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.

Fall Pictures 2016 - Sneak Peek!

I love pictures so much. They can capture what a person's feeling in their heart and they give us a glimpse into the joy that can be found between people. We've made it a family tradition to take pictures in the Fall for our family Christmas card. This year my girls wanted to venture to the George Washington's Birthplace. They have so many beautiful spots with wonderful backgrounds.

Here's just a sneak peek!

 

 

 

 

 

An Inspiration of Faith

I get inspired by the faith of other believers. 

When they demonstrate an ability to trust God, no matter the odds or the difficult circumstances before them, I am encouraged. I am moved and I am motivated to walk in obedience to God's call on my life.

I’ve written in the past about how Joni Eareakson Tada and Katie Davis have inspired me. Their stories have moved me and filled me with such an awe of how God has worked in their life and how they’ve walked in obedience to what He’s called them to do. They each have very different stories. One, living life with a disability and yet she’s used her life to bring God glory. The other sacrificed her youth to give of herself to a people in need of love and the gospel. They both have lived selfless lives being a light for Christ and serving Him in very unique ways.

They inspire me.

I happened upon another woman one day while on Instagram that grabbed at my heart strings and wouldn’t let go. As I first looked at pictures of this woman, her husband, and family, I was taken back at how beautiful this family was and the love that you could see in their eyes for each other. I later learned that this woman had just recently become a widow and her handsome husband, who she writes so deeply about was taken from her suddenly, leaving her with 3 beautiful boys.

What inspired me most about Brittany was, despite her tragic loss, she takes life one day at a time with her Savior. She doesn’t live life begrudgingly or bitter; instead she rejoices through the pain and sorrow and gives God glory for the time she had with her husband and Father of her children. In the midst of the pain she openly shares about her reliance upon God solely to sustain her now as a widow. He is her Jehovah-Jireh, her provider.

Brittany inspires me to rely on the Lord in a way that another human being can’t be depended upon because, well, they’re human. My Mother in law shared a quote with me today that said, “Lord, the next time I look to some person, thing, or idea to complete me, draw my eyes to You instead.” This is the life of a Christian. To take up their cross daily and follow the Lord, wherever He leads and depend upon Him for our every need. Joni, Katie, Brittany, they strive to live in such a way that God is glorified in their life regardless of the circumstances that face them.

May we be such a people who inspires others by our walk, our obedience, and our faith.

(To read more about Brittany’s story, visit here)

Spirit Filled Holidays & More

November seems to be the kick-off month for the holidays. Store clerks are eager to greet you and share with you the holiday specials and sales. As we draw nearer to Thanksgiving, people begin to think about all the aspects of life that make them thankful. The weather turns colder, the leaves change into all of my favorite, inviting colors like orange, red, brown, and gold. People seem to change too. They become nicer. Immediately after Thanksgiving, the countdown to Christmas begins. The media pours on the holiday cheer something thick. If you’re not typically known as a pleasant person, there’s something about the holidays that inspires people to be thoughtful. To be kind, cheery, and bright. Maybe all the happiness blossoms because it is just what is expected of us this time year. Even if you don’t feel it in your heart, you fake it. Even if it’s just for the month of November and the holidays, isn’t it okay to just be nice and then go back to our normal impatient, short-tempered, self-centered selves?

Why can’t we just be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control all year long? These are fruits of the Holy Spirit. It would be so convenient if we could bottle up them up and somehow ingest them daily so that we just don’t look the part, but actually live the part not just at the holidays but every day of our lives. When everything in life is operating like a storybook fairytale, it is easier to exemplify these loving, stirring emotions, but every tale has a villain, a traumatic climax. Similar to a tale from a story book, in life there are trials and circumstances that serve as a litmus test, proving if we’re truly walking by the Holy Spirit or by our flesh.

