Cobb Salad

2012 Here We Come!

2012 is almost here!! I want to tell you about two things you won't regret doing next year. It may be hard at times but it will be so worth it!

1. Read through the Bible in a year. Here is a link to the Bible reading plan that we are following. I like this particular one because it includes old and new testament readings for each day and there are five make-up days at the end of each month. It is so worth doing every year! Join us at the Emmaus Project for an online discussion. You will receive emails from others about what they are reading and can ask questions about what you just read. The purpose of the Emmaus Project is to "...find and fellowship with Christ in all of Scripture."

2. My second recommendation is Project 365. Take a picture every day for a year! I am just finishing this (2 more days to go!!!) and am so glad I did it!! If you have a good camera phone (iPhone) it makes the project 10 times easier because it can be a pain toting your camera everywhere. I have barely touched my nice Nikon since getting the iPhone! I love the camera on the phone and it has fun filter apps and it is always on me. For the Project 365 I have been storing my pictures on Flickr (just a click of a button on my phone and they are stored there) and then later I upload them to Blurb to make my book ( you can use Shutterfly or one of the other photo companies too). I did 2011 in 2 volumes. I used a regular Blub book for January- June and then the second volume is going to be Blurb's Instagram book because that is where I do all my photos now. I wanted to quit several times but it is so worth it in the end. Mason and Miles LOVE looking at the Project 365 photo book! There are so many great memories!!

Here is a picture of my first book:

Happy New Year!

A Woman Who Fears The Lord Is...

I hope and pray that I will grow more like this each year.

This is written by John Piper

"First, a woman who fears the Lord is not anxious about the future. Look at verse 25. I love this line, and I praise all you women who are like this: "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." Satan dangles in front of her the specter of tomorrow's troubles, but she glances up at the almighty God at her right hand (her magnificent German Shepherd!) and laughs at Satan's folly.

Second, the woman who fears the Lord has practical wisdom. Verse 26, "She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue." We've been taught from grade school on that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9:10), so it's no surprise that the woman who fears the Lord "opens her mouth with wisdom."

Third, the woman who fears the Lord is strong. Verse 25, "Strength and dignity are her clothing." Verse 17, "She girds her loins with strength and makes her arms strong." She will be morally strong. Proverbs 23:17 says, "Let not your heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day." The woman who continues in the fear of the Lord will have power to resist all the allurements to envy, to desire what she shouldn't have.

Fourth, a woman who fears the Lord will live not for herself alone but for others, especially her husband, if she is married. Verses 11, 12, "The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not harm all the days of her life." A woman who fears the Lord will not squander the family's livelihood on frivolous purchases, but will have the complete trust of her husband because she is for him and not against him."

Excerpted from A Woman Who Fears the Lord Is to Be Praised.

Put On Love

Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,  bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. ~ Colossians 3:12-17

Find Your Joy In Christ - Not In Fulfilling Your "Perfect Mom List"

Thanks Amber for this find :-)

This is written by Bonnie

"To enjoy motherhood, every woman needs to give herself permission to be free. What does that mean to a woman of faith?

I was flipping through channels, trying to find something fun to watch when I stopped on an episode of Millionaire Matchmaker.

I had never seen the show before, but since the boys were in bed, I thought I’d check it out. It’s a reality show where a matchmaker with personality named Patti matches single wealthy people, all claiming to be millionaires, with potential spouses.

One client carried a written, long list of qualities she wanted in her man, in her purse. The matchmaker took a lighter to the list and burned it in full view. She was shocked speechless.

Her list profiling her perfect mate kept her from enjoying any hope of romance. Patti said her client wanted to control the process of falling in love so badly, she was shut off from any real moments that were happening. Her list kept her from really seeing people for who they were. All she saw was how far everyone was falling short of her expectations.

As I was watching this young woman struggle with letting go of her expectations, I saw a part of myself in her.

I’m not talking about dating. I’m talking about mothering.

You see, I also carry a list.

It’s called the Perfect Mom List.

The Perfect Mom List

I didn’t put this list together for my mother or for anyone else. This list is for me.

I have to admit I’ve actually giggled putting together a list of ideal qualities in my dream guy, but I’ve actually never sat down to write one down for me, as an ideal mom.

To my surprise, a Perfect Mom List has nonetheless emerged. It’s made its way into my heart and it’s filling up discouragement in my head.

If you saw my Perfect Mom List, I think you’d agree it’s not unreasonable... is it?

1. I want to always be patient.

2. I want to be super organized, so my home looks like a calm learning environment, where everything has its place.

3. I want to make creative meals, so my children and husband will clap their hands and be so excited to sit down and eat.

