Had Been with Jesus!

 "When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus."  

Acts 4:13

OK...sisters...this has to be one of the COOLEST verses in the Bible!  I mean read this!!!  The people, the ruling people, the people trying to get Peter and John on charges, the ones who had put them in jail for the night because they healed a man...

THEY SAW THEIR COURAGE!

COURAGE! 

Courage to do what you might ask?

Courage to share Christ!
Courage to stand on His word!
Courage to say, "In the name of Jesus of Nazareth you are healed!"

COURAGE!

And THEY KNEW THEY MUST HAVE BEEN WITH JESUS!!!

Oh man...I get goosebumps just reading it! I've read it like seventeen times since last night!!

THEY KNEW THEY MUST HAVE BEEN WITH JESUS!

TIME WITH JESUS!
TIME WITH OUR SAVIOR!
TIME HEARING WHAT HE SAYS!
TIME BELIEVING WHAT HE SAYS!

TIME WITH JESUS!

Have you had it lately?

Real time with Him?
Time just soaking in His word?
Just soaking in His presence? (You know he is alive and active right? You know there is this little thing called the Holy Spirit that will guide you and comfort you?)

TIME WITH JESUS!

And others....your neighbors, your co-workers, your family, your husband...will say....

"HAVE YOU BEEN WITH JESUS my friend?" 

Something different about you.
Something more peaceful.
Something more secure.
Something more giving.
Something more COURAGEOUS....

TIME WITH JESUS!

Oh Lord...thank you for your faithfulness. Thank you for drawing me back into your word last night...into deep, deep conversation and listening with you. Thank you for the goosebumps I have over the time with you!  Thank you Lord. Thank you Lord. Thank you Lord. Might I be courageous today...might I have the courage to respond to wordly problems with heavenly action. Might I have the courage to give til it hurts, til I feel it. Might I have the courage to stand on  your promises and not be seduced by Satan. Oh Lord, might otherse see me and know I have spent TIME WITH YOU!

"You are worthy our God to recieve glory and honor!"

Revelation 4:11a

The little things in life...

There are some things in life that are soooo little but just SOOO BIG all at the same time...

My husband taking Lucy to occupational therapy today so I could have a few minutes with only three children in the house!

My sister rearranging just the hutch in my kitchen but enough to spur me into action outside where some cleaning was needed!

Faith getting Lucy dressed in the morning so I can read my devo and gulp down some coffee!

The picture of my 12 year old learning to fish with his uncle and cousin!

A friend door bell ding-donging us with ding-dong snacks and seeing the smiles on my kids' faces.

A seventeen year old emptying the dishwasher without being asked.

A friend from way back sending at Target gift card in the mail...she just gets me!!!

A mama and papa bird sitting in the nest on our porch protecting their babes...even though they swoop at me every time I want to go out there!!!


A little girl eating ice cream for what may be the first time and asking to drink the melted part!

    soooo little.....

       but.....................
           SO BIG!

"I thank my God every time I think of you!

Philippians 1:3

Helicopters

I remember playing sports when I was little. We played little league softball with all the other girls in town. We would grab our gloves and a baseball hat and run down to the field. We spent hours there with our coaches until our parents showed up just before the first pitch.

I remember seeing my mom sit on the bleachers with the other moms, talking about local small town news, sharing new recipes, not really paying much attention to the game at hand. I don't ever remember her bringing me a gatorade. I don't remember her yelling at me to make a good throw or to widen my stance or to shake off a bad swing. She was more interested in her friends than in my play.

And at the end of the game, she would say, "Did you have fun?"

You see, it's not that my mom and dad didn't care, it's just that they didn't hover. They had perspective. They knew that this was simply little league baseball. No contracts coming out of it. No agents lurking by the dugout. Simply small town fun on a summer evening.

Something has changed. Somewhere along the line, parents have begun to hover. As much as I try not to fall into the societal trap, I am guilty as well. I carry my son's bag for him. I buy him a Gatorade for every game. I ask if he needs sunflower seeds or Big League Chew bubble gum. I try not to hover, but the pull is great.

It saddens me. It brings pressure to our kids. It causes dissention among parents when someone feels left out. Parent behavior looks bad.

But today, today I read a story in the Bible of a mother who struggled with the same behavior.

She was one of the first helicopter parents....hovering where she ought not go.

And guess what...it brought horrible results to her family!

God had told Rebekah that her second born twin would receive the blessing...

