A note of encouragement

My husband recently wrote a letter to our children on his blog and I want to share a few excerpts with you.

Carrots and Goals

To my children:
The older you get the more intelligent, crafty, and agile you may become. In doing so, you will become a valuable asset to others. Some may seek to aid you in your knowledge base, and others may seek to plug you in somewhere to help them achieve something they are striving for. This is not necessarily wrong. Having discernment in these situations is very important. It is very easy for some dream to become your target when you had not planned on it for yourself.

In school, one good goal would be to make straight A's or be on the honor roll. Some students couldn't care less while others set aside friendships, sports, and God to accomplish that goal. If and when it is attained, you may be granted a scholarship to a college. This trend may repeat for college.

As an athlete in high school, apply yourself to your tasks. Train as you should, practice your shooting, passing, etc. Excel here too, and seek to improve at a faster rate than others, but don't get lost here.

In your first job, you will start out doing meanial tasks. Excel here. Make no mistake, do your best. Once you beat the curve or the standard path taken by others, you will be noticed. Managers will quickly realize your potential and want you on their team. This is not wrong either. Grow, and apply yourself, but don't get lost.

As a mother, it may be necessary to prepare your home, take care of children, or make big decisions for the household. All of these tasks are necessary and proper. Excell here. Be a wonderful support system for your husband, and a leader for him when he needs a break or has faltered.

In a few years of breaking through new barriers like these, I have noticed a trend that you should know before you excel as I know you will.

Don't let a good thing blur your focus. Don't let getting straight A's cloud your judgment on your priorities. Don't let being a good athlete and having to practice often take over your life. Don't let a good first job or second job opportunity take you down a road you didn't know you were going. Don't let being a spouse drag you away from the very spouse you married.

 

Don't ever forget our catechism. What is the chief end of man? The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

As you progress in your life, remember who granted life to you, who protects you, and who saved you. 

 

 Read the Bible for yourself. Use your Bible to help you discern error. Ask God to help guide you to himself.

 

 

 

(If you would like to read the entire post, you can click the link below)

From the Foundation of the World

 

 I hope this was an encouragement to you as it was to me!

Random Acts of Christmas Kindness

Just wanted to share this idea with you all really quick. I know I'm getting it to you a day late but it is really worth the effort even if you're a day behind.

I originally found this on Pinterest

Thanks, Tracie for the great idea!

Random Acts of Christmas Kindness Link

What a great way to instill a heart for giving in our children! We baked some cookies and muffins last night and delivered them to our neighbors. The kids are having alot of fun with it and Iam so proud of them as they come up with their own ideas on how to bless others during this Christmas season.

 I hope you will take this challenge

 and come up with your own

Random~Acts~of~Christmas~Kindness

And show the love of Christ this Christmas!

Bible Time

After many months of peer pressure, I have finally given in and joined 

 Pinterest.

You can follow my boards by clicking over there.------->

Hint Hint

I must say that it is not nearly as addicting as I had heard...At least not yet.

There are a million and three ideas on there! Everything from crafts, clothing, design...you name it, it's on there somewhere!

I still need to figure out all of the bells and whistles

but I am really enjoying my time with my new best friend,

Pinterest 

(Ya, not addicting at all)

Anyway, while I was spending quality time on my computer the other day, I came across an awesomely creative idea for celery! You can use it as a stamp. Confused?? There's nothing to it.

Just chop off the stalks...

Use a brush to paint directly on to the celery and stamp on your paper.

We worked it into our Family Bible Time and learned a verse to go with our pretty flowers.

Isaiah 40:8

The grass withers,

the flower fades

but the Word of our God

will stand forever.

Happy Friday!



The Apple Of Your Eye

Our verse for the week:

Proverbs 7:2

Keep my commandments and live;

keep my teaching as the apple of your eye

 

Just What I Needed

I was checking out a blog today and came across some very convicting and encouraging words. Instead of paraphrasing it all for you, You should check it out yourself!

Protect Your Home at Impress Your Kids

1 Peter 5:8

Be sober-minded; be watchful.

Your adversary the devil

prowls around like a roaring lion,

seeking someone to devour.

The Hannah Attitude

We read the story of Hannah at church this past Sunday and I have been thinking about it since. I have heard the story itself many times but have never seen God portrayed as intimately until this week.

