Monday, Monday...

No, I am not singing the song. Mondays are a different day. I find myself dreading and anticipating it. Dreading the end of the weekend and anticipating a fresh start from last week. I am just glad his mercies are new every morning. Unfortunately my mercies are not new every morning. I am not a morning person, so I don't really bounce out of bed with a cheerful attitude. Most mornings now my husband prays with me before we get out of bed, and it is that that turns my attitude and my heart towards the reason for the day. We need God at every moment in our day. Maybe you need him more on Mondays or in the morning like me, but I really kind of need him all the time. My days are not easy or smooth. Monday is just a marker and a new beginning to a long week. I really sit here at my computer every Monday morning and wonder how I will have enough energy to make it through another 5 days of school, work, chores, activities. I have trouble getting started, but once I get started I am usually fine until afternoon when I putter out. The Bible says this..."As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice." That is me...save me from my Monday! "Cast your burden on the Lord and He shall sustain you. He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." Satan wants us to be bogged down on Monday. He wants us to putter out, to lose our zeal, to tire out with our kids, to lose our tempers, to get distracted, to be overwhelmed. That is why we need God every minute of our day. Keep the lines of communication open. I find myself spurting out short prayers. "Lord help me through this." "Give me the energy." "Help me keep focused." It is easy to complain on Mondays, but try to give it to the Lord. "I am restless in my complaint and moan noisily because of the voice of the enemy." Use God as your strength today to tackle the 3 (or more) loads of laundry that are staring at you in your closet or the pile of dishes that you thought you should leave Sunday evening and leave until the morning when you were fresher (ha!) or the lesson plans that you were a little to ambitious in planning for this week. I need Him today. Chances are you probably do too...

Freedom

This post is dedicated to my husband who is celebrating 1 year of sobriety today. Before this time last year, we were walking through the dark night of the soul. More than sobriety we are celebrating 1 year of coming out of darkness into the light. I would love to give several verses pertaining to the freedom that is ours in Christ.

"He has sent Me (Jesus) to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound." Isaiah 61:1b

"Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their chains in pieces...For He has broken the gates of bronze, and cut the bars of iron in two." Psalm 107:13-14, 16

"For he who has died (us) has been freed from sin." Romans 6:2
"But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life." Romans 6:22

"For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." Romans 8:2

"Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed." John 8:36

"Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage." Galatians 5:1

We have all been set free from the bondage of sin and death. All of our sins seek to choke the life out of us, and all different kinds of sin have the ability to completely take over and cause us to be "addicted". I am so grateful to God that he truly has the power to "snap the chains." One chain at a time, he is breaking us free from the claws of sin in our lives, and his refining fire is constantly burning stripping layers off of us to make us into his beautiful creation. Step out of denial into God's beautiful freedom. Step into his "oven" to be refined into the purest gold.

Priceless?

You all know the mastercard commercial. They name the prices of certain objects and then when they get to that one thing that is the most special, they say, "Priceless!" We would all like for those around us to think that we are priceless. We want our worth to far exceed the material things of this earth. As women we want to be cherished and treasured by our husbands. As friends, we want to be carried and important. As mothers, we want to be irreplaceable and adored. We want to be priceless! Or do we? What does it mean to have worth? Proverbs 31 talks about what kind of woman has great worth. It says, "Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies." It goes on to list a grand total of accomplishments, attitudes, and behaviors that encompass a wife of great worth. Oops...so what if I don't have all these qualities? It does say at the bottom though, "But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised." Okay, I have that one down. I definitely fear God, but I still come up feeling short? Maybe also the people in your house have questioned your worth with their actions. "I hate you mom!" "So what did you do all day, honey?" "I'm sorry I did not call, I just forgot." I used to get really lost in a cycle of lack of self-worth. I wanted to feel priceless to my husband and those around me. I wanted to be central, cared for, adored. It changed for me one day. At the risk of sounding gross...I was sitting in the bathroom one day, crying because of some hurtful things said by my husband. I was repeating to myself that "I am just not worth changing for, I am not worth being loved unconditionally by him...etc" The whole woe is me. Then out of nowhere I heard this still, small voice. "I thought you were worth dying for. I loved you so much that I died for you." From that day forward, things changed for me. Whenever I would feel unloved and uncherished, I would remind myself of that moment. It changed everything for me. I suddenly realized that I was not priceless. It really, really cost something to love me. "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are God's." There is always that selfish part of me that wants all the love and adoration from those I love on earth as well, but God has taught me that his love far exceeds anything on earth. For that I am eternally grateful. No matter what I get done every day. No matter what I look like every day...ha, ha, my worth does not change. This principle alone will change your life and take away that empty feeling when you meet rejection on this earth.

