I feel further from God than I have in a long time, but I know it is because I am tired and running on empty. I have not rested. All day long I felt the Lord gently reminding me that He is there and telling me to read my "Jesus Calling" devotion for today...more specifically the scriptures at the end of the devotion. God gives us exactly what we need when we need it, but sometimes we need to make the extra effort to get it.
"And the Lord shall guide you continually and satisfy you in drought and in dry places and make strong your bones. And you shall be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not" (Isaiah 58:11 AMP)
"He will feed His flock like a shepherd: He will gather the lambs in His arm, He will carry them in His bosom and will gently lead those that have their young"(Isaiah 40:11 AMP)
Thank you Lord!
I just need to be the sheep that I am and let my Shepherd take care of me.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Lessons of thankfulness
I love this time of year, but for some reason I am overly tired and grumpy. On one hand I feel sorry for my sweet family that they have to put up with my crankiness and on the other hand I blame them for it! These comments were made by me in the past few days...
"You are not allowed to use your imagination anymore! I am tired of you fighting over superhero powers!"
"Please stop asking for mommy and daddy. Can you just pretend like you don't have parents for 5 minutes?"
"I'm done!"
Then these sweet words refreshed and encouraged my soul...
http://www.itakejoy.com/the-gift-of-a-spirit-filled-mama/
"You are not allowed to use your imagination anymore! I am tired of you fighting over superhero powers!"
"Please stop asking for mommy and daddy. Can you just pretend like you don't have parents for 5 minutes?"
"I'm done!"
Then these sweet words refreshed and encouraged my soul...
http://www.itakejoy.com/the-gift-of-a-spirit-filled-mama/
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Thanksgiving
I love this time of year. I am so thankful for my family and the extra time we get to spend with loved ones. God bless you all and have a happy Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 21, 2011
Is it yelling, screaming, shouting or raising your voice?
Before I had kids I wasn't a yeller and I had a lot of patience! Now I realize that my patience had just never been tested to its extreme before so maybe I wasn't patient at all.
This past weekend was a weekend of yelling. My kids consider it yelling and I consider it raising my voice. I have heard other moms "yell" and I am quiet in comparison, however I am in awe of the mothers who NEVER raise their voice which makes me feel like I'm an ogre. I am pretty stern with my tone, but I don't know how else to get my boys to take me seriously. I am very kind to my boys and I don't say mean things, but I am finding I have to yell more and more. I have tried to speak quietly for years. They don't hear me. I have heard people say if someone is yelling at their kids in public than it must be even worse at home. Not for us. I am the same wherever I go. Isn't consistency the key?
What do you do to keep from yelling? Do you think yelling/raising your voice is a bad thing?
This past weekend was a weekend of yelling. My kids consider it yelling and I consider it raising my voice. I have heard other moms "yell" and I am quiet in comparison, however I am in awe of the mothers who NEVER raise their voice which makes me feel like I'm an ogre. I am pretty stern with my tone, but I don't know how else to get my boys to take me seriously. I am very kind to my boys and I don't say mean things, but I am finding I have to yell more and more. I have tried to speak quietly for years. They don't hear me. I have heard people say if someone is yelling at their kids in public than it must be even worse at home. Not for us. I am the same wherever I go. Isn't consistency the key?
What do you do to keep from yelling? Do you think yelling/raising your voice is a bad thing?
Thursday, November 17, 2011
My favorite day
Today the boys ran outside and noticed instantly that all of the leaves had fallen. It was like God blew them off like a dandelion and they were everywhere. The next thing I know the boys are all grabbing rakes and making huge piles. Archer didn't know what they were doing, but he had to join in so he grabbed a broom.
The pile is ready!
1-2-3 JUMP!
Archer's first time flying solo
I love days like today!
1-2-3 JUMP!
Archer's first time flying solo
I love days like today!Saturday, November 12, 2011
Walking through trials
Where have the past few months gone?!?! Since August we have:
~moved out of our house
~refinished the hardwood floors in grandparents house
~moved into grandparents house
~unpacked
~started homeschooling again
~Sawyer broke his arm and we have made multiple trips to a specialist weekly for the past couple of months
~I went on a Walk to Emmaus
~we are preparing the walls to prime and paint
That is it in a nutshell. We are busy, but we have peace in our new temporary home until the Lord shows us where to go. About a month ago I was crying out to God about how hard this year has been (it has been the hardest year in my adult life) and I felt like the Holy Spirit said, "Stop saying that." Proverbs 18:21 came to mind, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]." I yelled in my car (I don't normally do this and if you knew me in real life you would crack up because I am a generally quiet person), "THE REST OF 2011 IS A GOOD YEAR!" I really felt like something broke off of me at that point. A weight had been lifted and I have had so much peace. There is power in our words. Our words can change things for bad or good. The boys are SO HAPPY homeschooling and the rest of our year is great. Instead of me thinking, "what in the world is going to happen next?" I am excited for the holidays.
