understanding God through the eyes of their father {or my dad can do ANYTHING!}

By on December 30, 2011 in the heart

The other day my three-year old and I were waiting at a stop sign for the endless stream of traffic so we could turn. Parker being the backseat driver that he is kept yelling at me to “go, go, go!”

Many cars later as I’m trying to explain to him that I can’t go until the cars stop Parker has a ‘great idea’. Daddy can stop the cars cause he is strong. This wasn’t the first time that Parker has suggested that Marty has superhuman powers.

Lately, with everything going on in my life and the times I have found myself screaming out to God that I need Him now more then ever why don’t I look at my Heavenly Father the same way my kids look at their father. With eyes and hearts that only see the good and the strong. The mindset that ‘Daddy can do anything’.

Where in our transition from child to adult do we loose that faith that our fathers are super heros and can do anything including stopping cars going 45+ mph?

I want to be able to look at my Heavenly Father with that same childlike faith not just knowing but full heartedly believing that He can stop cars, He can move mountains, He can make it snow, and He can take the weight off my adult shoulders.

But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” ~ Matthew 19:26

This is my wish for my family this coming New Year that I will learn from my children how to trust in the Lord with all my heart, body and soul. Thus be able to keep that childlike faith alive in not just myself but in my boys as they grow and discover that their own father is not super but human.

To teach and re-instill in them that not only do they have Marty, their father of this earth but they also have another Father who is great, awesome, powerful and The Almighty.

Share some fun stories about your boys today! How do they see their earthly fathers and how can you use this to build their faith in the heavenly Father?

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When the Phone Becomes Your Lifeline… Hang Up

By on November 1, 2011 in a mother's heart, Prayer, the heart, worship

It was a typical day for this housewife with three little ones (now there are four). I was running around like a madwoman, attempting to get all my house work accomplished with the phone to my ear. That phone. My lifeline. I was chatting to whoever would call.

Chatting that turned into too much information.
Chit chat that turned into too much pain and messy lives.
Chatting that turned into slander, gossip and more.

Sometimes I was an active participant with poisonous lips and a faithless heart. Other times I was an inactive participant with poisoned ears and a thankless heart. Either way…I was participating. It was the perpetuating of a vicious cycle of lies, gossip and hate.

Some of this started and even ended innocently enough. Doesn’t most sin start that way? A flirtatious glance. A snide remark. A glance of flesh on screen or print. A little itty-bitty fib. Oh it’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt. How quickly these small things get out of control.

Without even realizing it this had become a part of my life. The phone had become my lifeline. And then came a shifting of things. The beginning of a life that honors and glorifies God.  There was this moment when I realized I could not do poison anymore.

So I hung up the phone.

Have you been there?
Maybe you have this same problem. Perhaps the phone or the internet or the television has become your lifeline to the “real” world. Maybe you spend more time interacting in these spaces than you do living in your home, your neighborhood, or your family. What is just a part of the job, or a part of networking, or a part of community/friendship… has become your sole source of information, energy and relief. You thirst for more and more of this?

Is it time to turn off the TV, switch off the computer or hang up the telephone?

Is it time to learn how to keep company with Jesus… the only true source of life?

When you begin to focus your heart on the things of God instead of the things of the flesh you will find that you are less thirsty for being heard, having to know and wanting to be included. When Jesus is the source of life your spirit will be renewed daily.

This is not an exhaustive list, but perhaps a place to start… how to hang up the phone and learn to keep company with Jesus:

1. Keep company with Jesus in the quiet of your heart, empty and alert before him: set your timer for three minutes and practice silence before prayer, and again several times throughout the day practice three minutes of quiet before God (even if you have to hide in the bathroom).

“Be silent, and know that I am God!” -Psalm 46:10 NLT

2. Keep company with Jesus through Sacrifices of Praise: whispered sacrifices of praise on lips or written lists of gratitude. These will help remind you of the blessings in the midst of the chaos.

“Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.” Hebrews 13:15

3. Keep company with Jesus through Simple Acts of Kindness: whether your neighbor, friend, colleague, family member or stranger on the street, find a simple way to extend love to others.

