Welcome to our Fifth Season of the Year, "Spring-ter"

      We had 2 1/2 snow days in a tow last week. Thing 1 came up with the term 'Spring-Ter" for the season of weather we are in.
       My boys favorite past time was clearly throwing snow balls at me. When did they get so fast and hard to hit???
      Included in the photos are a few shots if our temporary home. It is a cozy and comfortable 2 bedroom mobile home on the lake. I'm looking forward to sitting on that awesome deck when spring does decide to arrive. And I'm enjoying the bird houses filled with confused little chickadees wondering what all this white stuff is.  An the ducks now that the ice on the lake is gone.
         The Things love the little green playhouse that is on the property but the biggest draw is always trying to throw stuff into the lake ( which is a no no of course)! Mean mom always ruining their fun! Just trying to keep the rocks on the bank and off the sandy lake shore!

A Look at Islam and Christianity

      This was a great read! When I picked up, In the Land of Blue Burqas, I did not expect my faith, my understanding of marriage and ideas about Islam to be challenged.  I did not read it looking for deeper understanding of my Christianity separate from my American culture.  My views of forgiveness, responding to insult, prayer, judgment and the power of generosity were all challenged to stretch.  All of this happened during my journey into a town in Afghanistan through the author’s experience.  It is full of people I will never meet that are very different than me in almost every way. Despite our vast differences I learned so much from them as I read their stories and lined up their Islamic teachings next to the teachings of Jesus. 

        In essence reading this woman’s journey in faith, “I learned to see the Jesus I love reflected in the context of my Afghan neighbors’ culture and the simplicity of their questions.  I was challenged to differentiate between my American culture an the teachings of Jesus….I saw how revolutionary Jesus really is and how amazingly beautiful.” (p. 306)

        I’ll leave you with a few more quotes so you can see what I mean. If you decide to read it  I’d love to discuss it with anyone!

On American Faith:

“Conversations about God, faith and what it means to live submitted to Him is more common in Afghanistan than any place I’ve ever been…..For many Westerners, the question of who God is and what He wants for and from us is simply not relevant.  We are, after all, wealthy and busy.  For Afghans, it may be the most important question of all.” (p. 115, 116)

On Legalism:

“Sometimes we imagine that all that is good in God as revealed in Christ only belongs to those who’ve adopted a complete framework of theological beliefs.  We imagine that until a person understands and confesses belief that Jesus is God, that He died on the cross for our sins and rose the third day, the teachings and blessings of God remain inaccessible.  We sometimes make the mistake of viewing ourselves and others as either in or out, as either wearing our team’s jersey or not wearing it." (p. 132)

Ouch, that is totally me sometimes.

"How much better to remember that we are all on a journey.  Each time we see or hear or in some way grasp a teaching or revelation of Christ, we are drawn out of an area of darkness within our lives into His light and truth…..the good news is …we can receive His healing long before we understand who He is and why He came in the first place.” (p. 132)

Love it! The image of darkness to light describes all I hope to do when sharing about God’s love.

On Reaching others with Good News:

“I know I have no power to change an individual’s worldview.  I can’t compel people to accept my words.  The interpretation and reaction belongs to my listeners.  If I speak truth, that truth will resonate within them.  If they can receive it, they will.  If they can’t, they won’t. My responsibility is to follow Jesus and share the faith I have.  In my understanding, God is good and certainly not the author of death and destruction.” (p. 114)

     She was responding here to the Islamic belief that EVERYTHING that happens is the will of Allah.  If a husband beats his wife, it’s Allah’s will.  If a child dies in a bombing, Allah’s will.  Both scenarios are all too common in their daily lives. 

God Provides! - A qucik life and ministry update!

I'm sorry for the long absence for those of you who look here for frequent updates. I hope to do better in April.  :)

 March began with our whole family making the 13 hour trek to our future hometown in CO.  We spent a great week with some wonderful friends that know how to serve us to no end, watching our kids for endless hours, fed us and sheltered, and prayed for us in the stretching ups and downs of house hunting. What a blessing they are to us! We were excited to find the perfect home through a strange series of events only God could design on our last day there. The boys are extra excited it is a two-story home and comes with a giant playset that in Thing 2's words is "epic"!  God cares even about the little things (that are big to little Things)!

