Family Devo and a Snow Day Challenge

I am the worst - I am not a fan of the cold and snow and am too quick to tell you how miserable I am. When we woke up to snow this morning (yes, on October 4th!!) I decided that I wasn't going to complain about it today. Sure enough my kiddos came in my room as soon as the sun was up this morning jumping up and down shouting, "It's snowing!" I squashed my thoughts of the extra work the morning would bring - the shoveling, the coats and boots and missing mittens, the roads. I made hot chocolate for them WITH marshmallows, tossed their blankets in the dryer and turned on a worship CD. The first snow of the year is fun for kids - I wasn't going to ruin their joy. As I was sipping my coffee and they were stating out the window a verse came to mind. (Sometimes teachable moments are more for us than our kids) 

"This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalms 118:24 NLT)

I called my kids into the kitchen and set the time for 60 seconds. I told them we had 60 seconds to complain about why we don't like the cold and snow then we would only say good things about it the rest of the day. We took turns then when the timer went off we recited the verse several times together. We talked about how our words are powerful and how we can use them to either build each other up or year each other down. And how complaining all the time can make others around us unhappy. But when we are cheerful and choose to say things that are positive we can encourage people and brighten their day, even change their own bad attitude. As I sent my oldest to school I challenged him to respond with something good or fun about the snow whenever he heard someone complain. Will you take the challenge too?

Have you ever been 'that mom'

Moms are the WORST at comparing ourselves to others. Either we are quick to point out everyone else's flaws or we are consumed with mom guilt and envy. Do you remember before you had kids ever seeing a mom struggling with her children and thinking the worst of her attempts, claiming that you would be so much better when you had kids? Yeah - I think we can all agree that motherhood is a whole lot more challenging that we ever imagined it would be. What we really need is not advice, looks of disgust, or condescending comments... what we need when we are 'that mom' whose kids are in the middle of a melt down is grace. I love verse 4 of this passage! It reminds us that God is 'very kind to you, puts up with you, and deals patiently with you.' The next time you see a mom who is at her whits end, don't just walk by - offer a smile that says you've been there. And when you are the one with the kid who is making a complete fool of himself in the middle of the store remember that this too shall pass and remember how God has dealt with you!

Pray: Jesus thank you first for never giving up on me. For chasing after me when I was still a sinner and for loving me enough to find me. Help me not to judge other moms Lord and at the same time help me to be content. Content with who you have made me to be as a mother, and content with the season of life that I am in with my children. When my children push my buttons remind me of how you have treated me and fill me with patience, kindness and a love that smothers rebellion.

Romans 2:1-4

2 No matter who you are, if you judge anyone, you have no excuse. When you judge another person, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things. 2 We know that God’s judgment is right when he condemns people for doing these things. 3 When you judge people for doing these things but then do them yourself, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? 4 Do you have contempt for God, who is very kind to you, puts up with you, and deals patiently with you? Don’t you realize that it is God’s kindness that is trying to lead you to him and change the way you think and act?

Living with our eyes closed

Have you ever been looking at something and tolerating it for so long that you don't even realize how bad it has gotten? Then someone points it out and like a smack in the face it occurs to you! Paul's description of the fallen world sounds a whole lot like our culture today in America doesn't it? Politics aside, the is no denying that we have some issues. Paul begins this passage by explaining that no person, regardless of when or where they live will have any excuse not to believe in God. We should be able to see God by just looking at creation. When my first son was born my entire faith was changed. The miracle of growing a child within my womb and giving birth was amazing! Within moments of coming into the world, God has placed in your child the instinct and ability to breath, eat and cling to his mother. Amazing! As he grows he watches and learns. As he watches me in a world full of sin and pain what will he learn? How do I react to the things God has called sinful? How do I treat those who sin? Am I the light and love of Jesus Christ in a fallen world that is blind?

Pray: Heaven Father, You have show us your glory every day from the moment that we wake until we lay down again to rest. Open my eyes to the things in my life that I have come to tolerate and accept as a normal part of life. Show me the areas in my life that I have replaced You with an idol - my smart phone, popularity, even my family. As I lead my family, give me wisdom and help me to discern what to do and say in difficult situations. Thank you for saving me and for always loving me not matter what.

God’s Anger at Sin {Romans 1:18-32, NLT}

But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.

Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

Having a Reputation

I love to have play dates for my kids and mom friends! Usually we get together in the morning. One of us will make a light morning snack and someone will bring coffee. While the little ones play we spend the morning gabbing - sharing stories and advice. Paul was writing to a group of believers that he had grown close to. I imagine the women in that community would also find themselves gathered around gabbing as their children played nearby. Paul says that their faith was being talked about in the places that he traveled to. That is a reputation to be proud of! Is your faith as a wife & mother part of your reputation? When your friends talk about you to other people do they remember the way your relationship with Jesus has changed you? Would nonbelievers even notice something different? 

