It is the perfect time of year for me to begin some great bible lessons to remind my children of a content heart. It is so easy for them to get wrapped up in wanting and wishing for what they do not have. I do it, so you know my children are going to!
The biggest lesson is to tell God what we need, not want. Let God decide what is best for us. We have to put our trust in him while we wait for the right answer. Sometimes the answer is way better than we could ever expect!
"I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances." ~Philippians 4:11
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
La-De-Da
I learned several things this Thanksgiving weekend...
1. If my husband is in a bad mood, leave him alone. It is better to wait while he gets over his PMS and go about my business as if nothing is wrong (praying to God it ends real soon). The less I say the better. And I am sure God would be happy that I am as patient with him as I expect him to be with me during my PMS swings!
2. Always be honest about yourself, your husband and your family with confidence. It's ok that things are not perfect in your marriage or that your children act up. People will open up more and feel more relaxed around you when you stick to being honest. You may even find more things in common with each other. The God in us should never hide, but instead shine through all the craziness!
This Thanksgiving made me grow up and just skip along to the great la-de-da of life! I enjoyed being real, it was so refreshing :)
1. If my husband is in a bad mood, leave him alone. It is better to wait while he gets over his PMS and go about my business as if nothing is wrong (praying to God it ends real soon). The less I say the better. And I am sure God would be happy that I am as patient with him as I expect him to be with me during my PMS swings!
2. Always be honest about yourself, your husband and your family with confidence. It's ok that things are not perfect in your marriage or that your children act up. People will open up more and feel more relaxed around you when you stick to being honest. You may even find more things in common with each other. The God in us should never hide, but instead shine through all the craziness!
This Thanksgiving made me grow up and just skip along to the great la-de-da of life! I enjoyed being real, it was so refreshing :)
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Stand By Your Man
So, I am learning that my husband is more right than wrong. I think I kinda like that side of him. It is so funny to watch him labeled as the outcast because he is not following the crowd. For most of our marriage, I have been the crowd expecting him to do what I thought was acceptable by others. I feel so bad looking back on some of it especially seeing the "type" of people I was worried about.
I think it's ok to let my husband be the man he is created to be without trying to step in at times and cover it up due to embarrassment. So what! Let others think the way they want. He is always going to say what he thinks and do what he feels is right for his family and himself. I will just stand by my man and make it much easier on myself! God will show me the things I need to pray over him, but when it comes to me trying to cover up something about him, that's my problem. And I need to take that up with God first.
I think it's ok to let my husband be the man he is created to be without trying to step in at times and cover it up due to embarrassment. So what! Let others think the way they want. He is always going to say what he thinks and do what he feels is right for his family and himself. I will just stand by my man and make it much easier on myself! God will show me the things I need to pray over him, but when it comes to me trying to cover up something about him, that's my problem. And I need to take that up with God first.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
A Sleeping House
God speaks to me the most in the quiet hours of the night when I wake to a sleeping house. I feel closer to Him when there are no interruptions. He speaks to me and we talk. We talk about my struggles. He shows me how much I need Him. We talk about my husband. He shows me the good in the man sleeping next to me. We talk about my children. He reminds me the power of prayer over their lives. We talk about His word and he tells me I am pretty much on my own without Him. Worry gets in the way often. People crowd my mind. Work is always there, but when everyone is sleeping, God is resting in my heart to prepare me for tomorrow!
Monday, November 16, 2009
A Mirror and An Expo Marker
Purchase a colorful packet of expo markers and write encouraging words or scriptures on the bathroom mirror for the whole family to enjoy!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Time Out
Hanna is only 10, but she is approaching the 5th grade. I have to be honest and say that I am a little scared. She will no longer be in elementary school next year and I don't think I like that at all!
God has placed on my heart to begin preparing Hanna for middle school. Josh and I agreed that we would always be honest with our children, not hiding things about our past, the world, or people. Of course our responses will be age appropriate, but we want to make sure our children will always feel as if they can come to us for anything and receive an honest answer. We would rather them hear it from us and know the truth than hear it from someone else and wonder. And as their mother, I will make sure God's word finds a place no matter what.
We are listening to our daughter ask new questions and a lot of it is making us call time out so we can gather our thoughts first, but more so, we are thankful that she is coming to us. Now is the time for God's word to really start working in her life. She is ready to understand new feelings about boys, emotions, and appearances. But are we?
Some of this is exciting because we are watching our daughter grow into a beautiful, pure, Godly young lady, but it is coming way too fast. I am so thankful that God is preparing my heart for this journey and opening conversations that will build a solid foundation for her future. It is very important to me that I provide her with wisdom. Wisdom that will guide her decisions, and wisdom that will call her back to God's voice in every situation she faces.
I am ready to take on the 5th grade with the Lord's awesome power! If anything put's me in God's word more at this moment, 5th grade boys with raging hormones does it!