Okay...now the other half. We are bought...doesn't that mean that we belong to someone now? "Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." Sometimes I don't want to do things God's way, but overall the action of his love compels me to honor him. There is a song that says. "This is my desire, this is my return to be used by you...So I give my life to you." It might seem like a sacrifice, but living under this great love makes me want to give something back. It does not earn me anything. It is just the love relationship that I have always been looking for. Except...he does it perfectly, and I don't! "For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again." This back and forth love relationship is how we glorify God with our body and spirit. If you do not feel compelled to follow and live your life for him instead of yourself, you might question if you have truly received the full love of Christ. You maybe have not recognized your worth in him. The Bible is clear that Christ's love COMPELS us! It will not feel like a sacrifice...however we are called to sacrifice things for him. "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart." It is not broken down into categories about what we are to give up for God. Scripture ultimately calls for us to empty ourselves and be as vessels. We are his dwelling place now. "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is IN you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own." Back to this being bought stuff... It is really comforting however to be empty, because he fills us and changes our lives for good.

So in conclusion...What is your worth? And more importantly, what is God worth to you? Is he priceless?

Running away...

Last night I found myself confronted with a spiritual decision (and physical as well). I don't know if any of you moms/wives have ever felt like I do, but there are times that I just want to run away. I plan my escape in my head and might go right to the last step of my plan before falling before the Lord knowing that I am "trapped." Have you ever felt trapped? I have felt trapped in good and bad ways. Trapped by my responsibilities, by having children to care for, by good solid reason that I don't want to listen to. I have also been trapped by God from running away. It is only by his grace that I have not followed my escape plan. God knows I have had enough happen in my life to warrant running away in human terms. When I am upset and hurt, I just want to run as far as I can in one direction and have grand ideas that this will give me the freedom from pain I so desire...

God talks about running and escape.

"Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it." What will I obtain if I run in my own direction? "Holding fast the word of life so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain." I am afraid that my running away would be in vain and not for the glory of God. I have run this far...how defeating it would be to quit the race at this point. "Not that I have already attained or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me...forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." That is certainly the only thing I am running for. This world has nothing for me..."Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." Ok God, but sometimes I REALLY don't like the race that I am running... "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Thank God that I am not alone on this race, though.

"No temptation has overcome you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." Ah! Escape! Just my thing! We need to escape when we feel like we can't run away and when we feel like we are going to run away. There are those in my life at times that make me want to run away. "Lord, how long will you look on? Rescue me from their destructions, my precious life from the lions." "Deliver me in your righteousness. Bow down your ear to me, deliver me speedily; be my rock of refuge, a fortress of defense to save me." I really like that word speedily... God does not deliver me in my timing but allows me to be refined and burned for his glory. "Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth." "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken."

The thing is, we cannot escape or run away how we want. But God has given us a strong tower to run into and be safe. Run...yes...I am good at that. I am glad that last night I chose to run in the right direction and that he gave me an escape plan that did not make me happy at the time but ultimately gave me the freedom to roam within his boundaries and be completely safe.

Where are you hiding?

I don't know about you, but I tended to hide when trouble came my way. I hid in my work at home. I hid behind a mask that says everything is okay. I hid under my covers and didn't want to wake up. Maybe you even hide from your kids (the little devils!)...Did you know that it is okay to hide? Just not like you would think...As I have matured as a believer, I have found another place to hide that hides me much better than my methods and it does not keep me in seclusion. I have found my hiding place in the Lord. Yes, I still might have to get off by myself to "hide in Him" and yes I still have to ward off my regular hiding methods on a consistent basis, but it really works! "Hide me under the shadow of your wings." "You shall hide them in the secret place of your presence." "You are my hiding place." "For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in his pavilion in the secret place of his tabernacle he shall hide me." It is secret. It is safe. It is healing and protecting. I regularly hide myself in my room with him when the onslaught comes.

