Day 2 of #21Days4Sons ~ The Importance of Obedience

I'm taking part in the #21Days4Sons over at The MOB Society where we are reading Warrior Prayers for the first 21 days of May.

So far we are in day 2 and I'm really enjoying the challenges, the book, and praying the scripture for my sons.

Today's topic is on Obedience. I was challenged by how important it is for me, as the mother, to teach my son(s) Biblical obedience. I'm the type of person that likes a visual aid, and I love the example that the author gave us on how the teaching of obedience lies a great opportunity in sharing the Gospel message with my son. She used it like this:

“Son, you’re right. You didn’t obey mommy.  God says you must obey mommy and daddy, doesn’t He?  It’s hard to obey, isn’t it?  Everything in you wants your own way!  It’s fun to hit your brother sometimes.  It’s fun to be too loud and sometimes, it makes you feel good about yourself to tell mommy no.  But God, Who made you, says you must obey.  You can’t do it by yourself, can you?  No matter how hard you try to be good and obey mommy, you just can’t get it right all the time.  That’s why we love God so much, Son!  He knew you couldn’t do it by yourself!  He knew you would choose to sin instead of obey!  He knew you would need help!  So He sent His only Son Jesus to die for your sins and take the punishment you deserved.  Then God raised Jesus from the dead and now Jesus is with God in heaven, just waiting for you to confess your sin and ask Him to help you fight the sin in your heart!  Isn’t that great news?  We need Jesus! Let’s pray now and ask Jesus to help you!”

(McGlothlin, Brooke (2011-05-02). Warrior Prayers: Praying the Word for Boys in the Areas They Need it Most (Kindle Locations 318-325).  . Kindle Edition.) 

I'm seeing that I really need to take these opportunities when they come about and teach my son how important it is to obey. I sometimes tend to be a "fly by the seat of my pants" parent mostly because I'm too lazy to get to the heart of the issue. My prayer for myself is that I will have a plan and a renewed vision on the importance of teaching obedience to my son.

"If our boys never learn the importance of obeying and see their inability to obey by themselves, how will they ever recognize their need for a Savior?"

WOW!! I hope and pray that I will set an example of obedience for my son(s)! Today was revealing and I'm looking forward to see what else is ahead in the #21Days4Sons.

Today's Warrior Prayers through the Scripture:

Warrior Prayers for OBEDIENCE

• Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, may Lincoln obey the Lord our God so that it will go well with him (Jeremiah 42:6). 
• May Lincoln obey his parents in the Lord, for this is right (Ephesians 6:1)
• May Lincoln obey his leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over his soul, as those who will have to give an account. Let Lincoln do this with joy and not with groaning (Hebrews 13:17). 
• May Lincoln obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). 
• May Lincoln return to the Lord his God, and obey with all his heart and all his soul all the commands God has given (Deuteronomy 30:2).
• May Lincoln walk after the Lord his God and fear Him and keep His commandments and obey His voice.  May Lincoln serve Him and hold fast to Him (Deuteronomy 13:4). 
• May Lincoln stop his sinning and begin to obey the Lord his God (Jeremiah 26:13). 
• May Lincoln obey Jesus’ commandments, and remain in His love (John 15:10). 
• May Lincoln show his love for Christ by obeying His commands (John 14:15). 
• May we be full of joy at Lincoln’s obedience (Romans 16:19). 

Warrior Prayers for SUBMISSION TO AUTHORITY

• May Lincoln obey his leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over his soul, as those who will have to give an account.  Let him do this with joy and not with groaning (Hebrews 13:17). 
• May Lincoln submit himself therefore to God.  May he resist the devil, so he will flee from him (James 4:7).
• May Lincoln submit to laborers of the Gospel and to everyone who joins in the work (1 Corinthians 16:16).
• May Lincoln submit to others out of reverence for Christ (Ephesians 5:21).
• May Lincoln be subject to the Father of spirits and live (Hebrews 12:9). 
• May Lincoln agree with God, and be at peace; so good will come to him (Job 22:21). 
• May Lincoln be subject to the governing authorities.  For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God (Romans 13:1).
• May Lincoln submit himself to the Lord (2 Chronicles 30:8).
• May Lincoln, who is younger, be subject to the elders.  May he clothe himself with humility toward others, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5). 
• For freedom Christ has set us free; may Lincoln stand firm therefore, and not submit again to a yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1). 

