Before you read this married, unmarried, young or old... This is a part of a letter that a mother wrote her young unwed daughters preparing them for the greatest role taht someday they might do. Hope it can touch you in some way as you may be preparing, or in this role of a lifetime.
Remember to be a helper to your husband. Stand behind your man with prayer, encouragement, and trust. Honor him, bless him and serve him as unto the Lord. He will thrive before God in his environment. As he grows, your children will grow, and your cup will be so full it will overflow into the lives of others.
When you are peeved with him for some silly offense, remember you are cutting off the prayer line. Don't allow hurt feelings to fester and disease the relationship. Be careful, thankful and ready to forgive. (ah..insert sigh..a big struggle for me) Your children WILL watch you. If you show disregard, disapproval, anger, irritation, or dishonor to your husband, it will open the door for the children to do the same-not only to their father, but, in a greater degree, to you. In Proverbs it speaks of this very thing: "Every wise woman buideth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands(Prov. 14:1)."
Don't get caught up in pouring your life into a good cause- even the rearing of a large family. Pour your life into knowing and serving the Savior and seeking that every life you touch be touched with the knowledge of forgiveness in the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
(taken from a beautiful letter Debi Pearl wrote to her three young daughters)
A beautiful reminder to me of what God desires for me as I attempt do my job to the best of my ability. God is so good, and He continues to prove himself not only faithful but just plan GOOD!
Falling in love with Jesus is so easy to do, if we just allow ourselves to do it.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Saturday, January 16, 2010
You are so good to me..
Many times when I truly reflect on God's faithfulness and goodness, all that I can seem to mutter is Thank you. The tears that roll down my face are those of disbelief that He sent His only Son to die for me...ME. God is just and merciful, He hears the cries of those suffering, He wants to give them new life.
Psalms 34:
15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their cry;
16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,
to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
19 A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the LORD delivers him from them all;
20 he protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.
21 Evil will slay the wicked;
the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
22 The LORD redeems his servants;
no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.
Praying for those who need Him especially the people of Haiti.
Psalms 34:
15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their cry;
16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,
to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
19 A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the LORD delivers him from them all;
20 he protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.
21 Evil will slay the wicked;
the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
22 The LORD redeems his servants;
no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.
Praying for those who need Him especially the people of Haiti.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Life Lessons from Birth..by Jenny
My sister in law, Jenny, just wrote this on her blog. For those of you who don't know her she is an amazing, God fearing women. I was so encouraged by this letter she wrote, I wanted to share it. Please fill free to share it with anyone else. BTW, the imagery really does work, I rested in His arms during my home birth with Finch and it was wonderful. Not many people say that about birth..she's taught me a lot.
You can read up on her blog at http://menafamily.blogspot.com/
Life Lessons from Birth
It's been a week since my little Jedidiah was born and I've had some time to reflect on his birth. Being my 6th birth (5th without pain medication or medical intervention, 4th home birth), I've learned a few things about how to get through the pain and difficulty that birth naturally brings. And it seems that each experience keeps getting better and more manageable. This is not because of anything special in me or that I am some sort of supermom. Not at all!!! What I have learned is this: "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matt. 19:26) I've come to wonder how anyone can birth without Jesus!
Having experience as a childbirth assistant I have helped many women find ways to make the pain of childbirth manageable. There are lots of ideas and helpful information out there! But through personal experience I have come to believe that it is only when we rest in Jesus that we have the kind of joyful, God-honoring birth that He desires us to have.
So what does this look like? Here's my experience with Jed's birth. As labor intensifies the contractions feel like a tight band wrapped around my pelvis with strong cramping all along the front radiating around through my lower back and even down into my thighs. I imagine the giant, powerful, loving hands of my Creator God wrapped around my hips squeezing the baby down further and further with each contraction. This beautiful imagery helps me to relax and surrender my body over to Him to do His work in my body and bring my baby to me. I trust the wisdom of His perfect design when He created my body to do this work of birthing this baby. I think about how He has secretly fashioned and formed this baby in my womb all these months and has known my baby which only His eyes have seen. He is now working in my body to bring the baby and reveal His special gift to me!
As the contractions intensify the only thing I must do is surrender more to my Creators hands, relaxing my whole body and resting in Him. This seems opposite of what I want to do. It seems the natural tendency in response to pain is to tense up with fear and worry. But instead I must respond with more trust and surrender and completely relax my body. When I do this the pain begins to subside. When I fear and tense up, the pain intensifies.
The morning I went into labor a friend of mine gave me a verse that helped me so much through my labor. Isaiah 26:3, "He will keep you in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee because he trusts in Thee." With each contraction I would whisper this verse or pray, "Jesus, bring the baby," or sing praise to Him. We listened to worshipful music in the background. Steven was there helping me, he would sing to me about Jesus. It was peaceful, restful, worshipful. This was Jesus' work. And oh how beautiful, as He brought the reward out of my body and into my arms. Oh the joy! A beautiful baby boy! I am always overwhelmed by the goodness and love of my Father to give me yet another amazing love gift! I am so undeserving and it truly overwhelms me.
