to take care of them, and would regret having taken them back. Once the money ran out, and she found herself still homeless, she would get to a point where she would turn over her children once again. After only two months, and having spent most of those two months sleeping in her truck with 6 of her children (including the girls), she finally came to the point of giving up. When George and I agreed to take the girls in, he said if their mother were to ever take them back, the girls could not return to us, under no circumstances. I never agreed with that idea, and we discussed it even until this day. I came up with several scenarios where I felt his rule needed to bend, but once George has made a decision, he sticks to it no matter how outdated or inhumane it may be. I don't know if it has to do with admitting he was wrong (which he has not learned to do either) or he can not stand to get attached to them to have them taken away (which it seems to be more of than anything). He wanted to have their mother's parental rights stripped, but having voluntarily given up her children, there was no court that would do that; and the amount of money we would have to spend in order to hire an attorney in order to prove her unfit was not in our budget.
The latest news is the girls are now living with a known sexual predator (who has been incarcerated previously for rape). Him and his daughter agreed to take the girls but not the boys. I have no way of contacting their mother, or the girls. I can't help but feel like she was forced to give them to someone else because of the inhumane rule that George came up with. I'm trying not to be angry, but having recently gone off junk food and experiencing food withdrawals has my head hurting and me moody. Due to this fact, I'm not passing any judgement, and remaining silent, as anything I say may cause a huge argument. Their grandmother is so upset at finding out where her grandchildren are (with her ex husband, who was also physically abusive) that she has attempted suicide and is now in a mental facility for further observations. It is a huge ripple that seems unnecessary, I just want my girls back. We are attempting to have more children in January 2012, and the thought of procreation with someone who can dismiss children in need so easily seems a bit useless. Am I wrong? I am staying on my face in prayer, as I can not allow my emotions and thoughts to consume me, but I can not end this with agreeing to disagree. What else can I do?

A hostile takeover

As I'm sitting under the hair dryer this morning prior to waking up everyone in the house on Sunday morning to get them fed and dressed for church, instead of going to my favorite game app on my smartphone, I went to my Bible app (which there are free Bible apps for smartphones, if you've downloaded every other app but not a Bible one, perhaps you should do that now). As I pray each morning on what direction God will have my day go in, I listen to his voice and flip to Judges 1: 27. The historical theme of Judges is God's faithfulness to the Israelites, though they were disobedient. The tribes of Israel after Joshua had died, neglected to raise their children in the ways of God (which is for another blog entry). Starting at verse 27 through the first 6 verses of chapter 2 we see the incomplete conquest to possess the land which God had promised to Israel. Once the promise land was divided into sections for the various tribes of Israel, it was up to the tribes to go in and possess the land. The tribe of Judah (which means "Praise"), who was the tribe where Caleb came from (one of the 12 spies originally sent out by Moses to see what the promise land looked like, and one of two who returned and gave a good report, and the only one who quieted the people and said we can take the inhabitants) were the only tribe who obeyed God's instructions to the letter. The rest of the tribes did not see the land promised to them because they attempted to slide in and dwell with the inhabitants.
How does this relate to us today?
We are sitting waiting for God to bring about the things he has promised to us, yet we are chillin' with the very people he told us to separate from. We are hanging on to that piece of a job because we are fearful of starting our own businesses. We are clinging to those relationships God has told us to leave because we have a fear of being alone. If you are trying to get the promise to come, then you can't compromise (come promise = no compromise). How can you expect to be a leader attempting to quietly sit in the back of the room? Those of us who are called to great leadership, often have the problem of still being singled out, even when we are attempting to stay low key. The tribes who decided to disregard the instructions that may have taken them out of their comfort zone (most of us do not seek out confrontation or a fight) did not see the full benefits of their promise. The inhabitants became a thorn to them. Some of us work with some people we can not stand, because we are attempting to befriend the inhabitants instead of realizing this isn't a merger, this is a hostile takeover. I don't want to settle for doing okay in business, my vision has always included the words "premier provider" of certain student services. In order to stay in position to receive the promise God has given you, you must be willing to look crazy pursuing your dreams. As a commercial George and I like said, you can't settle for just "Keeping up with the Joneses", you have to chase them (or us) down. Get off your excuses, and realize this is a hostile takeover!!!! GET 'R DONE!!!