Kids

Do you ever have those times when you are reading scripture and you see something you've never seen before even thought it's been there all along? This has happened to me several times in the past few weeks.

The first was when I was studying Hannah's story in first Samuel for some writing I was doing. Chapter 3 reveals Samuel's calling in the opening verses by labeling him as a young man. Many translations read "boy." This account in scripture jumped off the page at me. The dialog that takes place is incredible. Samuel hears God, responds "here I am" and doesn't wait for a response but runs to his trusted leader. (There's a blog post in itself.) Eli tells him, "I didn't call you, go back to bed." The whole thing plays out again and when Eli realizes what's really going on, he says "Oh yeah. That's God. Tell him your listening. Then listen."

Instructions that seem to roll off the tongue as if conversing audibly with God in the middle of the night is as common as taking out the trash. The details given are few, yet the message is clear. God is speaking to this child. And the child is hearing God speak. Astounding.

Then at group later that week, we were discussing David's anointing to become king over the nation of Israel in 1 Samuel 16. We considered that this happened when David was possibly as young as 9 or 10 years old. A juvenile. A preteen potentially. Anointed to be king over God's chosen people. In this year with a presidential election on the horizon, this thought is almost indigestible.

In bible study the following morning, a quick reference to Hagar's story was made in Genesis 21. She and her son are in the wilderness about to die. Verse 16 records the desperate cries of a mother begging for mercy. But verse 17 says: And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, "What troubles you Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is."

Woah. Again, such few details supplied except a mother's request and God's response to an unrecorded prayer from a kid.

Wow! How many times before have I passed over these verses as if it was seemingly insignificant? God hearing, moving and providing on behalf of a boy. Jehovah anointing, what we would consider a minor, to be king of his chosen people. The I AM speaking and giving prophecy to a child that would be difficult at best for it's recipients to hear. Nearly unimaginable.

I have been thinking and rethinking about the three instances of God interacting with kids and I'm instantly reminded of Jesus saying "Let the children come to me, don't stop them. For the kingdom of heaven belongs to them," and "whoever humbles themselves like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

While stewing and brewing over all these accounts, one thing is clear: Age is of no discrimination to Jesus.  That's very convicting to me as one who defines a main area of ministry life as my children. In what ways am I being diligent to show my children this quality of God? How am I leading my girls to pray and anticipate God to move and respond? Am I myself expecting God to hear and answer their prayers? Such real examples in scripture that have come alive and I can no longer act as if I haven't seen them.

God speaking to children. God hearing little one's prayers. God anointing a youth to profound leadership.

How tired God must get of the small box I keep trying to put him in? I'm so thankful for his patient grace that not only choose me and adults, but chooses children. My children and yours.

Lord Jesus, your ways are so much higher than mine. You use the things this world considers weak and lowly to display your glory so that no one can boast. Forgive me God for when I brush my kids away and am dismissive of their thoughts and actions of you.  Continually remind me of how much you treasure childlike faith. Transform my heart and the hearts of my girls into a place where your kingdom reigns. Hallelujah that you hear my children's prayers! Open their ears that they may hear from you. You Jesus, are my and my children's righteousness, holiness and redemption. All glory, from birth to death, is yours and yours alone. 

Thank You!!!

My friends that are moving to the Haiti/Dominican Republic border had an opportunity last week to go and visit the area they will be moving to. They posted TONS of great pictures of Face Book.  Go check it out.

I made a set of headbands for her to take to the girls there. Here are some of the pics. So precious!

The little girl on the right makes me giggle. 

This is the orphanage they will be moving into.

A typical home in Jimani.

The village of Batey 41 in Haiti.

This is the border. To the left is the Dominican and to the right Haiti.

This is the school/church room in Batey 41.

Vanderly and some of the local kids.

Stephen and the boys.

Love this one.

Thank you all so much for your support in helping my friends take the good news of Jesus to Haiti and The Dominican Republic. So far the headbands have raised almost $300 for them!! 

You guys are amazing!!!! 

THANK YOU!!   

I still have a few headbands left, get them quick!

Quantity

1 headband $3.002 headbands $5.003 headbands $8.004 headbands $10.005 headbands $13.006 headbands $15.007 headbands $18.008 headbands $20.00

What color(s) would you like?

OR 

you can donate to the Arnolds on their website here.

I will probably make another big batch with all new fun fabrics in August to help raise some more support for my lovely friends.  Thank you again so much, what a blessing!!!!

Headbands for Haiti

I'm finally ready to show you all this cute fabric I have been sewing like a mad woman over the last few weeks at every open minute. But first I have to tell you why I have been sewing.