When we allow our circumstances, good or bad, to rule our emotions we’re like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. One day we’re happy, the next we’re sulking and in a state of despair. No, the fruits of the Spirit can’t be bottled up and drank, but they can be read, studied, meditated on, and internalized into our heart and mind. When we feed on God’s truth our flesh, which desires to be ruled by our circumstances, is controlled by the Holy Spirit within us. He’s a living being that resides in every believer. When we feed our Spirit with truth, we are empowered to be loving when a family member spews hate towards us, joyful when we’ve lost everything, peaceful in the midst of chaos, patient when everyone around us is frantic, kind when someone you love doesn’t speak or acknowledge your existence, good when the world does bad, faithful when those you care about let you down, gentle when your boss treats you harshly, and self-controlled when you’re tempted to indulge in an activity that you know is wrong.

For the Christian the truth is we will not always feel like being any of these things. It isn't until we wrestle with the emotions, the issues, and the sin within our heart that we begin to produce fruit that remains. This fruit isn't temporal. It doesn't rot and disintegrate when difficult seasons of life come upon us. This fruit is lasting and creates within us a peace that surpasses all understanding.  Let’s demonstrate to the world that simply faking a smile at the Thanksgiving table or giving a perfect gift to appease the in-laws will never lead to lasting joy. Now that November has arrived and the holidays are soon around the corner, let’s walk in obedience to what God’s Word commands us to do. Let’s be filled with the Holy Spirit in November, the holidays, and every year to come!  

Worth It All

For the past few months my usual routine for meal planning and preparation has included a grocery store run on Sundays after we return home from Church and little man is down for his nap. While I go on this weekly run to the store my girls and hubby usually fulfill scripture by reclining and resting on the Sabbath Day. No matter what mood I’m in after returning home from Church, it seems that right before I grab my purse and grocery list, I always seem to be in a stinky mood about having to go to the store.

As I gather my things and head to my car my mind fills with feelings of dread and despair as I think about walking the aisles trying to locate the items on my list, the possibility that I’ll have to wait in long lines, and then the final task of unloading my truck and putting the food away. What dread awaits me each Sunday. What’s interesting though is this sullen attitude has a way of turning from sour to sweet once I make it to the store and start checking things off my list. By the time I get home and put that last item away in my pantry I am filled with joy, fulfillment, and completeness.

Grocery shopping isn’t the only task that I find myself in this interesting, emotional, transition from gloom to gladness. When my alarm goes off at 545 a.m. each weekday morning to workout I enter this same cycle of emotions. I go from rejection of what I need to do, reflecting on what I’m about to do to my body, to acceptance and action. The feelings that I experience once I’ve completed a workout are beyond words. Relief. Joy. Victory.

There are some tasks in life that we can’t rely on our feelings to propel us to complete them. We won’t always feel like laying out a healthy meal plan for our families and running to get the groceries, especially when the recipe calls for a weird ingredient that you have to track down in some weird aisle of the grocery store. Your body may not enjoy you shaking it out of restful sleep in the morning to exercise. In both of these cases though, you NEED to do them. Your family needs to eat and your body needs exercise. Therefore, you have to execute these tasks.

While your body needs food and fitness, so does your spirit, your mind, and your heart. You need the Word of God as your sustenance to grow in wisdom and in truth. I don’t always feel like sitting down with the Word of God and wrestling over its truth, but when I do there is a joy that floods my mind and spirit as I’m filled with God’s truth. Making time to spend with your Heavenly Father, getting to know Him and His Word takes discipline. You won’t always feel like doing it. Don’t let your feelings rule you. Let the Holy Spirit within in, propel you to open His Word. His Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. God’s Word will accomplish a good work in us if we discipline ourselves to study and show ourselves approved. As we study we’ll find within ourselves a confidence in who we are in Christ and who God is.

The next time that you feel a funk creeping over you when it comes to something that you know you need to do, focus on the end result. Your cupboards full of everything you need to prepare meals for your family for the week, a healthy and stronger body, and God’s truth ruling your heart and mind which will propel you to a life of peace. Results that are definitely worth it.