“And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” -Hebrews 13:16

4. Keep company with Jesus through Scripture: Reading the Bible even in small amounts every day will be of immense benefit to taming boredom, reminding us of God’s truth, keeping our lives focused and offering refreshment to a thirsty heart. Write verses on notecards or post it notes, make artwork, pin these words to your fridge, mirror or hang them on the wall. Memory work is not just for children. The Bible is what teaches us:

    “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” -Romans 15:4

5. Keep company with Jesus through Play: Learn to dance with your children, learn to wrestle on the floor, run across open fields, hike forests and play games together. Take moments every day to stop being dictator mom who cleans the house, cooks the meals, helps with homework, keeps everything organized and more, instead remember to play with your family:

“God – you’re my God! I can’t get enough of you! I’ve worked up such hunger and thirst for God, traveling across dry and weary deserts. So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open, drinking in your strength and glory. In your generous love I am really living at last! My lips brim praises like fountains. I bless you every time I take a breath; My arms wave like banners of praise to you. If I’m sleepless at midnight, I spend the hours in grateful reflection. Because you’ve always stood up for me, I’m free to run and play.” -Psalm 63:1-4, 6-7 The Message

Have you ever had a moment when you knew it was time to hang up the phone?

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How to be a Friend

By on October 9, 2011 in connection with boys, Life Lessons, reflection, the heart, Uncategorized

He’s sitting on the street curb, arms wrapped around suddenly too long legs; face turned toward the house with an unwavering gaze.

He’s been there for an hour; all attempts to come play with me, come play with his sister, and come inside falling flat.

“No, momma. I want to wait. He said he would come outside soon.”

I sigh and sit back down on the porch, struggling with the picture in front of me.

They played once or twice when we first moved in, but the other boy is busy with activities and not home very much.  This is the third time since then that my boy has drummed up the courage to walk over without me, knock on the door, ask politely to play.  This is the third time he’s been told “maybe later” and then sat on the curb and waited to no avail.

The sun starts to set, the air cools, and my boy finally walks home, a determined look on his face.

“I’ll try again tomorrow momma. I’ll try again.  He’s really busy and will need time to just play.”

I’m struck by his confidence and his lack of fear.  I’m amazed at his empathy for someone he barely knows; his willingness to keep pushing forward when the outcome seems dubious.

I start to realize that the little boy growing up before my eyes may not share my emotions for this situation.

I see him waiting and waiting for a friend to come outside and play with him, imagine him feeling the sting of rejection each time the friend never comes outside, worry that doubt and fear might creep in and make him want to avoid the pursuit of community and that friendship.

He sees the need to be patient, to wait it out, to stand firm, to try again, to never give up, to love no matter what.

My boy has always taken after me in this challenging territory of trying to make friends.  We’re both guilty of social anxiety, playing it safe, hiding behind routine and comfort, isolating ourselves because we just didn’t know how to manage the intricate mountains and valleys of how to make a friend.

But I see now that he has grown~ that the millions of ways we tried to prepare our children for this move, including prayer and guidance to remember who they are in Christ~ loved, valued, and built for community~ have been ingrained deeply.

I see now that my boy is not interested in how to make a friend…he’s interested in how to be a friend.

A lesson this momma needed to be reminded of as well.

Have you struggled with friendships, especially when in new places or circumstances? How did you handle it?  

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Love Lessons From a Big Brother {adoption}

By on October 5, 2011 in Adoption, the heart, Uncategorized

Since the beginning of our adoption journey, I’ve been amazed at how God is growing a love for “sister from afar” in our four-year-old’s heart. Something that I thought would be such an abstract concept for a little guy to grasp, has been surprisingly easy for him to understand….easier than some of the adults in our life.

He loves her already. He’s never seen her nor does she have a name known to us, but oh, this brother loves her with the fiercest of loves. It’s evident in the daily rhythm of our home…

He prays for her.

He talks about her.

He includes her in hand-drawn family portraits.

Family Portrait

And that, my friends, is a sign to me that he “gets” it…he REALLY gets it.

This love he has bubbling up inside of him, it’s a natural love. No one had to teach him how to love her. No one told him it was something he should do. It just came like a rushing river, sweeping all of us up in the current and taking us downstream.

May we all love as swiftly and as deeply…

1 Thessalonians 4:9 ~ Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another…

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