Drawn In

Once God draws us to Himself to know, love, and serve Him we're told to "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will received the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38)

That's a tall order for a ten year old. My baby girl courageously went down into the water in 2016 to demonstrate her love for the Lord. In the midst of all the idols in the world that could steal the attention of a child, what a joy it is to see your child stand proudly and profess Christ as Savior.

As a new Mom I struggled with how the Lord desired that my husband and I work together to share the gospel and play a part in evangelizing our children. Stay tuned for an upcoming blog entry on evangelizing children!

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19)

Christmas 2016 Treasures

Christmas 2016 was a sweet time of joy as we celebrated the birth of our Savior.

Anytime is a wonderful time to share photos!!!

Lots of Paw Patrol Sightings this Christmas

Love was invited to play for her biggest audience yet

Gingerbread Cookie-making

Our 2nd attempt at Cheesecake making (Coffee Cheesecake)

Never enough violin playing

Made time to see a few Christmas lights by way of a train ride

My most treasured Christmas gift from my adopted brother

What a gift we are given each new day that we're blessed to be a light for Christ!

Love that Runs Deep

Can we all agree that love is a strong word? Well, I understand that sometimes the word love is used very loosely. I love chocolate, I love Christmas, I love to take a nap. We can say that we love a lot of things. Well, I have one for you. I LOVE my church. I used all caps so that means I love my church a lot. Not the building though. It’s a nice building and I’m thankful for God’s provision of a building to worship in every Sunday, but I’m specifically talking about the church body. The people. I love them. A lot. I mean it. What makes my church family different from the church body around the corner? They may look like the people meeting there, may sing similarly, and the people in the church around the corner may dress similarly to my church family, but there are some differences I can be sure of. The reason that I can be so confident in the statement that the church body around the corner is different than mines comes from what I know to be true of my church family. Love is definitely a strong word and I can prove that my love for my church family rings true.

My love for my church starts with their love for God. Not just any god, but for the one, true, only Savior of the world. A church family that collectively professes Jesus Christ as both man and God is unique in this day in time. Not only do they proclaim the truth that Jesus is God, they are committed to His attributes as described in scripture. He is El Elyon, sovereign ruler of the universe and therefore is all powerful and all knowing. His is sovereign over the good and the evil in this world. Nothing is out of His control and outside of His purview. He sees all, knows all, and is over all things. My church family is convinced of these truths and believes that while we serve a righteous God, as human beings we were born sinners and fall short of a perfect God. There is no good in us and our very faith to believe in God was granted to us by the grace of God. Our salvation is the result of the Lord drawing us to Himself.  We were chosen before the foundation of the world to be God’s children and we are not worthy of His love. These truths are vital to the establishments of what we believe as a church body and they provide a framework for what our church stands for.  Seeing God in this light propels us to love God and His Word.

A devotion to the Word of God is another reason that I adore my church family. While the Son of God, who was made flesh and dwelt among men, walked and talked with actual people, He now dwells in Heaven with His Father. In addition to leaving us with His Holy Spirit, He also left His Word that should be studied, read, pondered over, taken in, and ultimately used to transform lives for His glory. The brothers and sisters in Christ in my local church believe that God’s Word is perfect, without error, and can be confidently proclaimed. It is taught expositorily, which means the exact meaning of scripture is carefully drawn out as it is taught. Instead of random ideas, opinions, and arbitrary thoughts being used to explain and present scripture, God’s Word is taught and presented after thorough care and prudence have been applied in deep study. This cautious care of scripture results in a church body that not only understands what they believe, but they have confidence in what the Word says. We disciple each other and are even challenged to discipline each other when a sister or brother in Christ falls away from the teaching in scripture through disobedience to God’s Word. A love for the Words of scripture will impact how you love God’s people.