If you're interested in joining in and would like to pray along with us for our sons, grandsons, and/or future sons (like sons in-law), go to The MOB Society for more information! I won't be posting everyday, but I do usually tweet some thoughts through out the day on the topic that's given, if you'd like to follow along: follow @bethanyev

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My lesson from my son on parenting and God...

I had this little thought(s) go through my head the other morning as I was trying to start my morning devotions.

As my son is watching his morning cartoons, drinking his chocolate milk, he's constantly talking, asking, replaying the scene he just saw, and is constantly saying, "mom, mom, MOM!!!" 

"WHAT?! WHAT DO YOU WANT, YOUR FINE!!! 

Can you just PLEASE be quiet, and sit still for a little bit as I try to read my Bible?" 

(Now know this: I'm tired...I know that I've been short with him lately, I feel like a horrible mother, the house work is piling up, I just want to be in bed till baby gets here....that's where I'm at... that's why my response is so...fleshy)

My thoughts turned to, how do we sound to God? As His children, does He hear, "God, God, GOD, over here, look, LOOK over here! See?! hey, hey HEY!!! are you paying attention?!" Are we always asking sounding so selfishly for things that we probably don't need or deserve? Do we sound like annoying little children?

But then as I started my morning in Psalm 27 and was reading about God, being our shelter and how he never leaves us, and is always a caring God for His children, I was rebuked by my thinking process from earlier on. God has a concern for His children, He cares. So much more than I ever will for my son. 

So during those times when I'm asking God repeatedly, over and over, with a child like attitude, He actually shows that He's concerned and pays attention to my needs. As a parent I saw how I was not always responding to my son's needs with the right attitude. With CONCERN, with CARE.

Then I read more on how the psalmist has confidence in God. Confidence in God's care and protection and confidence in knowing that God will never forsake him. This made me think of a child like faith. My son, as he's young, has the confidence in me for his protection. In his little mind, I'm never going to leave him, I'll always be there to take care of him. Now as he grows older he'll grow to understand that as humans, this isn't always possible and he'll learn to trust God, but in his mind for now, he's fully confident in me. Am I like that with God? Do I have that kind of faith?

I was not ready for my morning to be (really a lesson from my son) a rebuke on my parenting skills, for the parenting lessons and example of how God is to His children.

So here are some lessons/reminders for me:

• I learned that I need to work on my response and to be more patient with my son and show that I care just as God shows His children
• I learned that I need to be a better example to my son of God's care and concern
• I was reminded of the child like faith and that I too can have confidence in my God just as my son has in me. (But with God it's for oh so much more!)
• In the end I'm praising God for His care over me and that He's concerned and apart of every part in my life. Knowing that I can have confidence over everything because He is with me is such a help in this journey through motherhood!

Our children need to see Christ in our lives, and need to see us live it out on a daily basis. I'm no super Christian by any means and am still growing and stretching like every other Christian. I'm always learning and don't want to stop. I thought that maybe I'd share some of my thoughts as I've enjoyed reading others go through some of the same experiences/lessons. 

Has there been anything that God is teaching/shown you recently? Please share! Thanks for stopping by!

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Thoughts on this wife and motherhood thing...and what's helped me along the way.

OK....first things first....HOW DO I EDIT IN BLOGGER?! I just had a nice looking layout, type, and even color. Now NOTHING is working! What am I doing wrong?! *vent*

The following ramblings are thoughts that have been going through my head mainly on my role as a child of God, a wife, and a mother. The main reason for me to write this out is just to clear some thoughts, organize what’s in my head, and serve as a sort of accountability for myself. I encourage you to join in if you have any comments, tips, or ideas. Thanks! :)

I feel that God has been challenging me through so many different avenues with in the last couple weeks. I don't know how or where to put my thoughts down right now. I feel somewhat scattered brained, but also feel the most peace I've ever felt in a long time.

Jn. 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world give do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Phil. 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication and thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I don't know if it's the combination of joy and contentment, a renewed spirit and trust, or just sweet reunion and everything wrapped up all together in one. But God has been and IS good at restoring and reveling Himself to me in ways that I've forgotten about, and in ways I've never even considered. He's brought people into my path that has helped me to learn and grow, and He's helped me in reminding me of the others that have been in my life forever and their sweet example that they have or have had in my life.