God has placed on my heart to begin preparing Hanna for middle school. Josh and I agreed that we would always be honest with our children, not hiding things about our past, the world, or people. Of course our responses will be age appropriate, but we want to make sure our children will always feel as if they can come to us for anything and receive an honest answer. We would rather them hear it from us and know the truth than hear it from someone else and wonder. And as their mother, I will make sure God's word finds a place no matter what.
We are listening to our daughter ask new questions and a lot of it is making us call time out so we can gather our thoughts first, but more so, we are thankful that she is coming to us. Now is the time for God's word to really start working in her life. She is ready to understand new feelings about boys, emotions, and appearances. But are we?
Some of this is exciting because we are watching our daughter grow into a beautiful, pure, Godly young lady, but it is coming way too fast. I am so thankful that God is preparing my heart for this journey and opening conversations that will build a solid foundation for her future. It is very important to me that I provide her with wisdom. Wisdom that will guide her decisions, and wisdom that will call her back to God's voice in every situation she faces.
I am ready to take on the 5th grade with the Lord's awesome power! If anything put's me in God's word more at this moment, 5th grade boys with raging hormones does it!
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Divine Love
Mark Gungor, Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage, discussed Divine Love through 1 Corinthians 13. Well, after reading it, I decided to relate it to my husband as his wife. This is what I came up with.
Love is patient...
Bear rudeness, inconsiderateness, and inconsistencies of my husband calmly and without complaint.
Love is kind...
Be affectionate and loving to him, helpful and gentle.
Love never is envious...
Do not envy his life when he does nothing at home.
Love is not jealous...
Do not be jealous of other women. My husband loves me.
Love is not boastful...
I should make my husband feel more important.
Love is not conceited...
Deal with my faults. Do not think my husband is the only one guilty.
Love is not rude...
Be sensitive and courteous to my husband through my actions and words.
Love is not self-seeking...
Die to self rather I like it or not.
Love is not touchy...
Get over it and don't take things so personal.
Love is not fretful...
Do not let things eat at me. Let it go!
Love is not resentful...
Do not hold things against my husband, forgive him.
Love pays no attention to a suffered wrong...
Do not take into account how my husband has failed me.
Love does not rejoice at injustice...
Don't rejoice when I'm right and he's wrong.
Love bears all...
Accept my husband.
Love is ready to believe the best...
Celebrate the good in my husband.
Love endures...
Pray for him.
Love never fails...
My marriage is not perfect and never will be. Look to God for strength.
It's amazing how many different ways we can see love through 1 Corinthians 13. God had a big plan.
Love is patient...
Bear rudeness, inconsiderateness, and inconsistencies of my husband calmly and without complaint.
Love is kind...
Be affectionate and loving to him, helpful and gentle.
Love never is envious...
Do not envy his life when he does nothing at home.
Love is not jealous...
Do not be jealous of other women. My husband loves me.
Love is not boastful...
I should make my husband feel more important.
Love is not conceited...
Deal with my faults. Do not think my husband is the only one guilty.
Love is not rude...
Be sensitive and courteous to my husband through my actions and words.
Love is not self-seeking...
Die to self rather I like it or not.
Love is not touchy...
Get over it and don't take things so personal.
Love is not fretful...
Do not let things eat at me. Let it go!
Love is not resentful...
Do not hold things against my husband, forgive him.
Love pays no attention to a suffered wrong...
Do not take into account how my husband has failed me.
Love does not rejoice at injustice...
Don't rejoice when I'm right and he's wrong.
Love bears all...
Accept my husband.
Love is ready to believe the best...
Celebrate the good in my husband.
Love endures...
Pray for him.
Love never fails...
My marriage is not perfect and never will be. Look to God for strength.
It's amazing how many different ways we can see love through 1 Corinthians 13. God had a big plan.
Let Reality Be The Teacher
Once again my daughter Hanna forgets to bring her homework home! Why? I shall never know, but I guess that is what makes her so unique. In the past, I have always rescued her from the consequences of forgetting her homework by getting to school early enough for her to complete it. Well, I've been reminded of something..."let reality be the teacher."
Yes, it is very hard for me to watch her go to school unprepared, but that's reality in the big world. I can't rescue her as an adult! When my children find themselves making choices that bring consequences, they will just have to face them. That's life!
"Don't rescue your kids from the consequences of failed responsibility. Don't stay up until midnight doing a project yourself that your child doesn't complete. Don't do anything at all. Just wait for reality to hit when he stands in front of his stern teacher who tells your child what he thinks of incomplete projects." ~Kevin Leman
Yes, it is very hard for me to watch her go to school unprepared, but that's reality in the big world. I can't rescue her as an adult! When my children find themselves making choices that bring consequences, they will just have to face them. That's life!