"To Rebecca, also, a promise was made that took priority over genetics. When she became pregnant by our one-of-a-kind ancestor, Isaac, and her babies were still innocent in the womb—incapable of good or bad—she received a special assurance from God. What God did in this case made it perfectly plain that his purpose is not a hit-or-miss thing dependent on what we do or don't do, but a sure thing determined by his decision, flowing steadily from his initiative. God told Rebecca, "The firstborn of your twins will take second place." 

Romans 9:10-13

But she didn't stand on that promise.
She hovered...

You see Rebekah, when she didn't see things going as she had hoped for her son Jacob, decided to take matters into her own hands.

She devised a plan.
She schemed.
She lured him in.
She couldn't let a boy be a boy and let the matter go.

Rebekah went as far as to say to her son, who at this point in the scheme was beginning to get nervous, "Let the curse fall on me!"

And, it did!

You see, my sisters, while God wants  us to protect our children, He never intended for us to hover over them. He never intended for us to sin in order to provide a perfect world for them. God has a well ordained plan for their lives.

So...back to baseball, or basketball, or music, or dance...or simply life in our own home...

God does not want us to live life for our children, protecting them at all costs, hovering to make sure their every need is met.

Failure produces perseverence.
Defeat produces opportunities for character.
Lack produces creativity of resources.
Tears can produce joy out of the sorrow.

Dear Lord, Guide me as I parent my children. Guide my words. Let every word, every action, every thought be reflective of you God. Help me go to you in times when I am uncertain of outcomes. Help me not to simply jump in and try to solve things as Rebekah did. Help me to see that sorrow and pain and loss can build character in my children. Help me to not hover!

Paper towels & Cover-up

I've been thinking a lot about paper towels and cover up stick.

I know...weird brain!

It's just that lately I have been using a LOT of both of those products!
Clean up spilled milk.
Clean up noodles on the floor.
Clean up drool from a little 4 year old.
"Clean up, clean up, everybody do your share!"

And, well, paper towels are the easiest method.

You see...huge mess on the floor...

and "Whala" (ok...not really sure at all how to spell that word, but you get my drift)

MESS IS GONE!

And then, my sisters, there is this little thing called age 40.
All of the sudden all those years lifeguarding at the Breda Swimming Pool appear to be popping up on my face! 
Sunspot on the nose. Sunspot on the cheek. Sunspot on the forehead.
Pimple on the chin.
And, yes, even ringworm from Africa!
40!!! Yikes.

Lots and lots of cover-up!

I asked my sister "At what point is it no longer considered cover-up? But rather foundation?"

But once again, "Whala"  MESS IS GONE!

So, I was thinking...

Sometimes I think we expect God to be our papertowel and our cover-up.
Sometimes we just want to spend hours at the pool and then tell God to clean up our sunspots.
We want to spill the milk and have God clean up the mess.

Too figurative for ya all?
Ok...how about this...

We want to use harsh words with our hubby and then have God transform him.
We want to ignore our children so we can have time on the computer or phone, and then ask God to change their hearts!
We want to spend like crazy at Target but then pray for prosperty.

Do I need to keep going?

Yeah...ouch...

So...today Lord, forgive me for the cover-up act I try to do. Forgive me for expecting you to clean up the mess that I put myself into. I know you are the Savior Lord and I trust in you one hundred percent, but Lord help me to live according to your Word, within the realm of your will, not one step outside of it in the MESS! And Lord, even though I know you offer forgiveness, let me think before I act, before I speak, before I move!



My dad...

So...it's Father's Day...and I spent the day with my sisters and my mom at the place I grew up...

and...

I kept thinking about the legacy my dad left...

So...

here it is....

my gratitude to my dad for teaching me to:

be fiercely proud of my country...

be organized...



be ready to see the needs of my community...

  

 be prepared....

 have a place to escape to for prayer...

give to those I may never meet here on Earth...

and most importantly...to accept Jesus as my Savior...



What a legacy....

  "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." 

Proverbs 3:5-6

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

Matthew 7:7

"In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly."

Psalm 5:3

I thank you oh Lord, my God, for my earthly father. I thank you for the assurance I have in your Word in knowing he is with you today. I thank you for the strong influence he was on my life....for drawing me to you. Even through the grief, I Praise you Lord! Praise you Lord! Praise you Lord!



"AAAMA!"

"Aaama!"

I love those words.

"Aaama."

It is Lucy calling out my name, in her words, trying to say, "Mama!"