Also, though, we cannot hide ourselves from God. "My sins are not hidden from you." "He will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of hearts." "The darkness shall not hide from you." "For he knows the secrets of the heart." Sometimes I tend to think that if my sin process stays in my heart and mind and does not come out in actions, that I have conquered this sin, but the heart is deceitful above all things. He knows a word before it is on our tongue, and Jesus revealed the sinfulness of thoughts even if we don't act on them. My thoughts are not hidden from him. I was not even hidden when I was created in my mother's womb. This is comforting and fear-producing. He sees all.

Some things of God are hidden from us because we cannot obtain that knowledge. "But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory." "For as high as the heavens are above the earth are his ways above our ways and his thoughts above our thoughts." Some of these hidden treasures he reveals to us as we come to know him more. "I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches in secret places." "The secret things belong to the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever." Thank goodness...

Perhaps the most fear producing of all, though, is when God chooses to hide himself from us... "There his power was hidden." "Do not hide yourself from my supplication." "You hide your face, they are troubled; you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust." "He hides his face." When we come to him humbly in our sin, he is right there with open arms. Sometimes, though, when we are set in our ways and relishing our sin, when we have qualms with others and have not made reconciliation, he does not listen to us. He gives us over to that choice, and then waits patiently for our return once we fall down and bust our face and bum! I have caused God to turn away from me in my sin. This is not to say that God does not graciously come and rescue us from our muck sometimes, but he is waiting for a certain attitude of the heart to truly get in and do the work needed. The most horrifying act of God hiding himself came when Christ was on the cross, his only son crying out for his dad. Our sin was so shameful laid upon his son, that God could not even look. Praise God that Jesus took the ultimate punishment. Because of Jesus, God does not completely hide himself from us as we deserve.

He is present. Hide in him. Don't hide from him, and he won't hide from you! Oh...and don't hide Him from others! "I have not hidden your righteousness within my heart; I have declared your faithfulness and your salvation; I have not concealed your lovingkindness and your truth from the great assembly." Go hide out...

Hungry?

Based on the Bible verse today, how pure would it be to ask just these two things of the Lord? How simple our lives would be if we stayed fully reliant on the Lord without the superfluous. There was a time in my life where my daily sustenance came from him and no other place. God taught me a lot during that time, and he taught me that He was ENOUGH! "Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73:25-26) In light of today's verse, the word "portion" from Psalm 73 really stands out. We know that Jesus is the bread of life, but he is the only bread that fills. There are many things in this life that leave us feeling hungry. Prov. 30 goes on to list a few things that are never satisfied. 'There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, 'Enough!' : the grave, the barren womb, land which is never satisfied with water,and fire which never says, 'Enough!' These four things cannot receive the nourishment of God's daily bread, but we can. What is leaving you hungry? Your relationship, your finances, your escape mechanisms? Feed on Him. "For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." See you later...I am going to go EAT!

Waking up...

Well this morning presented an all too familiar challenge...actually waking up. I spent one of those nights where you just switch from side to side with vivid, crazy dreams. My dream last night included my own version of "Lost" with a pizza factory on the other side of the island, a search through a sort of horticultural center for the next book in a series I was looking for, and something else that just flew my mind (must be the lack of sleep). Anyway, I rolled out seeking the coffee pot in hopes that what is in my mug will save the day. Yes...I do know that the only thing that will get me through is the Lord today, but the Lord can use coffee! We are off to a new place in Dacula called Clay My Way for a homeschool field trip today, should be fun. I will try to post pictures of the creations made by my kids. I am just grateful that I don't have to do the 3 hours of school that I normally do in lieu of this field trip. I guess that means that I have a couple of hours to do housecleaning before I go at 11, but like I said on my facebook profile, and I am not sure that even if given the freetime of a possible house clean that I would actually take it. Verse today and encouraging words definitely go with my theme of the day...waking up!