"Don't rescue your kids from the consequences of failed responsibility. Don't stay up until midnight doing a project yourself that your child doesn't complete. Don't do anything at all. Just wait for reality to hit when he stands in front of his stern teacher who tells your child what he thinks of incomplete projects." ~Kevin Leman
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Respectful Responses
I recently decided to subscribe to a magazine from Focus on the Family...thriving families. It's awesome!! Family, marriage, parenting...right up my alley. Here is the first great thing I tried at home. The kids loved it!
"My wife and I wanted our children to know how to respond when we say no to their inquiries. To teach them, we played a game one night around the dinner table. We allowed the children to ask zany questions, and my wife and I would say no to every question they asked. No matter how crazy their questions were, their response was to be OK."
"May I go to the moon?"
"No"
"OK"
"May I eat a light bulb?"
"No"
"OK"
We then practiced saying "yes" to their questions. They were to respond with "thank you."
"May I eat my broccoli?"
"Yes, you may."
"Thank you."
"Just a few hours of practice and a lot of silly questions later, our kids were trained in how we expected them to respond."
~Andrew Peterson
To say the least, this will be a very popular game at dinner. And I'm sure I will be repeating a very wise question the next few weeks..."was that a respectful response?"
"My wife and I wanted our children to know how to respond when we say no to their inquiries. To teach them, we played a game one night around the dinner table. We allowed the children to ask zany questions, and my wife and I would say no to every question they asked. No matter how crazy their questions were, their response was to be OK."
"May I go to the moon?"
"No"
"OK"
"May I eat a light bulb?"
"No"
"OK"
We then practiced saying "yes" to their questions. They were to respond with "thank you."
"May I eat my broccoli?"
"Yes, you may."
"Thank you."
"Just a few hours of practice and a lot of silly questions later, our kids were trained in how we expected them to respond."
~Andrew Peterson
To say the least, this will be a very popular game at dinner. And I'm sure I will be repeating a very wise question the next few weeks..."was that a respectful response?"
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Unconditional Desire
I use to think that my physical appearance would keep my husband happy throughout our marriage. Though taking care of myself is important to him, there is more to be desired.
"As believers we must fight to maintain our desire for our spouses while they are still acting offensively toward us. It is ineffective to pray, 'change my spouse so I can get along with them'. We must start by asking God to fill us with desire to be in a relationship with our spouse before they change." (page 115, Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage)
Lord help me, I have prayed the prayer of change numerous times, but never stopped to think it has not once helped. After reading more into this chapter of Unconditional Desire, I have learned a few more interesting things.
~we must trust God to help us look past the faults of our spouse
~when our expectations are not met, our hearts get sick
~the only way to deal with disappointment is to reorient our expectations
~if we don't let the offense go, our hearts grow cold and we lose desire
~refuse to focus on your husband's bad points
~focus on positive things about your husband
~don't let your spouse think everyone else is more important
~learn to physically turn toward, intently listen and look directly at your spouse
~(pages 117-119)
Truthfully, there are times I do not and absolutely refuse to desire my husband in any way, shape or form. And I don't just mean sexually, I mean his presence overall. I would rather throw him a sleeping bag and tell him there is a nice comfortable spot behind the pool in the backyard! Being married brings many disappointments, and I know I have disappointed my husband plenty, but I can't give him this list and expect him to read it and learn something new. That would be wishful thinking. All I can do is pray that he will unconditionally desire me before I change and that I will choose not to let an offended and disappointed heart grow.
"As believers we must fight to maintain our desire for our spouses while they are still acting offensively toward us. It is ineffective to pray, 'change my spouse so I can get along with them'. We must start by asking God to fill us with desire to be in a relationship with our spouse before they change." (page 115, Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage)
Lord help me, I have prayed the prayer of change numerous times, but never stopped to think it has not once helped. After reading more into this chapter of Unconditional Desire, I have learned a few more interesting things.
~we must trust God to help us look past the faults of our spouse
~when our expectations are not met, our hearts get sick
~the only way to deal with disappointment is to reorient our expectations
~if we don't let the offense go, our hearts grow cold and we lose desire
~refuse to focus on your husband's bad points
~focus on positive things about your husband
~don't let your spouse think everyone else is more important
~learn to physically turn toward, intently listen and look directly at your spouse
~(pages 117-119)
Truthfully, there are times I do not and absolutely refuse to desire my husband in any way, shape or form. And I don't just mean sexually, I mean his presence overall. I would rather throw him a sleeping bag and tell him there is a nice comfortable spot behind the pool in the backyard! Being married brings many disappointments, and I know I have disappointed my husband plenty, but I can't give him this list and expect him to read it and learn something new. That would be wishful thinking. All I can do is pray that he will unconditionally desire me before I change and that I will choose not to let an offended and disappointed heart grow.
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