by tascha |
This is not exactly a “spiritually or Biblically-inspired” post.
It is more a “I wonder if anyone else has ever thought about it this way” post.
And it’s been sitting in my “draft” folder for a while now…
I had a conversation with a sweet new friend last night that prompted me to truly articulate this thought I’ve had for a while now:
Somedays, I truly feel as though motherhood may have given me a split personality {and I am not trying to belittle those with actual mental disabilities here!}.
I realize my children need ME.
But they need ME differently among them. They are each so individual and unique. Yes, I must be consistent in rules and discipline; but things they need, things they forget and need me to remind them of, things they have not yet learned, are ALL different for each one.
My poor oldest child, she is nearly a young woman, and yet I continue to remind her of things that, really, only her younger sisters need help with. I know that frustrates her. She’s so grown up and the others are still “babes”.
My middle daughter has some food and environmental allergies that sometimes means our whole family just misses out on stuff like… peanut-butter pie… because I just can’t chance it being around and her wanting a taste or being sad that she can’t have it. And she’s trying to grow up as quickly as her big sister, but she really isn’t there yet.
My third… a whirlwind of a girl. She plunges head-long into EVERYTHING she does. She has gusto! 🙂 And thinks very little, if ever, before acting. But her little heart is so tender and pliable, I must be restrained when calling a warning at her to not sit on her brother, or some other situation that could cause harm to one or multiple people. lol. She will just loose it, and the whole situation will disintegrate before our eyes.
My youngest is a boy. After 3 girls we have a boy. ‘Nuff said.
To those with more children, I am not trying to ‘prove’ my life is as hard or harder than yours… just stating some observations. 🙂
And then, my husband needs a WIFE, not a mother {he already has an awesome mother!}. And apart from “child of God”-which is my identity at its core- this is where I find my primary role in life – to be the best wife for him. If I’m an awesome mom and a lousy wife, I’ve not become what God created me to be!
And I do have a few friends… who like to speak to me as adult in my own right, not as a mother or a wife….
And so, maybe this is a little bit to be encouraging spiritually
… I need God! You need God! 🙂
If God does not help us in relating to all the most important people in our lives, we are a people most undone!
If I cannot be Christlike to my own family, how can I expect those outside my family to see Christ in me?
I’m not saying I loose it every day, but there is at least a portion of most days where I struggle really hard not to! And there have even been a few hours all strung together that I feel I {MIGHT} have it all together–HAHAHAHA. nope. not really!
And only bending my knee before His throne will help me be “ME”–a child of God–to those around me, whether I feel SPLIT or not. 🙂
by tpiatt
When I was was young there were a few circumstances that occurred that turned my world on its head.
Now that yet another situation has turned my world upside down and been the cause of confusion, I realize that:
even as a child I was learning some lessons about God,
about life, about human nature… and myself.
I may speak about the other types of lessons sometime, but for today I want to share a few lessons I have learned about God… when my world seems turned completely bottom-side-up.
**The verses often quoted from Romans 8 are not idle platitudes:
26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered…. These past few weeks I have been so grateful to have this comfort. When my heart is overwhelmed, The Spirit of God intercedes FOR ME at the Throne of Grace!
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.…And God listens.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.… I have seen it before, and I know I will see it again: Even when it seems that God could not work a situation out, I turn around and His name is being glorified and the darkest hour IS “just before the dawn.” While I do not yet see the rays of a new day pouring over the horizon of my heart, I am just as confident in them as I am of my salvation!
29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.… and “bad things happen” because this world is a sinful place, but God uses circumstances to mold my life to be more like Christ.
**It is not about my supposed position of service or paid ministry that makes me useful to God. It is my heart being conformed to the image of His Son, so that I may be counted among the “firstborn” of God.
**It amazes me to watch how God uses us, sinful creatures, to accomplish His will, giving Himself supernatural Glory and causing His Name to be praised!
Verse 35 asks who could separate us, His own, from the love of Christ... and the answer in all of us should be the same as the apostle’s:
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
There are others hurting and questioning over some current situations in the life of my family. I give them these verses from II Thessalonians 1:
11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power: 12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.…
**Remember that God has called each of His children to proclaim His Gospel to the lost. That is our highest calling!
And I pray that those hurting and confused over issues would ask for Lord to **remove all secondary causes** -meaning the human instruments-
and believe that God IS in control.
He wants us each to learn something,
**and the ultimate Glory is for God’s name to be praised in your own heart and life, even through this.
.
One of the hardest and yet most rewarding things we can learn in the Christian life is it TRUST GOD…
…we are not commanded to trust any man or the wisdom of men.
Only trust God.
He is the only one that loved us enough to take the punishment of our sin upon His own body to pay for it.
In Proverbs 3 we are told:
3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: …bind mercy AND truth about they neck. Often truth seems to call for judgment,
**but God asks us to COMBINE truth WITH mercy.
4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man… and this combining truth with mercy {goodness, faithfulness, kindness} will bring us favor with man-this is a good thing.
5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding…
**our own understanding will fail us.
Our own heart is full of wickedness. ALL men’s hearts are full of wickedness.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths… But God can and will direct the path our lives take when we acknowledge Him.
7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil…
We must not seek a wisdom from our own experiences
…or from a man.