4. I should have endless energy and always delight in playing with my children whenever they want, even when both of them want to play different games at the same time.

5. I should be crafty with glue and construction paper, love coloring and drawing funny pictures.

6. I should love keeping the house in order, doing laundry, while lovingly providing counsel to my children when needed, yet drawing boundaries and disciplining firmly when necessary.

Can you see how easily and quickly “want” became “should” to me? Can you see how this list deceptively morphed into my Perfect Mom List?

The problem with this list is that it keeps me from seeing God's view of me.

A Startling Discovery

This list keeps me from enjoying the moment and keeps my children from getting to know the real me.

Early in my mothering, when the struggle towards the 24×7 life of parenting hit a peak, a wise mommy mentor named Betty gave me this advice:

Just do what gives you joy — a joyful mommy is the best mommy. It is godly to be joyful.  It is godly to be at peace. God wants you to have joy.  God wants you to have peace. Don’t do what robs you of joy. Don’t do what robs you of peace.

I was definitely skeptical of her advice.

No. This couldn’t be. I objected.

Over time, as we continued praying and I went digging in the Scriptures, I started trying her advice out. I came to a startling discovery.

I don’t have to wait until the kids are older, and I’m better at mothering. I can have joy now — I can have peace now – IF I give up my list."

by Bonnie

He Remains Faithful

This is a post written by Jen at Resurgence.

"If we are faithless, he remains faithful – for he cannot deny himself." - 2 Timothy 2:13 

We love to make everything about us. The promises in the Bible that offer us love and grace and forgiveness are our favorites. Recently, just for fun, I went through Psalm 18 and circled every occurrence of I, me, my and mine.  24 in the first six verses alone!.  My God, my rock, my salvation…They make us feel special. Graciously, God rocks our “me-centric” worlds with a bigger perspective.

It is one thing to say and believe that God is faithful to us – He most certainly is.  It is a grander, more glorious reality to say that God is faithful to Himself…and thus, to us. 

 

Our Faithfulness Is Fickle

I have just endured a dry season in my walk where intimate time with God was negligible. Being a feelings-oriented woman, I spent some time questioning Christ’s closeness. I knew He was near but I felt distance. When my focus is on my faithfulness (or lack thereof), I begin to believe that God must be far off – that I somehow shook him off in my wanderings.

"He is faithful to the promise he made to us when he sent Jesus to the cross…I will never leave you or forsake you."

Embracing God’s faithfulness to himself frees us from the devastating effects of thinking we have anything to do with the way he sees us.  God sees his children through the atoning blood of his Son, covering us for every act of treason and rebellion we have committed. He isn’t faithful to us because of anything we have done well or poorly. He wouldn’t be faithful to us if he was looking for us to uphold our end of the bargain.

 

Self-fulfilling Faithfulness

He is faithful to the promise he made to us when he sent Jesus to the cross…I will never leave you or forsake you. He says to each of His children, “You are in me because of my Son’s sacrifice, sealed by my Spirit. I cannot deny myself and I will not determine my faithfulness on any merit of yours. You cannot make yourself worthy of my faithfulness to you. I choose to give it freely.”

Humbling words.

We are not as big or powerful as we might choose to believe. God is faithful to himself because he took up residence in us when he rescued us.  In keeping with his character as the covenant-keeping God, he does not deny us even when we deny him. 

"We are relieved of the burden of grading ourselves on our performance."

But, we are also being redeemed – transformed from the heart out, to be men and women of God.  We may be thoroughly unfaithful but God in us is faithful to himself. We are drawn to increasing faithfulness because we are banking on his faithfulness. He will work out his promises in and through us, despite our best efforts and in spite of our worst.

What joyous, glorious freedom and peace come from this truth: God is faithful to himself. We are relieved of the burden of grading ourselves on our performance. We are compelled to enjoy the grace and power that comes as a result.

Jen @ Resurgence

Made Precious By Jesus

An excellent article from Jennifer on Resurgence. This is just part. Go to Resurgence to read the whole thing.

..."An excellent wife is not found but forged. No man goes out and finds a woman that is pure wife perfection and marries her. Neither of them truly know what that even looks like yet!

A godly woman becomes an excellent wife as she understands she is made in the image of God, re-made in the image of Christ and formed over a lifetime of repentance and redemption. Excellence is not measured by a to-do list; it is manifested in the life of a wife who knows Jesus intimately."