The final reason that I can confidently say that I love my church family is their love for God’s people. There are a lot of churches in America. One on every corner it seems. There is a wide range of reasons for the countless Church buildings. There are an abundant number of explanations why people gravitate and find comfort within a fellowship of believers. Traditions, culture and race, a feel good message being presented each Sunday, entertaining music, engaging programs and ministries, all contribute to why there are numerous churches within our country. While the reasons are vast, I count it a blessing that the common bond within my church family is simply Christ and His saving work on the Cross to save sinners. My church family acknowledges that we’re sinners and the tie that binds us sees beyond differences in skin color, background, culture, or upbringing. We love one another because of our love for Christ. The work of the cross connects God’s children in a way that runs deep when you understand the forgiveness that has been granted by the Lord. A unique affection and devotion is what I have in my heart for my brothers and sisters in Christ. Yes, I’d skip out on a bar of chocolate and a nap to spend time with my church family. It’s a love that runs deep, all the way to the Cross.

(If you’re searching for a church home, a wonderful site and book source to investigate is “Nine Marks of a Healthy Church” by Mark Dever; https://9marks.org/church-search/)

Giving like Dad this Christmas

Sometimes being the Mom stinks. Moms are the ones that find themselves being compelled to give away a varied array of comforts for the sake of her family. Just as the sun sets, the family has been fed, dishes cleaned and she’s found herself wrapped in warmth on the couch to settle in the for the evening with her favorite dessert, along comes a child salivating at the mouth for that same dessert that she’s been waiting all day to indulge in. What does Mom do? She gives it away. It’s 6 a.m. on Saturday morning, the house is asleep and Mom cuddles in close to Dad, thanking the Lord for quiet moments with her man. Just as soon as Mom begins to fall back off to sleep, she is startled by the loud noise of her children barging into her room and bed. Again, Mom gives away a comfort that her flesh yearns to have to allow someone else to experience a joy that is not hers for a moment. Again and again Mom gives, she sacrifices, she releases so that others have. Though it stinks, she stands so that others can sit, she lends so that others may have, and she suffers when necessary if it means delight for someone she loves.

When one sacrifices, they surrender a possession for the sake of a worthwhile cause. We forego a temporary pleasure for the betterment of another when we sacrifice. Sacrifice is a beautiful word, an act of compassion, and when we witness it many times we’re left speechless. Yet when we sacrifice, it does not feel comforting. It is not enjoyable giving up the warm side of the bed in the middle of winter. Giving away your favorite dessert, even if it is to your firstborn, isn’t all together truly enjoyable. We hold onto things that we don’t want to give away because it is comforting to us and it makes us feel secure. It feeds our pride. Pride is a feeling or deep pleasure or satisfaction that comes from our own personal achievements. When we make the choice not to sacrifice and surrender in order to bless someone else, we nourish our pride.

Is pride a corrupt thing? Doesn’t it benefit a person to think highly of themselves? The kids and I enjoy cuddling up on the couch in the weeks leading up to Christmas, watching as many Christmas-themed movies as possible. Just the other day we watched Thomas Kinkade’s Christmas Cottage which told the story of how Thomas Kinkade became a famous artist. His Mother raised him and his brother while struggling to keep their cottage. She landed into a difficult financial situation. While Thomas urged her to reach out to the community for help so that she could keep her home, her concern was her pride. She told her son, “Please don’t make me ask for help. All I have left is my pride.” Where does our pride leave us? The world will lead you to think that we’re self-sufficient beings, and we have the power within us to be successful. God teaches us otherwise. The book of Proverbs teaches a great deal on pride. “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2). “One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor” (Proverbs 29:23). “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice” (Proverbs 12:15). Pride leaves us to live in our own strength, it deceives us, and leads us to corruption. We may reason to ourselves that we can rely on our own strength. We think we know best and we can bring ourselves comfort and peace and joy when we do what we think is best. To give away so that someone else finds joy isn’t fair. We need to take care of our self first, right?

 

Forgiveness is a gift that requires that we become selfless and we give. With forgiveness we are called to give again, and again, and again. Forgiveness requires that we give away the anger we feel, we cease blaming someone else, we give up being resentful and instead we grant another person relief of payment when they owes us something. We do this not for our own welfare, but for theirs. When we forgive we give so that someone else may be comforted, be joyful, experience delight while we suffer. This gift of forgiveness doesn’t sound like it’s very much fun. Instead it promises discomfort.

