Meditate on These Things

This morning I sat with my five year old while he was watching television. Suddenly, the network was having what we grown-ups call "technical difficulties". (Children call it "the-world-is-coming-to-an-abrubt-halt", by the way). Something was wrong with the audio, as in the program went completely silent. We switched the audio selection to the Spanish option (which in this case, for some reason, wasn't actually Spanish, but an option for the visually impaired- so the program played with the usual audio plus a running narrative of everything taking place). My son was happy with this, even though I kept telling him to check if the regular audio was working. Thankfully, it starting working properly again after a few minutes.

Well.

Apparently we hadn't seen (or heard) the last of the issues from our (usually) trusty public television station. The signal started getting interrupted, and we saw the digital equivalent of static for several minutes.

"Mom, it isn't working! I'm never, ever going watch TV for the rest of the day!" he declared, with tears nearly welling up in his eyes. (He could totally win an Oscar someday).

In my mommy-wisdom, I quickly suggested, "but think about all the times you watch TV and it's not messed up."

In that moment, I saw myself in him, and recognized all the times I have had the same reaction to my husband over silly things (and of course, the not silly things too!)

"Oh-my-word-our-marriage-is-in-serious-danger-how-could-you-make-such-an-awful-mistake-and-believe-that-we-could-still-be-happily-married-how-DO-you-live-with-yourself?" (Ahem. I never claimed to be totally mature. At least not publicly.)

God is always challenging me to look for the positive in the situation (I confess, I sometimes have trouble with this one). To keep track of the good things my husband does, they ways he exhibits good decision making skills, and whatnot. I think as humans, we usually have the tendency to focus on the negative and let it paint the whole picture for us. To view the world through smoke colored spectacles. But if we'll regularly take notice of the good, we will find that it far exceeds the bad, or unpleasant. We should have logged in our memory all the great things they've done and when they make a mistake (like we often do! Hello.) it should be no big deal. That's just one reason why the Bible instructs us to meditate on good things.

"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things."  Philippians 4:8 (NKJV)

Today, I'm challenging you (and me) to pause for a moment and take note of the "true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous and praiseworthy" things your husband has done and quickly overlook the momentary static. Think about all the times your marriage is right!

Do you struggle in this area too? Let's start here. What is something admirable about your husband that you'd like to share?

Linking up with:

A Day in the Life

I interrupt this (unintentional!) blogging hiatus to bring you a day in our life! I'm linking up with Simply Rebekah- she says, "The concept is simple, but the results are awesome. Take one picture every hour, for one day, and an unique hour by hour snapshot of your day is created." 

Oh boy, this was a hard one for me to remember! I finally left myself a sticky note reminder to take pictures, but then quickly forgot to take them every hour. I remembered yesterday to take pictures and ended up having to set an alarm on my phone to remind me every hour (mommy brain, anyone?). 

Yeah, so I stared at this reminder near my bed for about a week, and then my husband asked "why does this say to take hourly pics?" Ha ha. *Ahem* (Yes, that's my handwriting. No, it's not normally so chicken-scratchy).

This is my 10:00 am picture. Making oatmeal for breakfast. We've been getting up pretty late recently. I think I can attribute that to me weaning off of caffeine. It has done wonders for my mood and overall well-being, but I think as my body is adjusting, I'm just sleeping as much as possible. Lest anyone be jealous, I'm usually awake super early to make sure my husband gets off to work, and then take a while to actually get back to sleep since the baby normally wakes up for a feeding during that time. Since my babies stay asleep pretty late, I'm afforded the opportunity to catch up on my rest!

11:00 am- My five year old and three year old got balloons from the movie night at our church the night before. Oh, balloons! So much fun. Until two children are playing a round of "hit the person with the balloon" and only one child knows about it!

12:00 pm- I had gotten the baby down for his nap, and now sneaking in some quiet time while PBS Kids is still on. Normally, I would choose to do this earlier in the morning, but everyone pretty much wakes up at the same time right now. (See 10:00 am photo).

1:00 pm- Lunch for the little ones! Peanut butter and jelly, and sun butter and jelly, respectively. I reheated some leftovers for my lunch.