And later she continues..."We are made precious by Jesus. This heart transformation is the basis for any preciousness that our husbands experience in us. It is not about what we do but what our precious Savior has done for us that graces us with the power to be excellent wives. We are helpless on own own.

A godly wife understands that she is nothing outside of the saving grace of Jesus Christ and has no excellence apart from Him. Christ’s grace and love are precious to her. Fueled by his riches, she will become a glorious crown to her husband as she helps, nurtures and loves him from the depths of Christ’s righteousness in her.

It takes a 10 minute ceremony to become a wife.  It takes a lifetime to become an excellent wife – one who understands that Christ’s shed blood on the cross is needed to offer excellence to our husbands."

Read all of it on Resurgence.

 

 

Motherhood as a Mission Field

I'm so thankful for my husband. He often reminds me of the important role I have at home and the great mission field I have right in my own house.

I love this article by Rachel. This is just part. Read the rest at Desiring God.

Home: The Headwaters of Mission

If you are a Christian woman who loves the Lord, the gospel is important to you. It is easy to become discouraged, thinking that the work you are doing does not matter much. If you were really doing something for Christ you would be out there, somewhere else, doing it. Even if you have a great perspective on your role in the kingdom, it is easy to lose sight of it in the mismatched socks, in the morning sickness, in the dirty dishes. It is easy to confuse intrigue with value, and begin viewing yourself as the least valuable part of the Church.

There are a number of ways in which mothers need to study their own roles, and begin to see them, not as boring and inconsequential, but as home, the headwaters of missions.

Read the rest here.

His Wonderful Grace

Two quotes from Give Them Grace by Elyse Fitzpatrick and Jessica Thompson

Parenting in grace is not parenting on the basis of your own consistent gospel-centeredness. It is just the opposite. Parenting in grace is parenting on the basis of Christ's consistent perfections alone.

The weakness, failures, and sins of our families are the places that we learn we need grace too. The good news: His grace is sufficient even in our weakness, failures and sins.

Elyse is speaking at the end of the month in Escondido!

Being Content

This is from the GirlTalk blog. This is just a part of their post. If your hope is in Christ then these words should give you comfort. I need to remind myself of God's great goodness often.

"...no matter where you find yourself today—in a trial big or tiny. Remember, the Lord isn’t surprised and He has PROMISED to work for your good in all things (Rom. 8:28).

These words from J. C. Ryle have brought me much encouragement:

“Reader, if God has given you His only begotten Son, beware of doubting His kindness and love, in any painful providence of your daily life! Never allow yourself to think hard thoughts of God. Never suppose that He can give you anything which is not really for your good. Remember the words of Paul: ‘He who spared not His own Son—but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things’ (Romans 8:32).

See in every sorrow and trouble of your earthly pilgrimage the hand of Him who gave Christ to die for your sins! That hand can never smite you except in love! He who gave His only begotten Son for you, will never withhold anything from you which is really for your good. Lean back on this thought and be content. Say to yourself in the darkest hour of trial, ‘This also is ordered by Him who gave Christ to die for my sins. It cannot be wrong. It is done in love. It must be well.’"

Give Them Grace

I am so thrilled about my newest book! Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus by Elyse Fitzpatrick and her daughter Jessica Thompson. I'm just getting started but it is fabulous. In the beginning Elyse contrasts moralistic parenting (which a lot of us Christians get caught up in) vs. gospel parenting. Elyse gives a quote from my favorite kid's story Bible.

"Moralistic parenting occurs because most of us have a wrong view of the Bible. The story of the Bible isn't a story about making good little boys and girls better. As Sally Lloyd-Jones writes in The Jesus Storybook Bible:

Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn't do. The Bible certainly does have some rules in it. They show you how life works best. But the Bible isn't mainly about you and what you should be doing. It's about God and what he has done. Other people think the Bible is a book of heroes, showing you people you should copy. The Bible does have some heroes in it, but... most of the people in the Bible aren't heroes at all. They make some big mistakes (sometimes on purpose), they get afraid and run away. At times they are downright mean. No, the Bible isn't a book of rules, or a book of heroes. The Bible is most of all a Story. It's an adventure story about a young hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It's a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne - everything - to rescue the one he loves. It's like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life.

..."At the deepest level of what we do as parents, we should hear the heartbeat of a loving, grace-giving Father who freely adopts rebels and transforms them into loving sons and daughters. If this is not the message that your children hear from you, if the message that you send them on a daily basis is about being good so that you won't be disappointed, then the gospel needs to transform your parenting, too." ~ Elyse Fitzpatrick

I got this wonderful book a little early :-)  It will be released at the end of May. Go order it! You will be glad you did!!