About a year or so before we moved from FL, the Lord gave me a new friend and kindred spirit in Vanderly Arnold. This sweet woman of God and I hit it off over a common bond of babies.  I was recovering from a second devastating miscarriage and she was working through the fall out of an overturned adoption case followed by a surprise pregnancy.  A connection quickly formed and I have been blessed ever since.

Vanderly is a fellow homeschooling mom of 3 sweet beautiful children, Zoe (10) Joshua (6) and Eliana (1) and is married to an amazing man of God, Stephen. Not long after I met Vanderly while she was about 6 months pregnant, her husband was let go from his position at their church due to the failing economy. But God had a plan and began providing isolated construction work that supported their family need by need. As they wrestled through all the decisions that come with this kind of impacting occurrence, they felt the Lord tell them to go to Dominican Republic/Haiti area and be the hands and feet of Jesus to the poor and needy. Specifically the children as they will be moving into an orphanage to minister. They are determined to demonstrate God's elaborate love for people through bringing food and clean water to the hungry and thirsty, healing the sick, comforting the dying, embracing the lonely, and giving hope to the desperate. This lovely family is going to be the hands and feet of Jesus to a community in desperate need in Him.

They are currently partnering with the Chadasha Foundation and the New Springs Foundation while they are raising support in order to move their family out of the United States and into this gospel deprived area. This is where the headbands come in. While I absolutely love to sew and craft, how cool to use this hobby as a blessing not only for this family, but for the lives that they will impact half a world away.

So HERE ARE THE HEADBANDS!!

They turned out so cute!!! And the elastic hair-tie at the bottom makes them comfy for both my girls heads and mine too.

Don't you want one? Or all eight? Here are close-ups of each of the fun fabrics.

Retro Dots

Spring Circles

Blue Butterflies

Summer Squigles

Neon Love

Purple Swirls

Peace and Love

(This one is Lucy's fav. Cheesy smiles are free.)

Fall Fun

While you are supporting my dear friends and their gospel planting journey, don't forget about your nieces, neighbors and friends! You can stock up for birthdays and stocking stuffers and random "just because" gifts. They are $3 for one headband or two headbands for $5. If you would like to read more about Vanderly and her precious family's ministry, you can check out their website here and donate here.

Lets help bring the good news to Haiti and look super cute in the process!

Quantity

1 headband $3.002 headbands $5.003 headbands $8.004 headbands $10.005 headbands $13.006 headbands $15.007 headbands $18.008 headbands $20.00

What color(s) would you like?

Thank you so much for being a blessing and for helping to take the gospel to the people of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

(In the trial run to make sure my pay pal button worked, the final purchasing page does not show the colors you have chosen, but they did show up in the order to me, so don't worry! :) Thank you again so much!!)

A stolen post for some encouragement

10+ Real Helps for Really Busy Moms

1. Life is not an emergency.

Life’s a gift. 
Just Slow.

2. Now is not a forever grace but amazing grace.

Do whatever it takes to wake to wonder right here.

3. Sometimes the slowest way is the fastest way to joy.

Make time today, even a moment, to read Scripture and memorize it.

Without the lens of His Word, the world warps.

{Slowest=fastest to joy}

4. Laughter is the cheapest, holiest medicine.

Preschoolers laugh 300 times a day. Aim for double that. Tickle someone, (yourself!), if necessary. This is good!

5. Motherhood is a hallowed place because children aren’t commonplace.

Co-laboring over the sculpting of souls is a sacred vocation, a humbling privilege.

Never forget.

6. Homemaking is about making a home, not about making perfection.

A perfect home is an authentic, creative, animated space where Peace and Christ and Beauty are embraced.

{Perfect does not equate to immaculate.}

7. A pail with a pinhole loses as much as the pail pushed right over.

A whole life can be lost in minutes wasted, small moments missed.

8. Believe it: I have all I need for today.

The needs of our day are great but our God is greater and we call Him Providence because we believe: He is the One who always provides.

{And when God provides, He should be praised, and if God always provides, shouldn’t praise always be on the lips?}

9. Slow. Children at play.

The hurry hurts the kids.

Time’s this priceless currency and only the slow spend it wise enough to be rich.

If we had to actually buy our time, would we spend it more wisely — spend it more slowly?

{God’s Word never says Hurry Up. God words only whisper: Wake Up.}

10. Love is patient.

Parenting’s this gentle way of bending over in humility to help the scraped child up because we intimately know it takes a lifetime to learn how to walk with Him.

Patience.

Love always begins with patience.

11. The art of really celebrating life isn’t about getting it right — but about receiving Grace.

The sinners and the sick, the broken, the discouraged, the wounded and burdened — we are the ones who get to celebrate grace!