2:00 pm- By this point, the older two children and I had read our children's devotional together, and then we began reading Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. We are doing Five in a Row for school, but still trying to find our "groove" with that. This was our first time reading this particular book, so obviously we aren't going to read it five times in a row this week! (I had to include a picture of the next page, since it so aptly described the scene in our home a few minutes before {minus the finished cellar, of course}- brother and sister had gotten into a squabble of some kind, then when I rounded them up for our devotional time and book reading, everyone calmed down, thankfully!)

3:00 pm- We were still in school mode. Brother was playing with his number cards and counting with the glass gems, and sister was playing with the letter cards. Baby brother was exploring the living room, and when I found that he had made his way under the futon, he was kicking excitedly and could not sit still for a good picture. (You'll notice that apparently, sister had forgotten to get dressed today. Thankfully, mama is secretly a fashionista and also handy with Microsoft Paint. Hee hee!)

4:00 pm- Trying to get this guy to sleep. He paused for a picture, naturally. Then, it was off to the shower for me (I know, I know! You just gotta get them when you can around here!) and time to get ready to go out.

5:00 pm- Off to one of the five and under programs at the library (the baby didn't fit in the photo, he's actually next to my daughter). I'm so happy they added some evening sessions. Did I mention mornings have been rough for us lately?

6:00 pm- Busy at the library- forgot to take a picture!

7:00 pm- About to finish up at the library, but still had time for a quick puppet show before the baby was D-O-N-E!

8:00-11:00 pm consisted of putting the baby down for one more nap, cooking dinner, refereeing the five year old and three year old, greeting the husband as he arrived home from work, eating dinner, and getting the big kids to bed. Needless to say, I completely spaced on the pictures!

11:30 pm-ish- Nursing the baby to sleep for the night while getting "caught up" on Facebook.

12:00 am- All's quiet in the house. Time for this mama to go to bed!

And there it is! A day in my life. What do YOU do all day? Don't forget to click over to Simply Rebekah to take a peek into some other people's days!

My Salvation Story

Wow, is this ever a long time coming! (Sort of). See, when Audra first announced that she would be starting Salvation Stories Saturday, I just knew that I needed to share my salvation story. I was eager to get to a place where I could sit down and write the thing (you know, in between diaper changes, feedings, and trying to get some semblance of order in the home and our life after our latest arrival), and when I did, I asked if I could share. I kept telling her, "I'm working on it...it's coming!" for the longest time (about two months, actually), and I finally finished it.

I hope that you will be encouraged by my story, and that you will also check out the other stories in the Salvation Stories Saturday series at Rediscovering Domesticity!

* * *

I hear a lot of believers talk about their Christian upbringing. I can't really relate to that, because that's not how it went for me. As a young child, I didn't know much about Jesus. Sure, we celebrated Christmas and Easter, but never really attended services together. Click here to read the whole story!

The Sower

Last week, I dove back into God's Word for the first time in a while. With babies, homeschooling, chores and all the other things that go along with being a stay at home mom of three children five and under, it's really easy to "justify" not spending time in the Word.

I fought for this time of reconnecting with God through the inspired Words that so many people struggled over centuries to put into print (for me! And you!) It has been a battle since I have not yet mastered the art of waking up long before everyone in my house. (Note to self: make this happen!)

So with the baby napping, and the older two children semi-occupied with toys or a television show, I would sit, pen in hand, ready to underline Words that ministered grace to my soul and spirit.

Then one day, things got hectic, and I didn't get around to my new routine. By early afternoon, there was frustration, raised (angry) voices (okay, just one...mine!), and general chaos. Nothing had gone the way I planned for that day, and I began to wonder, "is God punishing me for not reading my Bible today?!"

"Is God punishing me for not reading my Bible today?!"

The immediate answer I "heard" in my spirit: "NO!"

Right after that, I was reminded of the parable of the sower in Mark 4:

 

3“Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

9And He said to them, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

What's that got to do with me? (I know you English majors are rejoicing right now! Ha.) Well...read on...