Charts that Work

Decided to put this in post form as it was too lengthy for my side bars...


Screen Tickets: In order to limit screen time and also to teach my kids how to budget, I came up with screentime tickets. Each week each child receives a ziploc bag containing 4 cartoon tickets (30 min each), 3 movie tickets (1 hr each), 3 computer tickets (20 min each), and 5 game tickets (30 min each for Leapster/video games). Each child then must turn in a screen ticket when she wants to redeem it and is in charge of picking the program or website etc of choice. Other children are allowed to watch along if they wish. Screen tickets cannot be used until all school work and chores are completed. You can use up all your screen tickets in one day, but you might regret it! (Great for budgeting...) This is also a great thing to have for discipline with older children. We discipline by removing tickets for bad behavior. If a child has remaining tickets after each week, they can turn each in for a certain amount of money (you choose). Tickets are replenished each week. This too removes fighting over programming and gives them "control" over limiting their screentime!

Play Chart: This is the chart for those of you who have kids who constantly fight over what to play with or whose in charge! Make a chart with 1/2 hour block squares big enough to accommodate an "activity card" for each space. Make however many activity cards you like including some of the most fun things to do or play with in your house and put these cards in an envelope that will be attached to the back of the chart. Using Velcro dots once again to make the cards removable and replaceable, have each child alternate picking activities to post on the chart to fill up the amount of time you have for their free playtime. (My kids have a lot of this since we homeschool). Each child who picks is then in charge of that activity for 25 minutes (set a timer). Then the extra 5 mintues is spent cleaning up and getting ready for child #2's activity. This is also the solution to the "get one thing out at a time dilemma!"

Memory Verse Chart: We use this with homeschooling. Kids get to put a star sticker up for each verse memorized. Give kids a special treat after 7 verses are memorzied for incentive.

Behavior Chart: Make a castle or pirate ship (etc) that is the goal on a big poster board. Make seven steps to reach this goal using characters for each child. Use sticky Velcro dots to move around easily. Make a set of house rules. If you break more than 5 rules a day, you don't move up a step. If you break less than 5 rules a day, you move up 1 step. If you break no rules, you move up 2 steps! When you reach the GOAL you get to draw an idea card out of the PRIZE BOX (a box with several 3 x 5 cards listing prizes or fun rewards). This really works! Behavior Chart: Make a castle or pirate ship (etc) that is the goal on a big poster board. Make seven steps to reach this goal using characters for each child. Use sticky Velcro dots to move around easily. Make a set of house rules. If you break more than 5 rules a day, you don't move up a step. If you break less than 5 rules a day, you move up 1 step. If you break no rules, you move up 2 steps! When you reach the GOAL you get to draw an idea card out of the PRIZE BOX (a box with several 3 x 5 cards listing prizes or fun rewards). This really works!

Here I go...

Well, I am entering the world of blogging. I have been inspired from a number of sources, but most of all I am inspired to let moms of all ages know that they are not the only ones who fail, who lock themselves in bathrooms to get away, and whose best friend is possibly the stale donut downstairs. I will be adding frequently funny things that happen in my house in the "Yes that really happened..." section. I plan on setting up a contest of some sort on whose kids (or themselves) have done the wierdest thing! I have listed PROVEN recipes that turn out great. The ones listed for September are a little more time consuming (except for the soup) but pack the real WOW factor. These recipes are for when you crave restaurant food. The Frogmore Stew is a fast, fun recipe that makes you feel like you are at the beach. Eat it around the table grabbing with your hands from a big bowl with some ice cold drinks nearby! The soup is a really great fall/winter soup that will warm you up and goes great with a piece of crusty bread (note the slow cooker modality for those who are crunched)! The Bible verse listed is in tribute to a God who has always remained faithful to me and kept his promises even when others did not... The encouraging words are what I did this morning to cope in my day. I will be adding tons more stuff and posts as I have more time. Watch out!