As I have reflected on Jed's birth and the things I have learned, the Lord has shown me how these lessons apply not only to birth but to all of life. Birth is just the beginning! I've heard it said (and have said it myself) that birth is the hardest work you'll ever do. I've come to see things differently. The work that comes after birth is the most challenging- raising these little ones day in and day out, teaching, training and disciplining them so they will know, love and follow Jesus! The pain a woman experiences as part of the curse continues through all of motherhood. And the natural tendency of our flesh in response to these trails and "pains" of life is to tense up in fear, anxiety or frustration. But just like birth, this is Jesus' work! He will do it in and through us if we let go, surrender and trust in Him. "He will keep you in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee because he trusts in Thee." ( Isaiah 26:3) The more life hurts, the more we must trust and relax. "Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:6)
We must fight against our natural response and train ourselves to respond in trust until we are totally surrendered to Christ, letting go of our fears and worries about the future and rest in perfect peace in Jesus. He is the Creator God who not only designed a woman's body for birth, but also designed and planned every day of our lives before there was even one of them! (Ps. 139:16)
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding..." Prov.3:5
No matter what you are going through in life right now, remember "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Mt. 19:26) As we trust in Him in the midst of the trial or "pain", God can transform our experience into a peaceful, restful, worshipful one. And oh how beautiful, when He brings us through it and we see the reward of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives! It makes me wonder, how can anyone live without Jesus?
You can read up on her blog at http://menafamily.blogspot.com/
Life Lessons from Birth
It's been a week since my little Jedidiah was born and I've had some time to reflect on his birth. Being my 6th birth (5th without pain medication or medical intervention, 4th home birth), I've learned a few things about how to get through the pain and difficulty that birth naturally brings. And it seems that each experience keeps getting better and more manageable. This is not because of anything special in me or that I am some sort of supermom. Not at all!!! What I have learned is this: "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matt. 19:26) I've come to wonder how anyone can birth without Jesus!
Having experience as a childbirth assistant I have helped many women find ways to make the pain of childbirth manageable. There are lots of ideas and helpful information out there! But through personal experience I have come to believe that it is only when we rest in Jesus that we have the kind of joyful, God-honoring birth that He desires us to have.
So what does this look like? Here's my experience with Jed's birth. As labor intensifies the contractions feel like a tight band wrapped around my pelvis with strong cramping all along the front radiating around through my lower back and even down into my thighs. I imagine the giant, powerful, loving hands of my Creator God wrapped around my hips squeezing the baby down further and further with each contraction. This beautiful imagery helps me to relax and surrender my body over to Him to do His work in my body and bring my baby to me. I trust the wisdom of His perfect design when He created my body to do this work of birthing this baby. I think about how He has secretly fashioned and formed this baby in my womb all these months and has known my baby which only His eyes have seen. He is now working in my body to bring the baby and reveal His special gift to me!
As the contractions intensify the only thing I must do is surrender more to my Creators hands, relaxing my whole body and resting in Him. This seems opposite of what I want to do. It seems the natural tendency in response to pain is to tense up with fear and worry. But instead I must respond with more trust and surrender and completely relax my body. When I do this the pain begins to subside. When I fear and tense up, the pain intensifies.
The morning I went into labor a friend of mine gave me a verse that helped me so much through my labor. Isaiah 26:3, "He will keep you in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee because he trusts in Thee." With each contraction I would whisper this verse or pray, "Jesus, bring the baby," or sing praise to Him. We listened to worshipful music in the background. Steven was there helping me, he would sing to me about Jesus. It was peaceful, restful, worshipful. This was Jesus' work. And oh how beautiful, as He brought the reward out of my body and into my arms. Oh the joy! A beautiful baby boy! I am always overwhelmed by the goodness and love of my Father to give me yet another amazing love gift! I am so undeserving and it truly overwhelms me.
As I have reflected on Jed's birth and the things I have learned, the Lord has shown me how these lessons apply not only to birth but to all of life. Birth is just the beginning! I've heard it said (and have said it myself) that birth is the hardest work you'll ever do. I've come to see things differently. The work that comes after birth is the most challenging- raising these little ones day in and day out, teaching, training and disciplining them so they will know, love and follow Jesus! The pain a woman experiences as part of the curse continues through all of motherhood. And the natural tendency of our flesh in response to these trails and "pains" of life is to tense up in fear, anxiety or frustration. But just like birth, this is Jesus' work! He will do it in and through us if we let go, surrender and trust in Him. "He will keep you in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee because he trusts in Thee." ( Isaiah 26:3) The more life hurts, the more we must trust and relax. "Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:6)
We must fight against our natural response and train ourselves to respond in trust until we are totally surrendered to Christ, letting go of our fears and worries about the future and rest in perfect peace in Jesus. He is the Creator God who not only designed a woman's body for birth, but also designed and planned every day of our lives before there was even one of them! (Ps. 139:16)
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding..." Prov.3:5
No matter what you are going through in life right now, remember "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Mt. 19:26) As we trust in Him in the midst of the trial or "pain", God can transform our experience into a peaceful, restful, worshipful one. And oh how beautiful, when He brings us through it and we see the reward of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives! It makes me wonder, how can anyone live without Jesus?
Monday, January 4, 2010
A few Christmas Photos...
Christmas Eve...new pjs! Both our families had the tradition of new pjs on Christmas Eve. Danny's family also got ornaments, so we are carry that tradition on.
Christmas morning, ALL Townes wanted for "Jesus's Happy" was a white Roy Rogers Hat!! He got it!
I think this might be our only family picture. Um, haven't even showered!
Kids and their stockings, Fun!
She loved opening the presents and eating the paper!!
Here's a cute one at my brother's house Christmas Eve. Matching!!
Aunt Amy and Finch, she should come by more often the kids really enjoy her!
How sad is this..It was Finch's first Christmas, and I have about 15 not so good pictures to show for it. What in the world happened to taking pictures? And what is it that my husband does????
Or maybe this is why no pictures were taken on both holidays...Townes got sick Christmas Eve, so we sleep with us..and then Danny got sick..poor boys! This has been a yucky, sick winter!
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