She can't say consonants very well yet, but she has picked up on the gist of it.

"Aaama!"
She calls my name when she wants more milk.
"Aaama!"
Or when she is looking for me in the house.
"Aaama!"

Or when she has found a new diaper and wants to be changed.
"Aaama!"

Or when she has shut the kitchen door or kitchen cupboard without help.
"Aaama!"

Or when she has cleaned up all her toys and put them back into the basket.
"Aaama!"


I get tears in my eyes as I write this and think about how far this girl has come.

Abandoned on a beach.
Left to fend for herself in two orphanages.
Almost died from parasitic infection and malnourishment.
Described to others as a child who was "abnormal, would never walk, would never talk".

And, now, here she is in my living room, sleeping next to me peacefully.

From abandoned to adored.
From neglected to nourished.
From mistreated to marvelous.
From orphaned to overjoyed.
From speechless to screaming "AAAMA!"

“And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters,

says the Lord Almighty.”

2 Corinthians 6:18

You see, you have someone who wants you to call him by name. He wants to be your father. When you need more milk, when you are proud of your accomplishments, when you don't know how to proceed...God wants you to call out to Him.

"Lord...what do I do?"
"Lord...I don't understand!"
"Lord...I am scared."
"Lord...I need help!"
"Lord...I love you!"

 “He shall cry to Me, ‘You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation.”
Psalm 89:26

Today, my sisters...if you have not yet...

 

today...let God our father, through the blood of His son, Jesus, on the cross, take you from....

 

From abandoned to adored.

From neglected to nourished.
From mistreated to marvelous.
From orphaned to overjoyed.
From speechless to screaming "MY LORD, MY SAVIOR!"

Today...

7 days...

Wow...my last post was seven days ago. Time flies! 

I am the crazy busy mother of five!  It is weird to even put that in writing...five children. From thinking about a future high school graduation to potty training...it's no wonder my husband is getting salt and pepper gray hair!

Well, it seems words for the blog have been difficult to come by. Not that aren't stories to tell...not that there aren't verses to share...not that there isn't laughter among the grief...

It's just...well...lately the words haven't been coming...

...maybe it is because I am spending more time sweeping, doing laundry, playing peek-a-boo, etc....

...maybe it is because despite being the happiest week of our lives in bringing little Lucy home, it was also one of the most devastating in saying an Earthly goodbye to my father...

...maybe it is because when death hits your family you tend to re-evaluate...what is life about? what is the meaning? why are we here?

...maybe it is because once you start to truly follow God and "step up", there is little time for much else, including writing about it...

I don't know...but I do know that my head and my heart have been stuck on one verse for the past seven days...

    HE MUST BECOME GREATER. I MUST BECOME LESS.

John 3:30

Step up my dear sisters.

Life might get crazy.

The laundry might pile up.

There might not be words to describe it.

But...STEP UP...and let God handle the consequences!

Mama Said There Would Be Days Like These

I woke up today and could just feel the heaviness. I could just taste the bitterness. Smell the sourness.

I think it may have been grief settling in, but also it was this feeling of just being utterly and completely overwhelmed.

The laundry seems to never end.
The dishwasher always needs emptied.
My bare feet feel the crumbs on the kitchen floor even after I sweep.
There are ants in the upstairs bathroom.
Our chalkboard calendar takes up an entire wall in the kitchen and still overflows.
And Lucy won't poop!

Overwhelmed, over-scheduled, overworked?
Exhausted, grieving, discouraged?

NOT TODAY SATAN!

You see...today...I went to my Lord and Savior.
Today, I stopped in my tracks, grabbed my Bible and dialed in some prayers.
Today, I could feel my friends, and those I don't even know, praying for us.

Today...today...came Psalm 18:1

"I LOVE YOU OH LORD MY STRENGTH!"

And today...what started out as heaviness...turned into a lightened load by friends offering a meal!
                     what started out as bitterness...turned into bravo over a little girl going potty on a potty chair!
                       what started out as sourness...turned into sweet success at a little league game!

Today...the grief became gratitude over the Christ-centered life and legacy left by my earthly father!
                     the overwhelmed became overjoyed.
                       the over-scheduled became tears at a true evaluation by a physical therapist.
                         the over-worked became a new relationship with a Christian couple in town.

Today...exhausted, grieving, discouraged became REDEEMED THROUGH CHRIST!

Thank you all for the prayers. Thank you for the meals. Thank you for the support.

 "I love you Oh Lord, my strength!"

Jen