Sunday, May 31, 2009

Dedication

Today we went to a christening (infant baptism) for a friend's baby. That was tough...a definte reminder of not having a church family to dedicate Hope in.

So after some mis-directed anger and a few tears, I got over it. More like, God reminded me that Hope isn't my child or even our child, but God's.

There is no reason we can't invite to our house to dedicate Hope to God. It's not the place, it's the people--us committing to raise Hope in the Lord, and our friends promising to help us and pray for her (and us).

It definitely makes all these things more work....but maybe that's a good thing.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Word Filled Wednesday

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Psalm 119:105


Henry got a Bible of his own on Sunday. Tonight I asked Henry to find a book to read...and he picked his Bible. He really wanted to read Ephesians, chapter 4 (this is the exact passage he read). I'm pretty sure he picked the passage from a Bibleman reference, but it is soooo cool to see God working in your child's life!

Lord, thank you for working in Henry's heart and giving him the desire to read your Word for himself. Thanks that you promise that it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it (Isaiah 55:11). Help us to nurture that, and thanks for letting us see it.

See more Word Filled Wednesdays HERE!

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Training 'em up

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6

I'm excited that my peas are doing well--they taste so much better straight out of the garden! Part of growing peas includes training them onto a trellis. As they grow, they send out little suckers, that upon contact, wrap themselves around whatever they're touching--netting, a stick, another plant, even themselves. If they anchor to some kind of trellis, they'll be more upright, bear more fruit, and avoid diseases. When they wrap around themselves, it gets to be a tangled mess.

Maybe parenting is a bit like gardening--you plant the seeds and watch them grow, and pray they bear fruit. You offer scaffolding, untangle them from themselves, and encourage them to attach to the trellis and pray for strength and health.

We ordered a Bible for Henry. He's reading really well (He's read "James and the Giant Peach" and "How to Eat Fried Worms" in school). It's time we give him his own trellis. I'm looking forward to studying with him this summer!

Thanks for growth in our garden and in our children, Lord. Let them attach to You.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Happy Mother's Day!

To all the moms out there--Happy Mother's Day! It really is the toughest job you'll ever love.

To those who have suffered miscarriages or are experiencing infertility--((((Hugs)))).

To those of you who want to be moms someday--enjoy today, and say thanks to your own mom, whether you have a great relationship or not.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Baby food

Chiquita has started eating baby food. It's pretty messy--I think she's wearing more than she's consuming. she's on the single flavors--rice cereal, oatmeal, peas, beans. It takes her three meals to finish one jar (I only take out a tablespoon at a time).

I started a new Bible study a couple of weeks ago, and I feel like I'm back to baby food--pre-chewed. I'm learning interesting things, but I'm bristling at the format--I'd rather be inducting myself, and videos are just awkward. I'm also feeling like I must not be a woman--the subtheme is "It's hard to be a woman _______" and the issues discussed so far (in another woman's shadow, when beauty is a treatment and in a mean world) just don't fit where I'm at.

But what I miss mose is prayer. We don't pray at all, and it just feels empty. Other than the women I already knew, I don't even know anyone's names, let alone how I can pray for them.

What I need is a life group--where the emphasis is more on praying for each other. God's shown me the direction my study time should take, and Esther isn't really it.

(And it doesn't help that I feel like a distraction, since Hope is with me and she's starting to fade by that time of day.)

So do I stick it out or try to organize a prayer group? I don't want to take people away from their home churches, and I do know a couple of other women that are "church homeless" that I could invite.

So if you could pray for me, then let me know what you hear, that would be great...

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

30 Day Shred

A while ago, I was looking for an intense, 20-30 minute workout to help me lose the last 10 lbs of baby fat/flab, and I found the 30 Day Shred. It sat on my shelf for a while, but I got around to trying it. It's definitely a work out!

Vicki at Virtue Alert has organized a bunch of people who are shredding together. One of the other blogs I read, The Preacher's Wife, is also participating, and her post about not phoning it in on the spiritual realm struck me.

I can either let myself wallow in self pity about our church homelessness state, and drift aimlessly. Or I can seek out what God has for us in this time.

So besides stepping up the physical 30 day shred, I'm going on a spiritual 30 day shred, starting next Sunday, May10. I haven't figured out what exactly the spiritual shred is going to look like, but I know that God has already laid on my heart the persecuted church--people who not only don't have a church home, but can't publicly seek one.

Lord, I don't want to phone in my spiritual life. Show me what steps to take to get into spiritually better shape.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

God is not Burger King

Today I realized how wrong I've been for praying what I've been praying. "I want a church home, God. One with good worship. One where Mr. Theophilus and I can use our gifts. With a good Kid's program. Here, not somewhere else. And I'd like it now."

I forgot that God isn't Burger King--you can't special order your life, and it doesn't arrive in less than five minutes.

We went to church at the Mother Church of the Donut Church today. Every time we go, the message is spot on, and our kids end up being the last ones in Kid's Church because we've gone up for prayer. Once again it was right on--you know it's a God thing when someone you don't know points to exactly what the issues are.

They're starting a series on 1 Peter. The message today focused on how to pray in adversity, how to not be tossed around by your circumstances. The answer was to pray NOT for the answer you've generated, but to pray for wisdom and the fruits of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self control) using Scripture itself.

That's my root problem--I'm so focused on our circumstances that I've forgotten the relationship.

There are millions of Christians around the world who don't have church homes, who not only don't have a home, but live in fear of persecution.

Again, it's not about me. If I get my eyes off me and my circumstances and focus on God, everything will fall into place...church home or not.