Regardless of the mess of your life, if Christ is Lord of your life, than we are the celebrants out dancing in a wild rain of grace — because when it’s all done and finished, all is well and Christ already said it was finished.

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Related: 10 Point Manifest for Joyful Parenting (free printable)
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A busy Mom looking for real Help? Looking for a moment with Him who calls Himself our Helper?

Don’t Make Me Come Up There!: Quiet Moments for Busy Momsmakes me cheer! And it makes me get down on my knees and thank Jesus for this vocation of mothering. Because Kristen Welch is a Gospel-centered woman with a take on motherhood that has fresh honesty, a real sense of humor, a deep humility, and always has Christ firmly at the center of it.Highly recommended for busy Moms who want the relief of a smile, real encouragement — and more Jesus.

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All’s Grace,

You can read more of Ann’s inspirational writing at A Holy Experience.

An Excerpt

I've been reading Sacred Parenting by Gary Thomas and I read a paragraph today that really impacted me. Chapter 3 is titled The Gold behind the Guilt - how raising children teaches us to deal with guilt. He opens the chapter with a story of a wandering, lost little boy without a mom insight.  When the mom and son are finally reunited her emotions move from joy to extreme guilt.

Upon reuniting the boy and mom, the author comes to find the child had become quite the escape artist. His parents had put three locks on the front door for him as one lock and then two locks were not enough. Grandma had come over to visit and Dad ran out to run to the store and inadvertently only locked two of the three locks. Jr saw the opportunity while mom was chatting with grandma and performed one of his amazing Houdini acts.

How could anyone call this mom a bad parent? Three locks for an 18 month old? I don't see a bad mom. However the only one throwing accusations at her was herself.

Been there, done that!

Then the author goes through several examples of parenting in scripture that frankly, were very encouraging. Then came these words:

None of us can be such good parents that God becomes obligated to save our children's souls. One the more encouraging end, none of us can mess up so badly that our children somehow extend beyond the reach of God's mercy.

Then a few paragraphs later were these words:

I realized a truth that had lain hidden for so long. Though I had wonderful, godly parents, I still grew up with certain disappointments that I wanted to rectify as a parent. It finally dawned on me that I had asked something of my parents that they could never be; I had wanted them to love me as only God can love me, and now I wanted to love my kids as only God can love them.
In short, either I was setting up rivals for God or I was trying to compete with God - both are efforts doomed to failure. I finally came to a major crossroads; instead of competing with God, I realized God had called me to focus my efforts on introducing my kids to God, even using my own failures and inadequacies as compelling causes for my children to find their refuge in him.

What truth!!

I have a girlfriend here in IL that has been such an example to me of great parenting.  I first thought that she realized that kids are kids and will be childlike and lovingly gave space for that. While I am sure this a truth she operates in, after reading this chapter and remembering conversations we've had, I realize now that she is simply not competing with God.  I'm so thankful for her transparency!

What an audacious thought; me competing with God! I'm humbled to admit it. At the same time, how freeing to have my job description redefined.

Anyone else ever struggle with parenting guilt?

Lord Jesus, there is always more I can do, more I can give, more I can sacrifice. Transform my mind Jesus, to remember I can never be the source of satisfying love for anyone the way you are, and that no one but you can ever be that source for me either. Help me to give my kids (and everyone else I'm in relationship with) the freedom you give me and to use every opportunity as an instance to find you. Thank you Jesus for the freedom of not having to be a perfect parent. Thank you for the freedom of not having to be a functional saviour for my kids (or anyone else).  Thank you for the gifts and blessings of parenting. You are a good God!

Secret Keeper Girl

Last weekend Lucy and I, along with a couple of girlfriends, headed in to Northern Indiana to a Secret Keeper Girl Live Pajama Party. What is a Secret Keeper Girl you ask? Well, I'll tell ya. A SKG is a girl "who values modesty. She surrounds herself with wise friends and embraces godly beauty. She keeps the deepest secrets of her beauty for just one man. A SKG is a girl who knows she is a masterpiece created by God."

The event didn't start till six in the evening, so we were forced to spend the day waiting at the mall. The poor children, they suffered through it.

Ready to do some shopping damage!

Besties with new bracelets to prove it.

Jous look mahvahlous! (Said in my best Billy Crystal voice.)

Fabulous Dahling!

Enjoying some bread sticks at Olive Garden. 

(Oh why must they be 4 points each!! Sigh)

Crazy faces!

We can do that too!

Enjoying some worship.

A cute new shirt!

Me and my Secret Keeper Girl.