This wisdom is faulty and flawed by sin.
Only fear the Lord. Only live your life as far from evil as you can…
8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones….
and your soul will be healthy and ready to stand before Him…
…even if your heart is breaking.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Let’s connect on FACEBOOK!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I’m also on Instagram!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
and I’m on Twitter!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
by tascha |
I have had many thoughts race through my mind about the horrors of last Friday. The tragedy has basically been all some people have talked about.
In my heart, the Lord has simply re-informed several truths that I wish to share:
* Safety truly is of the Lord. Even if mommas and daddies had been at that school, no one can stand in front of a bullet unscathed. The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD. Proverbs 21:31 {But I am fully amenable to civilians having weapons at their disposal. Gun control, as my Granny says, is using two hands.}
.
*There is sin on every hand. We must be spreading the Gospel, and we must do it with an intensity of purpose. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? Romans 10:14
*Life is precious. ALL life. And if this were truly such a tragedy {which it IS} , then what would you call the millions of babies aborted in the past 50 years? And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Luke 18:15,16
.
*Children are a gift from the Lord. {All children.} And we must love on them and teach and train them and pray and weep over them before the Almighty God. They are His. Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. -Psalms 127:3
.
*This very moment of my life is not guaranteed to finish ticking before I breathe my last breath and meet my Savior face to face. What am I doing to be ready for that? Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. -James 4:14
.
*There is a time for weeping. Now is that time. There is a grieving process that must be finished. And no two people live this process the same. A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance… Ecclesiastes 3:4
.
*But when the grief has subsided {and that may be a longer process than someone outside of the situation thinks necessary…}, the choice must be made between living a broken life or resolving to press on. There are no other options. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect:…but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth … I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14 [portions]
.
Souls touched by this tragedy must be allowed to grieve. They need to be extended grace for a time of healing.
The rest of us need to be resolved to make each day matter for the Lord’s kingdom and create precious memories with our loved ones!
by tascha
Too much introspection into your problems and weaknesses can cause you to become ingrown. Have you ever had an ingrown toenail? Then you know how just a small ingrown element of your physical body can cause pain. This same principle applies to your spiritual and emotional lives. you can turn inward and over time cause great damage to yourself, all in the name of trying to know yourself or fix your problems.
The best cure for many emotional difficulties is to turn outward to others and start giving of yourself to others. you may say, “But I don’t have anything to give.” Every person has something to give, even it it’s only a smile, a kinds word, or a pat on the shoulder in a time of need. Sometimes just your presence can be a gift to someone, especially to someone who is lonely, grieving, or suffering with a long-standing illness.
The happiest people I know are those who have wide-open hearts and who give generously to others. Such individuals are totally secure in God’s love.
Give without any expectation of receiving from the person to whom you give. God will see your heart and what you do and reward you accordingly. Trust Him to take care of you.
By giving freely and generously, you open up yourself. This open stance before God and other people is important to emotional heath. It is only as you open yourself that you learn to trust. and being able to trust is viral to you ability to received Gods’ forgiveness and healing, and to believe that God will supply your needs.
Others, Lord; yes, other: let this my motto be. Help me to live for others that I may live like Thee.
Helpful Scripture: Psalm 77 & Acts 3:6-10
written by Dr. Mike Rouse
used by permission
by tascha
She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.
During this time of year [as I am writing this it is near the Christmas and the Thanksgiving holidys in America], people are often more thoughtful of giving to charity and helping those in need.
But as Christians, especially ladies striving to BE the woman God created us to be, we need to be mindful of those in need more regularly. {BUT, in this day of deceit and danger, we must also beg God for discretion in this.}
As usual, this begins with the heart issue. Just giving some money to a charity or groceries to a food bank is not what this verse is talking about, though it could be included.
Our hearts must be turned and softened by His hand in our lives for us to have a SPIRIT of GIVING in our daily LIFE. Not just during a season of the year when ‘everyone’ is doing it. And the poor and needy does not only mean those without material possessions or food and shelter.
Do I have a SPIRIT of GIVING when I am at home with my children? towards my husband? Just this past Saturday my husband and I were computer chatting with each other [I know that sounds odd when we are in the same house, but occasionally it is easier to communicate that way with 3 talking little-people and a baby to keep OUT of the conversation].
so, back to the story. While we were chatting, my husband asked me to get him some more coffee. I am at the back of the house and he is in the room right next to the kitchen. But I was WILLING to get up and do it for him. [that is not always the case, but it should be].
To be fair, my husband quickly wrote back that he was joking and was perfectly capable of getting his own coffee, though he was appreciative of my spirit.
Do I have a SPIRIT of GIVING when I am out driving, shopping, LIVING? Am I in such a rush to do MY thing that I get frustrated with others on the road. Or am I able to see that others out there are in need of kindness-such as letting someone cross traffic in front of you because you notice there is no one coming the other direction and yet there is along line of traffic behind you [obviously not in some situations].
When I’m shopping, do I let it bother me when in a crowd with others shoving and being rude? Or do I ask God to help me be sweet and smiling and GIVING?
These are just a few examples of reaching our hand to the needy and stretching our hands to the poor– beyond giving money to charity and groceries to a food bank.