Since our return mid-March we have jumped right back into our best semester ever of ministry. What a wonderful way to end our 7 years of ministry here.  I am LOVING being on campus more as two of three kids are in school and time permits.  I'm writing and leading a study on Purity bright and early every Friday morning with about 20 - 25 awesome college gals and the best ever co-leader.  We are also packing up our entire house, minus all the stuff we are pitching, donating, and selling (ahhh that feels good!) and move out of our current home this weekend since it sold so quickly (PRAISE GOD!). 

We aren't saying goodbye to the prairie yet, that will come end of May. We will take up residence a bit south of town in a beautiful little two-bedroom lake home trailer.  It will be tight but it is a huge blessing to not have to pack up all our belongings twice as this home is fully furnished!  Our friends are so generous to let us stay there, another Provision from God for us!

Throw in the mix hubby and I speaking at Navs this week on dating (fun), a Nav women's retreat we planned and taught at this past weekend (amazing time with amazing women) and another upcoming teaching time for moms I need to finish writing! 

By God's pure grace I'm enjoying all these things and most-of-the-time I'm not really too stressed. I feel overwhelmed when I try to do it all on my own, but with the help and prayers of many friends it is all coming together. 

Thanks for praying for us!

Ruth Bell Graham

This is the updated version

One of my goals for growth in 2013 is to consume as much fiction as I do non-fiction. I recently finished an excellent biography about Ruth Bell Graham called, A Time for Remembering.  I found this little treasure tucked away in our church library, the binding glue disintegrating in my hands as yellow pages came loose in the reading.

 Reading about someone who has walked the road of faith before me and succeeded gives me hope that God can use me as well.  It also reminds me that no matter what trials I face, someone else has faced more of them!   Life is busy with an upcoming move, busy ministry and the never-ending but always rewarding job of parenting 3 little men.  After reading about Ruth’s life I am inspired by her resolve and courage to take on the challenges of life with a positive attitude. 

Ruth’s early years growing up in China as a missionaries’ daughter was full of hardship and loss, even bombings!  But these were all accepted as part of the deal and not paid much heed.  This is a provoking view of ministry to me in my cushy life at home in the States.  

 And later in her married years with a husband who was absent 6 months of the year she could have easily become bitter or depressed or both!  Yet she never wavered in her commitment to her marriage and family. She simply adapted and pressed on.

Wanna know the secret to her success?  I know I did. She kept her Bible open all the time and her children often found her early in the morning and late at night pouring over His Words to her.  Her children never heard her complain about Billy’s absences, and the moment he left they would begin to look forward to his return.  She immediately got busy with some project to pass the time and she spent many hours every day soaking up God’s words of love for her.  

This challenges me on so many levels.  When life is difficult I want to complain, sulk and pamper myself with distracting entertainment – like a good 6 hour marathon of Pride and Prejudice! There is nothing wrong with P and P, mind you (and a lot of things right about it!), and my husband actually thanks me for watching it WITHOUT him.  But if that is what I turn to for my solace over my Lord than my heart will be temporarily distracted but just as empty as when I began.

Ruth reminded me of something I already knew but need to keep working at – nothing satisfies like Him.  Movies and other distractions can entertain but they do not fill and they always come to an end.  God’s Word fills, never changes and never ends.  

Jeremiah has a few thoughts on this subject, “my people…have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.”(2:13) When I look to something or someone else to fill me before my Creator, I’m hewing out my own broken cisterns.   Compare that to Jesus’ promise to us, “whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty forever.  The water I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13,14)  I know it might sound crazy if you haven’t experienced it yourself, but God’s Word truly does satisfy my heart and fill it like nothing else can.

Reading about Ruth’s life and parenting years leaves me asking myself where is my life pointing my kids?  If my kids rise early or waken in the night where will they find me?  On FB or watching t.v.?  Again, don’t get me wrong, those things are okay and have their place.  But where do I want them to find me more often than not? Is my life pointing them to God? Or to media, Words with Friends or other entertainment?  It is a continual dance of adjusting, starts and stops, but I am slowly making progress.  I hope that like Ruth, my life will point them to Jesus, the only One Who will satisfy and meet our every need.

Photos from the Prairie... to keep the Grandmas Happy

This is how we spend a snow-day when school is cancelled.

I was amazed how quickly this doughnut disappeared...it lasted about 60 seconds!

Gorgeous country sunrise...I'm sure gonna miss this view from our back patio when we move!  But I'm happy for the new owners to enjoy it too. 

Our little "hockey" player missing his two front teeth!

Sledding down the neighbors' hill is always a good time!

H.A.L.T.