1 Samuel 1;1-20
There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephrathite. ²He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
 ³Now this man used to go up year by year from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the LORD of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the LORD. ⁴On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. ⁵But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the LORD had closed her womb. ⁶And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the LORD had closed her womb. ⁷So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the LORD, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. ⁸And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, "Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?"
⁹After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the LORD. ¹⁰She was deeply distressed and prayed to the LORD and wept bitterly. ¹¹And she vowed a vow and said, "O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head."
 ¹²As she continued praying before the LORD, Eli observed her mouth. ¹³Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. ¹⁴And Eli said to her, "How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you." ¹⁵But Hannah answered, "No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the LORD. ¹⁶Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation." ¹⁷Then Eli answered, "Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him." ¹⁸And she said, "Let your servant find favor in your eyes." Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.
 ¹⁹They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the LORD; then they went back to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her. ²⁰And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, "I have asked for him from the LORD.

I am really struck by three specific things in this story.

First of all; God uses the insignificant to accomplish His purpose.

We cannot assume to measure who or what situation God can use in His favor. I really think that the more we try to do so, the more we are limiting God Himself. He took a small "podunk"(as my teacher said this Sunday) town as the birthplace of His Son. He used a young girl, "Who had known not any man" to bear Him. He always seems to take a 'Nobody" and start from scratch to receive even more glory for Himself!
How can we choose who God will use.

It reminds me of this song, "Give Me Your Eyes" by Brandon Heath.



Secondly, God cares even about the little things that bother us.

To Hannah, being teased about being barren was a big thing. It wasn't a life or death situation but God knew her heart and felt her pain. How often do we consider small problems as too trivial for God's time and try to conquer or solve them ourselves.

He not only cares but wants you to confide those deepest feelings in Him.

And the last note is this:

Take your prayers to the Lord EXPECTING and answer. How often do we bring our prayers and supplications before God  and then proceed to try and solve the problem on our own or worry and fret about it.  Hannah left the temple after speaking with Eli, convinced of an answer. God was going to accomplish a miracle through her and that gave her joy.  I always say to my husband when I'm upset, "I just need to vent and then I"ll  feel better."  When you give your worries to God, do it the same way (In essence, people, don't take that literally!) When you're done....leave it there.

He says "Cast all your cares upon me" 1 Peter 5:7

He can handle it.

I'm praying this week that I can have a "Hannah" attitude

in my relationship with my heavenly Father.

What a wonderful thing to be able to say that

"My God can accomplish ANYTHING!"

RAdiCaL

The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Matthew 13:44

I have recently read the book Radical by David Platt and would like to give you and excerpt from the book that I think is just an amazing picture of how a relationship with God is worth every ounce of energy, time or money that you could ever have. I'm not saying that it is any easy concept but we are called to sacrificially give.

 It helps to remember that we have an amazing God, a treasure, worth giving everything for! 

A Call to Treasure

Imagine walking in a field and stumbling upon a treasure that is more valuable than anything else you could work for or find in this life. It is more valuable than all you have now or will ever have in the future.
You look around and notice that no one else realized the treasure is here, so you cover it up quickly and walk away, pretending you haven't seen anything. You go into town and begin to sell off all your possessions to have enough money to buy that field. The world thinks you're crazy..
"What are you thinking?" your friends and family ask you.
You tell them, "I'm buying that field over there"
They look at you in disbelief. "That's a ridiculous investment," they say. "Why are you giving away everything you have?"
You respond, "I have a hunch." and you smile to yourslef as you walk away.
You smile because you know that in the end you are not really giving away anything at all. Instead you are gaining. Yes, you are abandoning everything you have, but you are also gaining more than you could have in any other way. So with joy~~~with joy~~~~ you sell it all, you abadon it all. Why? Because you have found something worth losing eveything else for.
This is the picure of Jesus in the gospel. He is something~~Someone~~worth losing everything for. And if we walk away from the Jesus of the gospel, we walk away from eternal riches. The cost of nondiscipleship is profoundly greater for us than the cost of discipleship. For when we abandon the trinkets of this world and respond to the radical invitation of Jesus, we discover the infinite treasure of knowing and experiencing him.

