Mothers Day in a whole new way

Wierd. Why is it that this year as I listened to the mothers day sermon, I was not only grateful for the blessing of a wonderful mother but was struck by the idea of the kind of mom i want to be when i have family of my own? I started thinking about the little things that I want to do with my kids to hopefully bring them closer to Christ. I want to be someone they can turn to with their struggles as well as their joys. Someone who listens to them, protects them, and loves them. Not overprotective but guarding, holding their best interests at heart. Its an odd thought to be struck by in a way but in the words of Mack I'm "such a girl" so maybe its not to weird. So what traditions do i want to have with my kids?

1. Blessings before bed

My mom and step dad always blessed me before i went to sleep and they still do to this day. Its one of the things i remember most. Praying for the little things that i asked them to and the things that were coming up in my life. I love that they care enough to do that each night.

2. Praying before each meal

Pretty self explanatory on this one. Pray before you eat. Thank God for his provisions and his blessings.

3. Eating meals together on a regular basis

Its a chance to catch up and find out about each others day. If you miss a day or two a week for different activities or things its not the end of the world but that time together is very important to me with my family and when i have a family of my own i want that time with them as well.

4. Daily Devotionals

When we were younger my parents always did this devotional book with us each night. It would have a story, a bible passage, and then some discussion questions. I feel like that really helped me grow in my faith. Learning the basics of applying my faith in my life with my parents by my side was a great thing for me. As we got older we started doing personal devotional books and Bibles by the Bedside and now we spend our own time in the word each night.

5. An Open Home

I want to have a house that my kids feel comfortable inviting their friends too, not to focus on material things but i want them to have fun inviting their friends over. Theres always one or two of your friends that seem to have everyone over all the time and i want my house to be that one. There's a lot of things out there that i want my kids to stay away from and if they and their friends have a house they have fun at then maybe it will help keep them out of trouble. I suppose in a way is so i can monitor what they do as well haha.

6. Love

One of the greatest things that my parents did to encourage my faith was letting me watch the way they treated each other. They loved each other they treated each other and us in a Christ-like manner and it was such a shining example to me and i want to be that to my children as well.

I guess this all fits into my dream for the future. I am so blessed to have the wonderful mother I do, I appreciate all that she does and has done for me. I hope that one day I'll be as good of a mother to my kids as she has been to me.

Prayer in School

Yup thats right. You can pray in school. I was always so worried to ask people if I could pray with them. I thought they'd be offended or just flat out refuse, we're not all that open to things like that here in America. But the stories of some friends of mine after they returned from Haiti really encouraged me to step out a little bit. Why can't I at least offer to pray with them right on the spot? Why do I always offer up a simple "I'll be praying for you"? So I decided that if I had an urge to pray for someone today that I would ask them if i could pray for them right then and there.... Today I prayed with two different people. Its a start. And ya know what? Neither of them seemed to think that was wierd or out of line and they actually thanked me. So Im just gonna throw a challenge out there for you guys. Pray with someone. Out loud. On the spot.

Have a blessed day!

God Help Me

I've come to realize that we are going to encounter things in life that we dont understand. They'll be hard, they'll make us cry and they may very well have us asking why. I had it happen today with one of my very close friends. He means so much to me and i've watched the change in him.... I wont go in to details but by doing the right thing, and the thing that i believe is best for him in the long run i made him very upset with me. He said he'll never talk to me again. I really hope thats not the case but... even if it is I know that God brought him into my life for a reason and I hope that one day he'll realize that I did it because i cared and not to get him in trouble. God never promised us that life would be easy in fact i can assure you that you'll face adversity but he does promise to be with us every step of the way. My thoughts and prayers are with my friend and I hope that one day he'll forgive me and that he'll have the strength and courage to give God control of his life.

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you; declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and future."