Why on earth would someone want to subject themselves to such pain and discomfort for the sake of someone else?

Christ provides the ultimate answer. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32) We give in this way because Christ has forgiven us. We could never provide a sufficient enough excuse to not forgive. No hurt, no pain, no trial equates to what Christ suffered and what Christ forgave. While we have sinned against a holy and perfect God, our very best deeds are filthy rags. He has called us to confess our sins and be forgiven.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Day after day, hour after hour, second after second, He forgives and He forgives and He forgives. When we give in this way, God doesn’t simply leave us to our lonesome flesh to do this on our own. While we may can handle giving away our favorite dessert or the warmth of our bed to suffer in the cold, letting go of a hurt and an injustice isn’t as simple. The Lord empowers us with the Holy Spirit to forgive and through the giving of forgiveness we are conformed more into His image. As we give as Christ gave on the cross and as He forgives our sins, we are changed more into His likeness (2 Corinthians 3:18). Peace that surpasses all understanding floods our life when we forgive in this way. There are many times when being the Mom just plain ‘ol stinks and for every time that a Mom gives, she deserves the “best gift giver” award. This Christmas let’s be challenged to be a contender for this award, by giving the gift of forgiveness. Not because the gift recipient deserves it, but because your Heavenly Father calls us to serve, to walk, to give like He did.

My Reality Show

Every homeschool family is unique. They all have different routines that are tailor fit to their family needs.  I thought that it would be amusing to give a little insight into a day in the life of my little homeschooling family. As homeschooling is on the rise around our country, if I'm the only person you do know that homeschools, you can say that you know how one family executes their crazy homeschool day!

Here’s a little look:
5:45 a.m. – the alarm goes off only to be snoozed 2-3 times until I finally muster up the energy to roll out of bed no later than 6:15-6:30 a.m.*

* - Note that since the Fall season has arrived, many days my workouts are delayed until Trey's nap time & school has officially let out around 230 p.m.'ish. Its a little more challenging to roll out of bed early when its cold outside and toasty warm in my bed!

6:30 a.m. – 7:15 a.m. – beat my body into a state of physical fitness by focusing on cardio or weight training

7:15 a.m. – 8 a.m. – shower, dress, pray & collect my sanity for the day ahead

7:30 a.m. – in the process of getting ready for the day, dash upstairs to wake my darling students

8 a.m. – 8:30 a.m – breakfast with the kiddos. I typically use this time to also wash up any dishes lurking in the sink.

8:30 a.m. – we all depart downstairs to the school room to start the school day.

8:30 – 9:30 a.m. – While the girls independently do their Bible, journaling, Bible study book reading, and scripture memorization with their AWANA material, I do my own morning devotional, Bible study, and journaling. Trey usually spends this time lurking in his play area with trucks, race cars, playing a pre-school game on the kindle, or watching some form of toddler entertainment while playing with his toys (i.e., Sid the Science Kid,  Leap Frog Letter Factory, Diego, etc.)

9:30 a.m – 10:30 a.m. – After bible time the girls move onto their math work which they also complete individually. At this point Trey has had enough of his own self-directed play time and usually calls for Mommy to “have school” with him. School for Trey at the age now of 3, takes on many forms. He either sits on my lap and traces his capital and lowercase letters on a wet erase board, completes an alphabet puzzle, sings the “Phonics Songs for Kindergarten” song with CD while pointing to the alphabet (love, love, this CD for teaching letters and sounds), plays alphabet hop scotch with Mom, or stacking alphabet-number blocks.

On my many errands up and down the stairs for a potty break, snack break, or drink break, I may throw a load of laundry into the wash or dryer.

10:30 – 11 a.m. – Once the girls have finished their math work, my oldest usually grabs her basketball and practices her dribbling and whatever other basketball skills her Father has assigned for her to do (she’s planning to play on a team for the first time this Fall). My youngest daughter usually heads to serve as Trey’s playmate and keeps him occupied while I correct and grade their math work. Once their math work has been checked, the girls come back to immediately correct their mistakes and then it’s off for lunch around 11:15-11:30!