H.A.L.T. is a nifty parenting tip I picked up somewhere along the way.  If you or someone you know, big or little, acts a bit cranky or unlike their usual self you could ask, Are they Hungry? Angry? Lonely? Or Tired?  So many times this little trick has helped me properly assess a tantrum and come up with a helpful solution.  The key is to address the real problem behind the behavior (sometimes in addition to your normal discipline).

Take tonight for example.  As we picked up toys before dinner my 3-yr-old didn’t want to clean up his cars.  After a time-out for disobeying he still insisted he was not going to comply (have I mentioned he can be a bit strong willed?).   I realized he had missed his usual snack after nap and had complained about 30 mins earlier that he was hungry.  Bad mommy.    I decided to put the acronym to the test and excused him from his time out bench straight to the dinner table.  After dinner he willingly (okay, under threat of no dessert) picked up the cars with a much better attitude and no tantrum.  

This reminds me of a little problem I have all the time with my own behavior.  The issue isn’t just my behavior itself, it is what is driving it. I impatiently push for my own way, hurting my husband in the process.  Or I yell at my kids in anger threatening them into obedience.  The behavior is different but the driving force behind it, which is the real problem, is the same. 

 My selfish heart that just can’t seem to love others more than I love myself…not even close actually.  The key to changing my behavior is to address the issue behind it, my desperate need for a new heart. Thankfully the solution is as simple is the acronym I used above, though much more costly in its application. When I surrender my heart to the One Who created it, He gives me His love, patience and humility that never fails for those around me.  He takes my misbehavior and gives me a clean start every time.  This is only possible because He took my punishment for me – death, and in exchange offers me new life.

When I find myself being crabby I need to HALT and remember how well He loves me. The new life and heart that is mine for the taking.  This softens me, changes me, fills me with the love I need for the precious people, big and little, around me. 

2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ (s)he is a new creation, the old has gone and the new has come."

Are you my Friend?

        I recently came across a book entitled “Your Three-Year-Old: Friend or Enemy.”  Hubby and I got a good laugh out of that title because it is so spot on.  Raising a three-year-old boy is a lot of laughs and almost equally a lot of frustration!  But understanding how his little mind works and that his erratic behavior is “developmentally appropriate” (as a beloved friend once often said of any child’s behavior) makes it easier to laugh instead of sigh in irritation.  

      Just take this morning for example:

•   Thing 3 asked me to get some clothes for him and put them in the living room (friend). I was happy to comply realizing that the simple act of putting on clothes to go outside in zero degree weather was possibly not going to be a battle today. 

• After helping T3 finish up in the bathroom (friend) he trotted out to the living room and complained that he didn’t want to wear THAT OFFENSIVE orange shirt (enemy).  I reply that if he doesn’t like the clothes I picked out he shouldn’t ask me to get them (okay, I could have kept that comment to myself).  He grumbles back to his room to pick out what was so obviously the RIGHT t-shirt to wear under his fleece. (BTW I laid out two fleeces and let him choose so I couldn’t get that one wrong!)

• T3 comes back and struggles to get on his underpants (it is a tricky process when you are three) and commences complaints that I gave him underpants with only one leg hole (Enemy).  Tempting as that would be I didn’t.  I also kept my comments to myself trying to gain back “friend” status sooner than later.

•   T3 accomplishes putting on undergarments and pants but needs help with his snap.  “Would you help me?” (Suddenly we are FRIENDS again!).

•  T3 goes back and happily chooses the navy blue fleece that looks just like the other navy blue fleece and asks for help getting it on (friends) but when I don’t get the shirt underneath JUST right he grumbles some more (enemy). 

       This back and forth game continues all morning, afternoon and night as I look to him as to know which hat I’m wearing…friend or enemy! Being three is a difficult dance I can empathize.  He so badly wants to be in charge and independent like all the big people around him but he still needs lots of help just getting through the day.  I can see why he so quickly switches from Jekyll to Hyde with each experience.  And I know deep down he really does love me even if he treats me like the enemy! Right around the corner of every three-year-old frown is a voluntary "I love you, Mommy" that melts my heart right back into being his friend.

       Sometimes I wisely choose to avoid the battles by giving him choices when I can and using silly humor that he loves (“put your shoes on your ears please and get ready to go!”). Other times I play right into his on-and-off bad mood choosing to be his enemy; I’m not proud to say it but it is true.  Even on my third time around this three-year-old merry-go-round I’m still working on my balance and trying to get it more right than wrong.  I console myself that he will probably need less therapy as an adult than his eldest brother!