2 Cor. 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

So please bear with me as I try to explain or share what God is doing in my life. It may seem very simple to some. I've never been someone that could explain what’s in my head. Communicating how I feel or wanting to express something clearly was never my strength. I'm still growing in this process of wife/motherhood and especially in my Christian walk. I like to say I've always had a sweet personal relationship with my Savior, but not till just recently, do I truly feel like I've found that 'sweet spot.' That rekindling, reunion I was talking about. And I think a lot of it had to do with my mindset of who I really am as a wife and mother. I've had to re-think some things through and come to realize my ministry and my calling for the RIGHT NOW in my life. (Which I plan to talk about more in another post.)

Ps. 1:3 He [she] is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in it's season, and it's leaf does not wither. In all that he [she] does, he [she] prospers.

I don’t want to forget this, or lose it. I want this feeling to stay. So as I start going through this process of bearing my thoughts, soul, and feelings to the world, (or the few that read this) maybe this will mainly just help serve as a way to keep me accountable in my walk. Maybe it can be a help as a challenge for all of us to find that sweet relationship we either once had or want to have.

Ps. 1:1 Blessed [happy] is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; bit his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

As I reintroduced myself back into the blogging world, I dove into the ‘Christian mommy side of things’ and found some really awesome ladies that have really encouraging blogs and topics with awesome resources. I thought I’d list some of the ones that I've personally enjoyed.

DoNotDepart.com has some great bible study topics for moms/women. I really enjoyed going through the names of God under the Scripture Dig section of their website. Just recently I started going through their Winter Bible Study called “Run to Him” where we are exploring Psalms together.

GraceFullMomma.com is going through a series called “Cultivating a Heart for Motherhood.” The series goes through the significance of motherhood, some obstacles in motherhood, anger and patience, and more! I've been blessed through this series and challenged through the printouts provided.

LivingDevotionally.com is a part of DoNotDepart.com (Most of these blogs are somehow connected either by authors, groups, books, etc…). Through this site I found an AWESOME book that has challenged me with my devotions. I’m still reading it and wish I had a hard copy. It just seems harder for me to read a book through my phone or computer. But what I've read so far has been great! It's called: “Savoring Living Water: how to have an effective quiet time”

TheMOBSociety.com For Moms of Boys, by Moms of Boys. A great site on mothering boys. They have some great looking books that I've already purchased for my kindle app, but still haven’t gotten the time to read them. I can’t wait to start!

InspiredToAction.com is where I found a great (free) ebook called, “Maximize Your Mornings.” “This ebook [is] to help busy moms like you create an effective and life giving morning routine.” Through this short book, I was challenged to write out my plan for my morning schedule. (Which, I will be sharing later in another post.)

Because of all these great sites and openness of these Godly women, one of the biggest things that has helped and is such a HUGE encouragement is this: knowing that I’m not alone in this motherhood thing. I’m not alone in wanting to know my God more. We all struggle but desire to be closer to our God more than anything else. And the tighter we cling to Him, the better we can and will be at this wife and mothering thing He has called us in to. Getting up early (my struggle) is not an easy task and it takes time and effort and realizing that we need to fully rely on Him for the grace and strength each day. It just takes coming to Him and asking.

Another thing that God has challenged me was on my prayer life. I like to journal my thoughts, but I felt like I should give praying out scripture a try! I've been really enjoying this. Here are some prayer sheets with Scripture on praying for our kids and husbands each day (and other great resources): http://inspiredtoaction.com/resources/

I can really see God doing a work in my son’s heart. He’s sensitive to and understands the Bible stories and likes to retell the stories after question and answer time. Just this past week we went through the story of sin in the Garden of Eden. I was so cool to see his mind work around the concept of God not allowing disobedience and how there's consequences because of our disobedience. Now, if you just come up to him and ask him to tell you the story, he might say something like "God tricked Eve," or "Satan said the fruit was bad..." Understand, these are new concepts and we're working on it! ;) But it's cute to hear him try!

back on topic....

So through all that, (the finding of resources, encouragement, challenges, and a new sense of my mission as a wife and mommy...)I knew I had to change my morning schedule. That will be my next post. I’ll share my schedule that I’ve created and how it worked out for me this past week. My goal is to stick to it for at least two weeks and see where I will need to go from there.

I hope that you enjoyed reading this post and maybe even found some new resources that will encourage you to grow as it has for me. I felt the need to share because I know how discouraging and hard motherhood can be at times, especially for young moms. I may have it easy now, as I’m only dealing with one set of little eyes, hands, and ears, soon to be two….and I may not have the experience of a mother with 12 children, but I do know that even with just one....

any knowledge of others dealing with the same things helps!

So....