11:15 a.m. – 12 p.m. – For lunch we all proceed to the kitchen and living room. Most days the girls make their own lunch and I prepare something for Trey to eat. While Trey is eating I usually play some sort of educational video for Trey and the girls usually read their own personal book or play on the kindle until lunch is done.

12 p.m. – Trey goes down for his nap

12 p.m. – 1 p.m. – The girls do their individual reading in the History books. While they do their individual reading I typically work on mine own teacher lesson for the Bible study, “Lord, I Want to Know You”, or I work on my teacher Sunday School lesson for the coming Sunday.

I also use this time period to fold clothes that have finished drying in the dryer.

1 p.m. – 2 p.m. – After the girls finish their history reading, we pause to discuss the chapters that have been read with Q&A that the Sonlight curriculum provides for me to gauge their understanding of the material.

2 p.m. – 3 p.m.- The girls finish their day with completing their Science work and with either a writing assignment or grammar assignments. While they finish up, I continue with my Bible study or Sunday School lesson.

My oldest finishes her school day with her “elective”; this half of the school year it’s keyboarding, so she’ll be spend time learning to type.

3 p.m. – 4 p.m. – By 3 p.m. that’s my cue to get started with dinner. Most of the cooksmarts meals that we prepare take about an hour to prepare and cook.

While I prepare dinner the girls usually transition into “practice mode” with their piano and violin.

 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. – By 4 p.m., my handsome hubby and fabulous father of my children arrives home from work. Some days he finds us still working away at dinner or its ready and hot on the table. My little man usually wakes up just before Daddy walks through the door. Dinner ends with conversation at the table about our day, the girls will fill Dad in on something unique that they learned from their school day or Daddy will entertain us with something humorous that happened at work.

It may not seem like there’s a lot of activity to be executed into a day of homeschooling, but there surely is and it doesn't all magically happen with joyful and compliant children. Most says are met with occasional whining when someone hasn't gotten their way, complaining here and there over how long its taking to finish Math, and unexpected cycles of runny noses and upset stomachs. As a Mom who used to work in the office, there are so many of the same physical and mental requirements that I have to execute in the homeschool environment as I did in the office. Being disciplined is one of the most prominent elements that I’ve realized I have to have. Daily staying on top of the kids schedule is key. Patience, persistence, dedication, organization, and even team work is a necessity within the homeschool environment.

While I never thought I’d see the day that I get to “run” a household, full time, I can look back and see how my Heavenly Father has been preparing me just for these moments, these days, these hours that I get to sow into the life of my children and serve my husband daily. While he’s a work in progress as am I and he doesn’t perfectly do everything always right, as my husband strives to love me as Christ loves the Church, I humbly and wholeheartedly submit to his authority. In serving and loving him, I see seek to ultimately make my Heavenly Father proud.

An Age of Treasures

Is there much fulfillment in getting older? If one were to base their answer to this question from simply watching television or flipping through magazines at the local newsstand, it would become apparent that our society places a high value on youth and maintaining an image of youthfulness. The older generation, who isn’t known for being hip, cool, or chic, is not often esteemed in the media for their graying hair, years of life experiences, and their wisdom. Instead our society has downplayed the blessings, the treasures, and the priceless gifts that can be found in the latter years of life. As I turned another year older in November I carefully pondered over what is there to gain from getting older. Growing older provides a unique opportunity to develop in wisdom, as you grow in the knowledge of truth from God’s Word you find yourself desiring the things of this world less, and the less that you desire worldly treasures you long more for your eternal home. Maybe there is some fulfillment to be obtained in the aging process after all.