Pray: Loving Father, let my faith be one that gives me a reputation among my friends! Help me to be a woman that shares hope instead of gossips, a wife that trusts instead of nagging and a mother that prays instead of yelling. Help me to always be chasing after you so those who follow will find Jesus.

God's Good News {Romans 1:8-17}

Let me say first that I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith in him is being talked about all over the world. God knows how often I pray for you. Day and night I bring you and your needs in prayer to God, whom I serve with all my heart by spreading the Good News about his Son. One of the things I always pray for is the opportunity, God willing, to come at last to see you. For I long to visit you so I can bring you some spiritual gift that will help you grow strong in the Lord. When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours. I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to visit you, but I was prevented until now. I want to work among you and see spiritual fruit, just as I have seen among other Gentiles. For I have a great sense of obligation to people in both the civilized world and the rest of the world, to the educated and uneducated alike. So I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News. For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” (Romans 1:8-17 NLT)

Finding Purpose in Parenting

Sometimes my day to day life as a stay-at-home-mom can feel lackluster and without much impact beyond the front door. How much significance could changing diapers, making peanut butter sandwiches, and playing on the floor possibly have? Raising children is incredibly important and I know the time I spend with my kids will has lifelong worth...to them. But often I feel like its not enough. Like I am missing out by not working outside of the home. Have you been there? Paul reminds us that we have been given the privilege to tell people everywhere about the love of Christ and what He has done for them! When my children wake up in the morning, do I tell them that God loves them? Do I pray with my oldest before he goes to school each day? Are my ears open when I visit with a friend during a playdate for how she may need to be encouraged? Am I watching for people who need the love of Christ while I run my errands? A smile, an extra hand, a friendly word. When we share that love with the people that we meet during our day we bring glory to his name. 

Mom Prayer:

Jesus, help me to find purpose in parenting. Thank you for the blessing of my children and for the privilege to share your love with them. Give me the courage to tell people everywhere what you have done in their lives. And may the words I speak and things that I do always bring glory to your name. 

{Greetings from Paul, Romans 1:1-7}

This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord. Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority as apostles to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name. And you are included among those Gentiles who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ. I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

Divine Intervention

Sometimes when God moves in your life it is as plain as the nose on your face. Other times it is incredibly subtle and because we become so consumed with life happening around us we don't notice until we look back that He had been moving in a strong and powerful way. I have a special place in my heart for women who have had or have considered having an abortion. I was one of those women.

I was in my 2nd year of college at a conservative Christian school, engaged to the man of my dreams when we found out that I was pregnant. I will never forget the terror that entered my heart when I saw those two little pink lines. I told myself that if the baby's heart had not started beating yet that I would terminate the pregnancy and justified it in my mind allowing the world to silence the voice in my heart screaming that I would be scarred forever. I made an appointment at Planned Parenthood. I remember feeling incredibly guilty and ashamed that I would even be there considering the whole thing. When they called my name, they made my fiance stay in the waiting room. They took me back to a private room where they did an ultrasound to confirm my pregnancy. The screen was turned away from me and I could not see anything she was looking at. She said very little except to confirm that I was pregnant - about 5 weeks - but also that she couldn't see the "embryo" which made her think that I may have and ectopic pregnancy. She explained what that was and that it could be fatal to me if I did not "take care of it in time." She gave me a paper that listed symptoms that my fallopian tube had burst and needed to go to the ER immediately, then made an appointment for me to come back to pick up the medication that I could take to end the pregnancy.

We left the clinic and were headed to have brunch with my Dad when my back started hurting incredibly bad (a symptom of an ectopic pregnancy). Afraid that I was in danger we went to the closest ER. Once checked in the pain had stopped by the doctor was concerned that I may have a blood clot so they ordered a cat scan. They warned me of the risk involved with the test during pregnancy but at that time I was still convinced that I wanted an abortion so I went ahead with the test. When they took me into the room in radiology the nurse again warned me of the risks. The first thing that caught my attention was that the nurse and I had the same first name. Uncommon and a bit of a coincidence but not completely out of the ordinary. Then the nurse completely caught my attention and said something that would change my life forever! She came around the the front of the bed so she was facing me, grabbed my hand and looked me straight in the eyes and said, "I can't help it because I am a mom. Are you sure you want to do this?" I said that I was (refering to the cat scan), and she replied, "I will cover your belly with two leads just to be safe." then continued with the test. A while later the doctor came in to report that they had found nothing wrong but told me to come back if the pain returned. No mention of the risk of an eptopic pregnancy whatsoever. When we left the hospital I grabbed my fiance's hand - he and I both knew that we couldn't go through with an abortion.