14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble. 18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, 19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

Could it be that my heart is like the wayside? Or the stony ground? Now, I'm not generally one to blame the devil for all the mishaps of life. Sometimes, it's just me. But Satan really doesn't want the Word to take root in my life. Oh, God has got me! No doubt about that. But Satan wants to do everything in his power to make sure that the Word doesn't influence my actions, my relationships, my world (and all the people in it).

If I'm not busy tending the soil of my heart, the birds of the air would like nothing better than to steal away the seeds that have been planted. Distractions come. Children misbehave. Plans unravel. First and foremost, I need to make sure I'm guarding and protecting the precious Words God sows in my heart. Prayer waters them, and acting on the Word (James 1:22-23) tills the soil, until slowly but surely, the soil becomes good ground.

So, no. God does not punish me for neglecting His Word. But I can't bear fruit for Him if I am not diligent to seek after His Words and put them into practice. The enemy sure would like to distract me, sometimes right away, and I need to be aware and know that he likes to sneak in little attacks along the way. But, man! Sometimes it's hard to see through it to the bigger picture.

How about you? Have you been able to work through the stony ground to make it good, fertile ground for God's Word? 

Linking up here:

What I'm into this Month- August 2012 Edition

Oh, August! Where did you go? This month has been a fast paced month for me for sure. We started homeschooling, and in addition to all my other responsibilities, it has really kept me busy. So, I haven't had a lot of time for blogging, though I have started several posts. I hope to get around to finishing them in the coming week or so!

A play-dough fish made by my boy!

On My Nightstand- Same as last month! (Grace Based Parenting). I haven't been getting very much reading done lately. I don't know what to make of that. Definitely going to be more purposeful about reading next month! Which leads me to my next point:

Want to Read- A bunch of other titles. All these unsuspecting books I bring into the house that are promptly neglected. So much to offer, so unappreciated. I've got to do something about that.

TV Show Worth Watching- Well...I've turned into quite the lover of reality TV. Especially the ones about big families. I started watching Jon and Kate Plus Eight streaming on Netflix, and ordered the discs of 18 Kids and Counting (or is it 19 now?) I'm quite impressed at how they handle it all. I've been taking mental notes. Even though our family is not considered a "large family", I can still operate in the wisdom I take away from watching these families in action!

(And lest you think I just sit around watching television all day, I watch most of this stuff in segments when I'm feeding the baby or trying to get him down for a nap or what have you. I used to be able to use this time for reading, but this baby is SO wiggly!)

Movie I've Seen- You know, I still haven't ordered a single movie from Netflix. I keep starting them online, and then lose interest. Terrible! Ha ha! So unless you count overhearing (and catching bits and pieces of) the first two Toy Story movies in a seeming continuous loop being played in the living room, I haven't seen any movies this month.

In My Kitchen- Food. Maybe a little too much coffee (though it might be a good thing...I think this is the briefest "What I'm into this Month" post I've ever done!)

I'm starting to feel the need to begin the GAPS diet again. I hope to stay on it for more than a day and a half this time! But really, I would love to see some changes in foods I can eat while breast feeding (as in the ability to eat more without affecting my little guy). Though, of course it all goes back to me...my gut health is what's causing the food challenges we've been having. (At least that's what I've come to believe).

Newest Blog Read- I almost thought I didn't have a new blog read this month, but then I remembered a dear friend of my husband's family (now my family, of course) Dena, has started a blog called Corkin' the Crazy. She tells the best stories! I can't wait to see what the Lord will do with her writing. Pay her a visit and welcome her to the blogging community? I know her stories will bring a smile to your face!

What I'm Looking Forward to Next Month- Cooler temperatures? Please? I might even take the family outside. A new month of home school (more about that in another post!) And more blogging, I hope!

What are YOU into this month? Share in the comments, or leave a link to your blog if you already shared there!

The Best Prayer I've Ever Prayed for My Marriage

Long ago (okay, probably just a little more than a year ago) I found myself where many wives find themselves: with a bad case of "baby fever". We had two children at the time, and after our second, we agreed that was all we could handle. (I think we thought we really meant it, too!) But, somewhere along the line since my daughter was born almost two years prior, I felt that God changed my heart concerning our family size. I was beginning to feel like we needed to try to add one more, and of course my husband was not moved by my rationale of "I don't know why, I just think we should." (So typical!)