A joyful Heart

As i slid into the church pew on sunday i was a little bit distracted and ready to sit out a sermon that i knew would be good, but i still wasn't much in the right mind or rather "heart"set. And then something new, a woman with a walker sat down in the pew in front of us. Little did i know that she was going to teach me an even bigger lesson than the sermon that day. As the worship music started the woman in front of us began to dance, lift her hands, and sway side to side. She didnt care what anyone thought. I looked at her and what i saw in her face caught be off guard. Authentic, Genuine Joy. She was praising God and she didnt care what anyone thought. I glanced around and i saw the smirks on the face of some of the kids sitting in the pew across from us. They didnt get it they didnt see what i saw but it didnt matter. I was transfixed on her. I realized that I wanted to be consumed in the same way she was. I watched her throughout the rest of the service, maybe i should have been paying closer attention to the sermon but i couldn't help it. Everytime the pastor said Jesus or God her face lit up she amened (idk if thats a word) in agreement with the sermon and during the video that played during communion she sang along even though no one else was. It wasn't about attention, in fact it was like for her no one else existed. This was about her praising God. Maybe for me it isnt dancing or speaking outloud my agreement to a sermon but i want to have that passion, i want to burn when i hear the name of Jesus Christ. So thats my prayer, to have a heart that desires God and his will more than anything in life. I hope you guys feel the same way, God bless you!

Confirmed...

Today God confirmed something for me. I love working with youth. Especially Junior High and Im sure that I'll enjoy Senior High more once Im out of it. Some days I feel like nothing I do really makes a difference but getting up today and watching my peers go up and share their stories and their experiences, watching the reactions of some of the kids and just looking around and knowing some of the things that those Junior High students are dealing with... Man I can't even explain what came over me. I really feel like Im being called into Youth Ministry but it can be so discouraging when you feel like you're not having impact but God gave me a glimpse of something today. And i guess the way i'd explain it is hope. Hope that our society, our teens, and the problems they face aren't too far gone, that those who are hurting and those who stray down the wrong path really need someone to love them and show them that there is another way and just be a friend. I can't even believe some of the things that they have to deal with in SEVENTH grade! Its crazy! But wow to watch the people who do step up and just dont let that hold them back astounds me. I had so many of those kids come up to me or talk to me on facebook about the stories that were shared and the biggest thing that came up seemed to be this amazing song that my friend Sam wrote. It really challenged them and made them consider the way they were treating their peers.. and those are there words not mine. I am proud of all the groups that came in and listened and Im so thankful for the other highschoolers i was with and for the courage they have in sharing some really personal things and for the examples that they are to those kids and to me! I guess Im kind of rambling but this is just me trying to put that small feeling that swept over me into words...

Then I got to speak at the 7th grade FCA.... There were kids sitting on the floor! They have the courage to leave there friends once a week, mix up who there hanging out with, and do something that in our society and in middle school culture isn't really very popular and whether you see it or not that is a hard thing to do.. But I'll tell ya something. I have never been so proud of a group of kids in my life. I remember how hard it was in 7th grade to do things even a little bit differently and I am so glad that these are the kids that are soon gonna be leaders and actually already are in their school and soon they'll move on to Jefferson and be leaders there. They are such strong, bold examples of Christ and i know that God is gonna use them in big ways!

Water

Science is absolutely my least favorite subject by far. I mean after we've talked about molecules and how they bond then we find out we have to write a nearly two page paper on, yup you guessed it, water of all things. But ya know what as much as i resented writing that paper on the unique properties of water it really made me think. We had to focus on 6 different characteristics of water and most of those unique properties don't make sense scientifically but ya know what blows my mind? If the properties of water were any different than they were life as we know it here on Earth would cease to exist. Suddenly that little lightbulb above my head went off, okay just kidding, there was no lightbulb but still i realized that we serve an almighty God and a glorious Creator who specifically designed every aspect of our world to support his creation. How amazing is that to think about? All those little things that make life possible, if any one of them was different we wouldn't be able to survive but God worked out all those tiny little details specifically. Pretty cool huh?

God's Greatest Gift

Yesterday was Easter and it never ceases to amaze me that God actually loved us enough to send his only son, perfect and blameless, to die for us on the cross. The son of God died a criminals death to cover over our sins. Death by crucifixion was a very painful death. After the beatings and being whipped and mocked, while Christ hung upon the cross he experienced the worst consequence of our sin. Separation from a perfect God. Bearing all the sins, and the shame of those sins, from everyone who ever had and ever would exist and then having his father turn away from him.... that i can't even imagine. A holy, pure son who had always known God and been one with him and reigned in heaven alongside him suddenly not having that and knowing that he was at that very moment he was separated from God just as we would have been for all eternity had he not taken that from us... That is truly unconditional love and i can't even begin to fathom it. I hope that you all had a blessed Easter. Don't forget to keep in mind the great price that Jesus Christ payed for us to spend eternity in heaven with him.