To many people being thirty-seven years old is not ancient. To a budding, nineteen year old that’s about to be twenty something, it’s not just old. It’s ancient.  Although the media may glorify the young and beautiful, in recent years our society has experienced an acceptance and celebration of Grandmothers and Grandfathers. One article entitled, “How Society Misunderstands the Elderly”, makes claims that the baby boomers of today are establishing a new trend in what it means in 2016 to be old. Grandmothers don’t like to be called “Grandma” because of the negative, old connotation that the title Grandmother carries. Many Grandparents, who do not settle for simply growing old behind closed doors, are not letting a case of arthritis slow them down in life. Instead, you’ll find the baby boomers of today on the move, traveling, trying new hobbies, and taking advantage of life in a way that the previous older generation may not have done. There is an aspect of growing old that the collective, older generation do have in common. They grow in wisdom. A dictionary definition of wisdom is,

Wisdom (def):

The quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgement; the quality of being wise.

No matter how old one gets, they will have experiences and will gain knowledge from those experiences. As I pondered over this first growing-old treasure, I smiled to myself to think about the quality of wisdom one can gain from studying God’s Word day in and day out as they celebrate one birthday after another. The Bible is full of riches and truth that as the dictionary explains, provides good judgement. We can obtain wisdom from the world, but what difference would it make in our life if we obtain wisdom that came from the Creator of Heaven, Earth, and of us? In my short thirty-seven years of life one of the unique gifts of wisdom I’ve obtain from God’s holy Word is a sensitivity to sin. As I read and ponder over the fact that none of us our righteous, I see how I fall short daily of God’s righteous standard. Though I desire to honor God with my life and be a light in the world, I constantly struggle in my flesh. This constant struggle beckons me to run to God’s Word to know Him more and seek to walk in obedience. While thirty-seven may not be ancient, it does carry with it life experiences that add to growing older.

                As a believer in Christ longs for God’s Word and maturing in wisdom, they may find themselves loving the things of this world to a lesser degree. For that budding nineteen year old, the excitement that awaits them when they finally move out of their parent’s home seems almost intoxicating. There is freedom finally after years of living under the shelter of home. While they may have the best intentions of simply living life to its fullest and taking in all that is has to offer, godly wisdom whispers to them there is a lust within their flesh, a desire within their eyes, and a pride of life that is feeding their inner man or woman to sacrifice all to be fulfilled. A lack of wisdom bring this realization to light. Understanding these desires comes from careful study of God’s Word and it can be an immense treasure to be attained as one grows older, lives life, and clings to the Word of God. As I’ve grown a year older in 2016 my affection for the world isn’t fueled by the shiny, new, and sparkly nature of the world as it once was in my young eyes.   

                If the Lord allows me to see another year in 2017 and I mature more, what do I have to look forward to if my flesh desires this world less and less? The answer is the last treasure that developing in Christ gives. In my younger years I remember like it was yesterday the excitement I felt in my spirit over experiencing life. Feeling what it was like to discover and face something first-hand simply got my blood going. So much that I can’t imagine in those years that I could ever imagine leaving this Earth. There was too much to be experienced. During those years I recall thinking to myself, “If I love being here so much that I don’t want to leave, what is the basis of my faith in a God and in a Heaven that I don’t long for?” If there was a longing in my Spirit for Heaven in my earlier years, it was surely minimal and thinking back I believe part of that missed longing was a lack of knowledge of who my God was. Longing for Heaven is a fortune to be claimed and made personal in a believer’s life. The devil wants me to be so content, satisfied, and happy here that I don’t seek to know my Savior. He also wants me to think that I’m such a great, fantastic, and wonderful person that I don’t recognize my poverty of spirit and need for a Savior. As I wrestle daily with my flesh, I now long to be away from this body where I will never have to struggle with my sin nature again. The work that the Lord has planned for me to accomplish on this Earth will one day be complete and my work in Heaven, honoring and glorifying my Savior, will begin and will last for eternity. What a celebration there is to be had for the believer in Christ as they age, mature, and grow older. There is wisdom to be gained, a fulfillment within the spirit to be claimed, and a longing for Heaven to be enjoyed though the Earth and all that’s in it is wasting away. I’ll take the age of 37 and however many years to come as long as I have my Savior and the Holy Spirit maturing, teaching, and blessing me with these treasures until I see my Lord face to face.