So, here we were in this place of disagreement. It seemed to last for a few months. I kept re-approaching the subject, to no avail. (He kept reminding me of all the reasons we thought we were done). I struggled with submitting to him, I pleaded with God to change him, or to give me some way to get my point across...something!

Finally, I had an "a-ha!" moment. I can't remember exactly how this came to me (did I read it somewhere?) but I had the notion to pray that our desires would line up with God's desires for our family.

"Lord, I ask that You would cause Your desires to become our desires, and that we would come into agreement with Your plan."

Now, if you read a few posts back, you'll know how this turned out for us (it happened pretty quickly too, I might add). I was scared to pray this way, because that meant surrendering my will and accepting God's will (okay, admittedly, in this scenario, more often than not, His plan is for growth, but still).

How would praying that prayer impact our lives in other instances?

• A relocation
• Finances
• Educational choices for our children

The list could go on and on. The point is, that not only would we be in agreement with our husband, but our marriage and family would be consecrated to God! There's no way we could go wrong with that!

Linking up w/

Bottles, Barbecue, the Bookstore and Blessings

"So, I just need you to know, that when you wake up, Grammy will be here, and Mommy and Daddy are going to go out. We'll be gone for a little while, but Grammy will take care of you. Brother and Sister will be here too. Also, Mommy put some milk in something called 'a bottle' for you. It will be plenty until Mommy gets home. You'll drink it pretty much the same way your normally drink your milk...well...sort of."

He seemed to understand.

As soon as my husband got home from work, we were out the door, not sure of how much time we'd be afforded to reconnect. Not only are we celebrating six years of marriage today, but last night was the first date night we've had since late in my pregnancy. (I tried to "tough it out" til the end, but even getting in and out of the car was major drama past 36 weeks or so!) So, it was the first night out for us since our youngest blessing came on the scene. (He is two months old today!)

We decided we'd go out for a quick bite to eat, and then go from there (we needed to be able to pack up and run in case the baby just wasn't having it). Barbecue seemed simple enough and since they had their ingredients listed online (I knew what I could safely eat), that's where we ended up. Plus, they have really good iced tea. That's important! Also, I think I ate a half cup of barbecue sauce...no kidding! Anyway, we finished our food, and after checking in with Grammy, my husband looked at me and said "what next?" I suggested going to browse at the bookstore (one of our go-to date night activities), so we were off to our favorite used bookstore.

We walked into the store, and it was like seeing an old friend. Except our friend had gotten a "facelift" since the last time we met. They had done some remodeling in recent months, apparently. Completely exciting. We ended up finding some old VHS movies for the kids for fifty cents a piece, and my husband hit up the clearance CD's. I also found a couple of marriage books (one of which I've been interested in reading for a while), all for really cheap. (You'll probably see us on an episode of "Hoarders" in the near future. The bookstore does that to us. Just sayin'.)

In case that wasn't enough romance (hee hee), we stopped by a local retail store for some diapers and a few "back to school" essentials. Then we just drove for a while and chatted about our future, and our hopes to be able to move into a bigger place soon. It was nice to get away and be able to talk without interruption for a while. And I realized that getting out is SO essential, not only for our marriage, but for me personally. (And all the mommies said "amen!")

To my delight, when we returned home, I learned that my little guy drank five ounces out of his bottle with no issues (my daughter never took a bottle- so I was a little nervous that he might do the same). He was asleep on Grammy's lap and the older two were excited to see us. Later that evening, my daughter looked at me and said, "I missed you, Mom!"

As we start a new year of marriage, I realize once again just how blessed we are. God is showing us great things (as always) as we continue to trust Him. That, I believe is the key to being happy and content in marriage...and really life in general: Trust Him! I know it sounds so cliche, but it's true!

So, Happy Anniversary to us! And happy two month birthday to our little guy!

What are you celebrating today?