I haven't shared publicly some of the major trials our family has been through this year, but I will update where He has us now.
You know that there are so many times in our life that we want to go from A to Z but skip all of the letters in between and I have just been thanking the Lord for the process because if I had just skipped to Z, I don't think I could have handled it. God knows what He is doing. Every situation is a growing situation. I recently learned that being perfect is not what we have made it to be. In Hebrew being perfect means to grow in maturity daily in the Lord. That really set me free from me trying to "be perfect". The perfect mom, the perfect wife, who could do no wrong, etc. But I can be perfect in the Hebrew definition. Praise the Lord!
When I look back 8 months ago I didn't know how we were going to survive this trial. Thank you Lord for the process. I have a deeper and different trust than I had before in the Lord. I am not afraid for bad things to happen. I know that our children have watched us through this and they have seen me cry more than ever, but they have also seen me relax and not be so paranoid about things which has given them an opportunity to grow into the mighty men of God they are becoming. I am learning to not have worst fears.
Something that brought healing to my husband and I was going on a "Walk to Emmaus". It is a worldwide ministry. You need to sponsored by someone who has already gone on a "walk". We have always heard it is best if the husband goes first and then the wife, and after going I agree with that. You don't really know what is going to happen. It is like a Christmas present that everyone knows that you are getting except you. You don't have a cell phone or a watch and it lasts for three days. I have known a lot of people who have gone through the years since we have one so close to our town, and I have heard the same thing over and over....God meets YOU exactly where YOU are at spiritually, emotionally, etc. There is no agenda. There is so much prayer that surrounds this. People are praying long before you even know you are going. When you go it is your divine appointment. It is really amazing. Each of us going brought so much healing to our family and to ourselves.
I am hoping to be able to write more frequently now that we are getting more settled.
~moved out of our house
~refinished the hardwood floors in grandparents house
~moved into grandparents house
~unpacked
~started homeschooling again
~Sawyer broke his arm and we have made multiple trips to a specialist weekly for the past couple of months
~I went on a Walk to Emmaus
~we are preparing the walls to prime and paint
That is it in a nutshell. We are busy, but we have peace in our new temporary home until the Lord shows us where to go. About a month ago I was crying out to God about how hard this year has been (it has been the hardest year in my adult life) and I felt like the Holy Spirit said, "Stop saying that." Proverbs 18:21 came to mind, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]." I yelled in my car (I don't normally do this and if you knew me in real life you would crack up because I am a generally quiet person), "THE REST OF 2011 IS A GOOD YEAR!" I really felt like something broke off of me at that point. A weight had been lifted and I have had so much peace. There is power in our words. Our words can change things for bad or good. The boys are SO HAPPY homeschooling and the rest of our year is great. Instead of me thinking, "what in the world is going to happen next?" I am excited for the holidays.
I haven't shared publicly some of the major trials our family has been through this year, but I will update where He has us now.
You know that there are so many times in our life that we want to go from A to Z but skip all of the letters in between and I have just been thanking the Lord for the process because if I had just skipped to Z, I don't think I could have handled it. God knows what He is doing. Every situation is a growing situation. I recently learned that being perfect is not what we have made it to be. In Hebrew being perfect means to grow in maturity daily in the Lord. That really set me free from me trying to "be perfect". The perfect mom, the perfect wife, who could do no wrong, etc. But I can be perfect in the Hebrew definition. Praise the Lord!
When I look back 8 months ago I didn't know how we were going to survive this trial. Thank you Lord for the process. I have a deeper and different trust than I had before in the Lord. I am not afraid for bad things to happen. I know that our children have watched us through this and they have seen me cry more than ever, but they have also seen me relax and not be so paranoid about things which has given them an opportunity to grow into the mighty men of God they are becoming. I am learning to not have worst fears.
Something that brought healing to my husband and I was going on a "Walk to Emmaus". It is a worldwide ministry. You need to sponsored by someone who has already gone on a "walk". We have always heard it is best if the husband goes first and then the wife, and after going I agree with that. You don't really know what is going to happen. It is like a Christmas present that everyone knows that you are getting except you. You don't have a cell phone or a watch and it lasts for three days. I have known a lot of people who have gone through the years since we have one so close to our town, and I have heard the same thing over and over....God meets YOU exactly where YOU are at spiritually, emotionally, etc. There is no agenda. There is so much prayer that surrounds this. People are praying long before you even know you are going. When you go it is your divine appointment. It is really amazing. Each of us going brought so much healing to our family and to ourselves.
I am hoping to be able to write more frequently now that we are getting more settled.
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