God intervined in my life that day and saved the life of my firstborn son!! Looking back I can now see His loving hand so clearly that I get chills. Unexplained back pain - the nurse who shared my name - a maternal plee. When all this happened it had been less than 2 years since my own mom had passed away from cancer. My heart was still broken and I was ultra-sensative to the honest and compassionate words the nurse spoke that day. She was talking about the cat scan, but in my heart God was crying out a plea to the life decision I was about to make.

On this Mother's Day, my heart is overflowing with love for my children, sorrow that my mom is not here to share in our joy, and an eternal gratitude to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who loves all His children even the unborn from the moment they are concieved and will move heaven and earth to keep them safe. My heart aches for the millions of women who are reminded today of children and babies that they have lost, and pray that they too can find rest in the God who loves them and holds them close to His heart, waiting - crying out to them to lay down their burdens and find peace. Happy Mother's Day & may God bless each of you on this special day!

Out of the Rubble

Ten years ago my mom lost her battle with cancer – I was just 18 and barely out of high school. The years that have passed since then have been an emotional roller coaster, but I finally feel like I have come to a place where healing can begin. In sharing my story with you, I hope to bring you some peace in your own struggle with loss.

I had my life all figured out – I had a scholarship to the college of my choice, I was enrolled with classes picked out and bags packed ready to start my college career.  And then, in a single moment all of that went out the window and my entire world turned upside down. My parents divorced when I was 6, and my brother moved to California to live with my Dad –so I was pretty much an only child. Seeds of bitterness and jealousy were planted when my mom was diagnosed with MS (Multiple Sclerosis) the year I started high school. I would never experience my teenage years like any of my friends. While my friends were out, I was at home taking care of my mom. So as you can imagine we didn’t have the best relationship and most of our time was spent fighting. When my mom got cancer, I spent most of my time running away from the hurt I found at home. 

There is one memory that I cling to - It all hit home and became real for me when my mom stopped Chemo. She was put on Hospice and they moved a hospital bed into ourliving room. My mom was on morphine all the time and started sleeping more than she was awake. Until that moment we had never talked about what was going on and we hadn’t really moved on from the hurt that we had thrown at each other. She told me that she was dying and asked me if I was afraid. All I could do wascry and hold onto her – just like a child. We said ‘I love you’ and ‘I forgiveyou’ and hugged each other for a really long time. I needed that! A few days later she went into a coma; I would never hear my mom say those sweet words again.

In the years between then and now, God has been working and holding me up as I fought against a heart consumed with anger, hurt and mostly fear. “Why did this happento me? Am I going to die young too? Will I lose everything I love? I prayed so hard! Why didn’t God answer me? What did I do that was so wrong, that God would punish me this way?” All the time that I was pushing God away He stood strong at my side. God is bigger than all of our anger and he will continue to love us through it! There is a reason we can hold our children in love and forgive them time after time for even the most unreasonable tantrums and hurtful words – God is the author of love and giver of all that is good. God will not leave you in the ruble – even if you created it yourself – He is with you and will continueto bless you until you decide to look upinstead of down, and when you do you will find Him in the mess right beside you holding you up all along.

After years, I came to a point where I was entirely worn down and I had to make a choice. Was I going to continue to allow the past ruin the blessing I had been given today? I decided in my heart that I was no longer going to allow my mind to be filled with lies and past hurts – I realized that it was not God who had done this tome, and I decided that my family meant too much to me for my time with them to be wasted on fear.  Each day since then I remind myself of that and renew my promise that I will choose to live by TRUST and HOPE and THANKFULNESS! Some days are better than others, but now my mind is free of anger and my heart is no longer afraid. In life we are often dealtcards that we wouldn’t have chosen and that even seem unfair. But we have achoice of how we will react – and from one who was in the rubble for much too long, I urge you to cling to your faith and the hope that we find in Christ. I will never know why my childhood turned out the way it did or why my mom had to die so young, but I refuse to waste my life and the time I have left on regrets.

Play with your kids every day. Tell them often how much they mean to you! Pay attention to them when they are talking to you – don’t ever let them feel like your to-do list is more important than they are. Cuddle. Make memories together and write them down.  Take too many pictures.  Say I’m sorry, forgive quickly, and say ‘I love you’ even if you think they already know. Don’t fight about the small stuff. Don’t lose sight of the power of unconditional love. Never take tomorrow for granted! But most importantly, trust in the hope we have of eternal life found in Christ!