Singing Your Own Tune

There are some talents that simply skip one generation and plop into the life of the next. That seems to be the case with singing. While I can carry a tune and sing in key, I don't think that I was gifted to sing with the likes of a song bird. I will forever hold dear the memories of sitting in the church pews listening to my Mother sing to the Lord like a songbird. It’s tempting to covet someone’s gift of singing as a beautiful voice can stir a heart and bring tears to your eyes. Who wouldn’t want the gift of singing?

While we all can’t be songbirds, God has given us the ability to hear and be blessed by those who can sing and move our Spirits. I started to take note in my youngest daughter Lea’s voice in her initial school years. My kids and hubby find humor in my attempts of singing around the house, but when Lea would sing I’d find myself not wanting her to stop. She’d sing and the little hairs on my arms would stand. Not only did her voice tingle my ears, it was as if she couldn’t stop singing. She sings while brushing her teeth, cleaning her room, and playing. Musical notes flow through her veins.

When the opportunity presented itself for her to take singing lessons, I thought that she'd jump at the chance to take lessons and sing before an audience. My assumptions were wrong.

While she loves to sing, she was afraid to sing in front of people! On the first night of her recital, her Daddy and I were beaming to see her sing with such confidence. I pray that she'll be encouraged to sing to the Lord & bring tears to the eyes of others with her melodious talent!

Its a blessing when you recognize the talents from the Lord and even more special when you come to realize the gift(s) from Him. 

While talents are abilities that we are blessed with from birth (i.e., singing, instrumental talents, athleticism, etc.), gifts from the Lord are granted to us as we come to know Christ as our Savior and are adopted into His family as His Child. The Bible refers to these as spiritual gifts. To each of God's children, spiritual gifts are given for the common good of the Church and as we come to know who we are in Christ and we use these gifts, God is glorified and members of His body, the Church, are blessed.

I encourage you to dig into the Word to understand the spiritual gifts that come from the Lord in His Word (You could start with, 1 Cor 12:4-11, Romans 12:3-8, Ephesians 4:11-16 in your studies). A Church where its believers exercise their gifts results is blessed as each person operates in a manner that honors God.

Like me, you may not be able to strum a violin or fill the halls of a coliseum with melodious tunes, but if you are God's child you have been gifted and can be a blessing to the Lord and others as you exercise your gift(s)!

Study to Show Thyself Approved

After blogging about trials and tests a few weeks ago, God has afforded me the opportunity to do a 16-week Precept Ministry study on the Book of James using the Inductive Bible Study Method. God knows just what we need through our seasons of life.

I was introduced to the inductive study method several years ago one day while listening to Kay Arthur share her life’s testimony on a Christian Radio Station. She described how the inductive study method enables one to come to an understanding of what the Bible says by solely using scripture. This peaked my interest as I was used to studying God’s Word for years with the aide of Bible Commentaries or going off of what the Pastor said over the pulpit. I read the Bible myself, but there were passages that I had difficulty coming to an understanding of. I relied heavily on Bible Study workbooks and commentaries. Through the Precept inductive study method, I learned tools like identifying key words and themes, word studies, and how to understand the Bible through the use of scripture itself.

God did not give us the Bible to be a piece of art work on our coffee tables or a book end that collects dust with all our other living room knick knacks. It was given to us to read, study, and even struggle through as we strive to know God. God tells us that as we draw near to Him, He draws near to us. The God of the Universe reveals Himself to us through His Word.

In just the short time that I’ve been studying through James, I have been deeply encouraged by this letter from Jesus half-brother. The book illustrates what a true follower of Christ looks like and how they are to live through trials. Instead of whining, complaining, and feeling defeated through the tests of life, James encourages us to let endurance have its full effect as God refines us to ultimately be complete, perfect, and lacking in nothing.

If you think you’ve arrived in your Christian walk and you have life all figured out, read the Book of James and ponder over how much more you can be changed to be a light for Christ.

Read more here about Precept Ministries and the Inductive Bible Study Method.  