How about you? What has been your greatest challenge as a Christian, wife, and/or mommy? How do you keep you walk consistent? What kind of books, resources, blogs, or websites do you go to for encouragement? Any advice, tips, and/or ideas for young moms who may be discouraged? What helped you to stick with your morning routine/quiet time?

Too many questions?! :)

Silly faces with mommy!

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http://www.thesefiveofmineplustwo.net/

Update on life

*ok so I had this post looking good, how I wanted it...now I can't get the alignment right. This is one of the many reasons why I don't blog often...*

It's been a long time again since I've blogged....I've been lazy about it, discouraged about it, and ignoring it over the summer...fall...ok, and winter months. Motherhood had gotten the best of me and life just did not seem interesting enough to talk or tell or type about. You know how it is... Everyday consists of the same old thing. Poop on the floor, pee on the couch, food in their hair, play dough on the bottom of your socks, spilled milk, grilled cheese, mac 'n' cheese, string cheese, and on occasion, for variety, maybe a peanut butter and jelly.

How.cool.is.that?.....

And get ready for it to start all over again the next day..............

You're probably going to tell me that I'm lazy, (I agree) or that I don't get out much. But on the contrary, I feel that I get out...maybe not A LOT, but I feel it's enough for us.

- During the spring and summer months we were traveling almost every weekend out of state with Joe and the quartet.

- Lincoln and I were outside in the sprinkler when it wasn't TOO hot. (Lincoln doesn't like the

sun or heat. *sigh*)

- I even took him to the crazy EXPENSIVE local water park once. And on occasion we went to a pool.

- We took three big trips last summer. Colorado, Wisconsin, and Michigan for two weddings and a funeral.

- We go to the library, park, and take walks around our neighborhood.

- We hang out with the quartet quite a bit where he plays with older kids.

- He enjoys church, and just recently I started swapping hours with a friend where we will watch each other's kids for 6hrs. once a week so that we can have some time to get things done. This

has helped with dr. appointments, errands, or catching lunch with Joe. It also gives Lincoln a

friend to play with twice a week! :)

There's other things in there as well like the shopping, running errands, and going out with daddy in the evenings. I'm not complaining that my life is boring. Just kinda...

stuck in a rut feeling...

So by the end of the summer I decided I was ready. I thought maybe a baby is something that would help me out of this rut. I know it's a big decision, I know what all entails with a newborn, I know the sacrifices our family will have to make...But Lincoln's getting older, he'll need a sibling,

and I had a slight case of....

The Baby Fever

By September I had a pregnancy test come out positive! By six weeks, I was buying a swing, looking for stuff on craigslist, registering my name for free baby stuff, and even house shopping! The excitement at the beginning was kinda fun! But the sickness was worse this time around. I was exhausted all the time during the first trimester. There were days when Lincoln would tell me, "mom, it's time to get out of bed, NOW!"

During those first few months of pregnancy, I started thinking of the new life that we were

bringing into the world. Was I truly ready ready to bring in a new life? Spiritually was I ready?

How could I bring in a new being when I was failing as a mother to the first child God gave me? God was challenging and convicting me in subtle ways on being and setting an example to my

children; on the ministry that God has placed right here for me. I also know that God was asking me to set some time aside for Him. In the mundane things and same old same old, I have been missing out on the blessings, the lessons, even my alone time with Him was lacking. God started pricking at my heart on getting back into getting to know Him again. How can I set an example when I'm not even in tune with God everyday?

Side notes:

Christmas came around and it was time for the great announcement/surprising the grandparents. We had a wonderful time in Indiana at my sisters with my family over Christmas weekend and loved telling them the great news!

Joe's parents even came down for a few days during their short break!

I hate how we live so far away from everyone. It makes me sad every time we have to say goodbye not knowing exactly when we'll see each other again. I've never had to deal with that feeling until we moved down here to Greenville.

And back:

So life went back to it's regular same old. God started pricking my heart even more about my attitude on motherhood and the ministry he has set before me in this house. Mostly I wanted to start living more like a God centered mom, teaching my son to love God.

I was on a mission. Lincoln is at the age where he needs to be engaging his mind more. He loves to learn new things and then teach them back to others. I was thinking back on the few days that I worked at a day care and remembering how I really enjoyed the 2 & 3 year olds. I needed to find something like a daycare program/curriculum that was organized out for me to start with

Lincoln. Through my research I found a great (free) Christian curriculum that teaches all the preschool stuff kids love and need to learn with the Bible as the core teaching.(www.abcjesuslovesme.com) I don't have a teacher mindset, or creativity, so this site and many others (Pinterest) have helped me along the way.