"One thing you lack; go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me"

Mark 10:21

Colossians 3:3 

For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

This verse is so encouraging! Isn't it great to know that God no longer sees my sin but only the pure holiness of His Son?!  I think of it this way: When I awake each morning and look to Jesus, He gives me a brand new batch of mercy for the day; then stands in front of me and looks to His Father.......and God only sees Him. Not me. Not my feeble attempt at righteousness.

I am dead and ALIVE IN CHRIST!

A Heart Fit for A KING

So as we were listening to Christmas music this morning on the way to school (I know it’s May, don’t judge me! )  The kids were all singing along to Joy To The World and then we went back and sang it again and again until we got to school.

And the first verse kept sticking to me…

“Let every heart prepare Him room…”

Go on. Listen to it! You know you want to!

Do we actually make a special place for the Lord or do we just fit him in whenever we have a minute? Does He take precedence over our own desires? Is He situated (in my heart) where He will seep into every area of my life?

Romans 8 verse 9 says:

You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.

Don’t merely make room but have a heart that is prepared for the Spirit of God to do a great work!

Happy Mother's Day!

As I was driving home today,

I saw a mother swan sitting on her nest.

I’ve seen her before, often, actually.

She has been sitting on that same nest all winter long. Even on the nastiest of winter days, she was there; huddled among the branches of her nest, in that icy, frozen pond. 

Now, it is spring and she sits tall…

but still on her nest.

It got me thinking…

What amazing patience she has! She sits and waits, no matter what.  She is such a great lesson in perseverance and just-plain-good-old-mothering. She reminded me of this verse:

Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old he shall not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6

It doesn’t say, “If you correct your child today, you will not have to do so tomorrow” (Even though I wish it did!)  We are to continue training; continue teaching; continue correcting to reap benefits when our children are grown.

So, take heart! Every mother has her days of exhaustion but those moms who persevere will also have days of pure joy! (They may not be here as soon as you would prefer but they will come!)

Hope you all had a Blessed Mother’s Day!

People Pleaser

1 Thessalonians 4:1

"Finally, Brothers, we ask, and urge you ,in the Lord Jesus ,that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing-that you do so more and more."

Yesterday, while on a road trip, I was thinking about how much I try to please people. I'm not necessarily, the typical "People Pleaser" but I do have that instinctual desire to meet others needs. God made most women this way, I think. We were created to be helpers.

Why was I dwelling on this, you ask??

Well, I had been gone already for 24 hours at this point in the trip and  I couldn't help but make a list in my head of what I need to do or who I need to call (or what I need to blog about!) ...But I think I need to be reminded sometimes that it's not the pressure of others or the desire to meet everyone's needs that should compel us but the constant need to please our God!

We have an amazing God and He has created each of us for His glory. We are here to "Make Him look good." (as my Sunday school teacher put it) So, for all of you ladies out there...(It's gonna' be hard but)

If you don't have the time, Say NO

If you aren't feeling up to it, Say NO

~INSTEAD~

Follow God's leading and stay close to HIM.

Put on a beautiful smile while you do your list today and seek to bring glory to His name!

                                          

Clean Slate

Hebrews 8:12

“For I will forgive their sins and remember them no more”

Really? Why do I feel like my sins hang on and on? Why do we as humans have a hard time forgiving ourselves, if the God of the entire universe sees fit to wipe the slate clean?

Because we know we aren’t worthy. At least that’s what I think.

 Today I will not focus on my faults but will be even more thankful for my heavenly Father’s forgetfulness And His plans for me!

Starting The Week Off Right

I think a good way to start the first week on a new blog (Or any week, for that matter) is studying and learning more about my God. So, I think Mondays will be a day that I will post accordingly.
I'm not sure what God has in store for this blog or for me. His plans are so much greater than giving me something else to do on my computer :)
The story of the poor woman who gave all she had as an offerring was mentioned this morning. (Mark 12:41-44)I began to think on how little we actually have to offer to God. He is the King of Kings! What does one give to a King?
And then, I started dwelling on all the He has done for me...He was betrayed, stripped and humilated. Made a mockery among those He had come to save. Beaten and tortured. And then hung on a tree to bleed to death....FOR ME. 

All I have to offer; however meek or small, He deserves. Plain and simple.