A Book for the Coming Home Series

I happened upon a book at the Homeschool Convention entitled, "There's No Place Like Home: Steps to Becoming a Stay-At-Home Mom", that summed up the Coming Home Series that I did a few months back into one book! Now why couldn’t I have found this book years ago when I embarked on the journey of coming home?

The book does a very good job at presenting practical steps that a Mother can follow in her pursuits of laying down a career and coming home to her children. In addition to these practical steps she also provides scripture that the reader can read and meditate on as her desire grows over time as God enables her to reach her goal.

I wanted to share the book in the event there's a Mom out there feeling the same desires I once had while out in the working world. While in the moment it may seem impossible to break free from choices that have been made, with the Lord there is always hope and He gives wisdom to those who ask of it.

A Moment in Time

 

 

The Right Side of Love

As I taught day after day during our first year of homeschooling to teach my girls, I couldn't help but pick up on the things that motivated my kids to learn, kept their interest from one subject to the next, and what helped them to retain information. I learned in just a short time that God has wired us all differently. While one person may learn and retain information more readily by reading and writing information down, another person may absorb material through listening or watching an instructional video.

Almost a year ago, my oldest asked if she could take up the violin. Read here and here about how she got started with it. I wasn't sure when she initially asked if she would actually stick with it, so to see her in her second recital the other day play so proudly and with confidence made me so proud.

 

She is growing into a beautiful young lady that is quite confident in who she is. She's an audible kid that learns best by hearing, speaking, and manipulating information with her hands. She loves cooking, art, music, and drama. She loves to use her imagination and create things. This is how God has wired her and I'm striving to teach by targeting these areas as we continue forward in our home education. I guess this is one of the reasons why the violin has resonated with her so much and seems like second nature.

 

Someone sent me a link that describes how a person thinks and learns when they are dominated by the right side of their brain. I couldn't help but smile at how it described my sweet Love! Its a beautiful thing when you discover why you learn the way you do and then be able to exercise those natural skills as you learn. I've seen my sweet Love blossom in our first year as her typical school days don't look like most typical classrooms. You may find her singing her States & Capitols, acting out her book report all dressed up in character, or reading about the commutative property for Math through one of Fred's story in Life of Fred. Yes, there are times when her school day looks "normal" like many of us left-brained folks with spelling tests and math timetables, but I afford her the opportunity to be comfortable in who God created her to be with a lot of visual and creative exercises throughout the school year.

 

Oh, the joy of learning within the context of who you were created to be!

Convention Time

The kids and I were thrilled to return to the annual Homeschool Convention this year. After surviving our first year of homeschool, and getting through end of year testing, the convention is like the icing on the cake for the school year and a motivator for the year to come.

Thousands of parents and children flock to the annual convention, some are venturing there for the first time, others are first or second year homeschoolers, and the remaining folks are all veterans. The researcher in me, just loves this convention. The 2 1/2 day schedule is full of seminar after seminar, providing a wealth of information that ranges from topics like, "How To Get Started With Homeschooling" to "Help Me, I want to Quit Homeschooling". There's a seminar for everyone.

This year, with all 3 kids in tow, I didn't get a chance to attend seminars as I have in the past, but I did get to shop till I dropped for curriculum materials.

I was all official this year with my cart on wheels.

 

We were able to get Dad to join us as well and he found some wheels of his own.

 



Good Times were had by all...

Its Official

Summer is in full gear in these here parts!

 

After a week of doing much of nothing after the kid's test week, it was actually nice to get back into a routine with our "summer curriculum". During the do nothing week, the kids were sort of ... well... bored.

 

I think I just have abnormal kids. They like activity, action, movement, something "to do". Ok, maybe they are "normal".

Our first week doing our "summer curriculum", while I didn't schedule a regular 4-5 hour day of homeschool instruction, we did an array of learning activities. They did some typical things like, spelling and handwriting, and more active things that included Math games and Science experiments.

 

Here, they were "activating" some yeast with sugar and water. 

I hear all you nay sayers out there, "Let the kids enjoy their summer doing nothing and camping out in front of the tube". No, no, no... not in these parts.

On the days when we want to just get out, we'll camp out at the pool. Here's my little guy testing out the water at the pool.

 



And, here go my two little fish!

Summer, we welcome you.