I don't know if it was the beginning of the nesting stages or what, but I got things all organized and ready for preschool to start! I was excited to get things started!

Lincoln loves doing the crafts and reading books with mommy. We haven't gotten as far as I'd like, I've been pretty relaxed about it, but in the next few weeks, we'll get a schedule down and start back up again. We just got back from a week of vacationing/quartet trip in Florida.

I feel encouraged as I feel as if I'm getting another fresh start with my walk with the Lord. I've found some awesome resources, books, and blogs. The Lord has put the desire in me again to read and I can't seem to get enough. I'm so thankful for my husband buying me my very own laptop as an early Valentine's present. I've only had it a week but all ready I have tons of resources that I know will come in handy for devotions/Bible reading. I love the access it gives me to go anywhere, type in a thought, read a book or passage and also send it to my phone for even more access!

I praise God for second chances, and more chances after that. We fall, fail, and forget, but God doesn't! He lifts us up, satisfies, and never forgets us! I know I'm not a perfect mom, nor will I ever be, but I hope you can see that I've just let myself go and revealed my heart out to the blog world and social media. I'm not out to show how "perfect" my "fake little family" is! I'm real and am learning as God guides me each step of the way and felt like sharing.

God has showed - is showing - me that things of this world, even people, won't ever fully satisfy

me. A baby. my son. my husband. a new house. stuff for baby...

Through all that, I've been enjoying this book that I just found on LivingDevotionally.com that's called 'Savoring Living Water, how to have an effective quiet time.' by Katie Orr and Lara Williams. Through reading the book, these verse came to my attention over the weekend:

O God, you are my God;

earnestly I seek you;

my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Ps. 63:1

For he satisfies the longing soul,

and the hungry soul he fills with good things.

Ps. 107:9

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life,

whoever comes to me shall not hunger,

and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.

John 6:35

That's just how I feel. I'm thirsty and the Lord is satisfying!

I hope to give this blog a(nother) face lift as life changes, so do blogs. I've kinda backed off of the couponing since the pregnancy as it just completely wears me out. I've slowly gotten back to it

over the past couple weeks as the energy comes back. Recently it just hasn't been that high of a

priority, but I'd like to get back to it more regularly. Our pantry suffered some, but it's nice that our beauty/bath care items still looks fully stocked after 5+months of no regular couponing! :)

So that's the update. I hope I don't sound like I'm just wasting away in my misery. Which I'm not...I'm really a laid back, quiet kind of person and I usually don't have much to say. Motherhood has it's moments and please understand where I'm coming from. I love my son(s)

(oh yeah, it's a boy!),

husband, and I love being a wife and mom.

date night w/hubby at a hockey game. Don't ask about his facial expression. I don't know why he is the way he is... :)

There are more good times than bad in our house and we do eat other things besides cheese! :)

Tuesday thoughts

I'm always in search of a good christian parenting books. I'm always asking myself, "How can I be a better wife and mother?" And too many times I feel like I fall short. Motherhood in it self is not thinking of yourself. Too many times I'm concerned of what's best for me, how to get what I want out of it. So selfish.
Motherhood is thinking of others. Sacrificing your time and energy for the good of the family. It's being a servant. And what better example do I have other than Jesus Christ? He is the perfect example of a humble servant.
Just over a year ago, right when we found out I was pregnant, I was reading through Titus 2. I was going through this chapter with a study book. (Created to be his Help Meet by Debi Pearl) Here are some things that I wrote in my journal during that time. It was a great reminder of my duty as a Christian woman.

"A Titus 2 Woman first must be SOBER: To do one's duty, be moderate, self-controlled, thoughtful, and to learn to make wise decisions, and judgment. When a woman learns to be sober, she will not live for immediate gratification. She will appreciate those things that will last for eternity. "

Immediate gratification... So many times I'm frustrated because things are not done. If I don't get my 'too do' list finished, then I'm not happy. "Choose to do those things which will give satisfaction as you view life as a whole, rather than measure satisfaction at the end of each day." (A Mother's Heart by Jean Fleming) Am I having eternity in mind here? Will having the 'too do' list checked off at the end of the day really benefit my relationship with my family? What am I doing that has lasting value?

"A Titus 2 Woman must love their husbands: Putting his needs before your own. BE READY to minister to him!"

Again, here it is. Putting others before me. I ask the Lord to help me in this area. At the end of the day, I realize times where I could have, should have ministered to my husband. I fail all too much. Please forgive me Lord. I have such a wonderful husband who deserves so much more than this foolish girl.

"A Titus 2 Woman must love their children: For a mother who loves her children, training is not a chore, it is a full-time, all-consuming passion. They are worth every minute of time and trouble to every 'dedicated' mother."

"To be Discreet: Prudent; wise in avoiding error and in selecting the best means to accomplish a purpose. Polite and honest."

"To be Chaste: Pure in though, word and act. To be modest and honorable in all things"

"To be Keepers at Home: Keeping a godly home with excellence for your husband and children is the christian woman's nonnegotiable responsibility."

"To be Good: A good woman is genuine, joyful, virtuous, valuable, kind, merciful, hard working, gracious and wise."

"To be Obedient to their own husbands: TRUST! Depend on his wisdom and guidance. Proverbs 12:4 'A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband...'"

So as I read through Titus 2 again this week, and looked back at my notes from last year, I am greatly convicted on how I've lacked in my motherhood life. I would wonder 'where am I in this ministry? How can I reach people? Send me Lord.' The home is where the Lord has sent me. My family is my ministry. This is my calling. And there's no where else I'd rather be. I pray that these things will show through in my life as I grow in my Christian walk.

Tuesday thoughts

During rough, difficult times, I love reading Psalms. Psalm 27 has been one of my favorites.

The Lord is my light and my salvation: whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?...

For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion; in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock...

...Thy face, Lord, will I seek...

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart...

These were just some verses that I read today that were encouraging. Always a good reminder.

I'm anxious to get back on the road and minister to fellow believers. I'm even more anxious to be home for the summer. These next two months are going to be so busy and the summer in Wisconsin is looking so inviting! I can't wait! I'll be home with my family, close to Joe's family, and best of all...Close to the beach! My favorite!

Take some time today and reflect on what the Lord is doing in your life. Is he stretching you? Did you read an encouraging verse today? I'm always reminding myself to practice a thankful heart.

5 things I'm thankful for today:

1. The sun is shining brightly! I love sunny days!
   
2. Quiet time in God's word.
   
3. My husband is out with another full days work before we head out on the road.
4. Lincoln didn't wake up at 3am like the last two nights!
5. Friends. I have wonderful friends that encourage me. I should thank them personally.
   

I better go now. Lincoln just woke up from his nap and wondering what's taking so long for me to realize he's awake. (I hear ya buddy, momma's coming!)

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Some thoughts

This morning I was reading my Proverbs for the day. Proverbs 19:21 caught my eye. "There are many devices in a man's heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, THAT SHALL STANDS." I also came across some other verses that showed that my God is a Provident God. A God that is providing carefully for the future. MY FUTURE.
Prov. 20:24 "Man's going are of the Lord, how can a man then understand his own way?"
Prov. 3:9 "A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps."
Prov. 3:6 "In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths."

These verses are very encouraging at this time in my life. Here we've been sitting in Greenville, jobless, money is tight, totally walking by faith. Isn't that what the Christian life should be? Walking by faith? But it seemed that we were stuck. No where to go. Why are we here? What do you have for us Lord?

Questions like these filled my mind. What's the purpose? "Man's goings are of the Lord, how can a man then understand his own way?" I feel that God is preparing us for something. Joe and I may not know what's going on. But God does. He is "providing carefully for our future." He is a God that is a provident God.

But what about the "devices in a man's heart"? How do I not let my heart, my foolish wicked, sinful heart get in the way? I don't want distractions getting in the way and obscuring my view from the plan that God has for me in my life. "In all they ways, acknowledge him..." I'm always asking God for wisdom, and for the strength each day.

God is making a path for this family. He has it laid out for us. There are twists and turns, bumps and hills. But by keeping our eyes on the Lord, diligently serving Him, we are in His will. This is God's will for us to be here in Greenville, jobless... It's a time of stretching, growing, seeking His face.

I really want to know what the future holds. How is God going to use this weak vessel? I pray that this family will be a light in this dieing world. That we will be an example to future generations. Our family is still young, but God can still use us. I feel that God will use us some way. I'm letting God prepare me now.

I know I'm not very much of a writer. I mostly ramble on and on. Not making too much sense at all. I just hope to be a small voice to future generations. Future mothers, wives, sisters in Christ... We all go through struggles in life. I just want to share how God is working in mine. Today I'm praising my God who is looking out for me and my family. I know that I can fully rely on him.
I won't be offended if you don't read my posts. But please let me know if you have something to say. Let's praise our God together!