Suffering

Today as I awoke and needed some refreshment... this blog was in my email inbox. SO like God to refresh and revive us through the words of another broken Mama! Broken must happen in order to shine more clearly His light through. Click the link and be refreshed.

"Our Stewardship in Suffering" by Annie B. Garman

Goal in Mothering

I printed this verse and have it in a place I see often so when I read it I am ministered to as it helps me remember the goal in mothering.

 

We planted pretty flowers in our front yard and have tried not to kill them right away.  However, some of them have perished despite the rich soil they are in and my concerted efforts to provide them the necessary water each day.  My steadfast determination made me not give up!  I remember as a little girl helping my mom plant flowers, tomatoes and beans in the garden.  At the end of the season we would take the marigold pouches after they had bloomed and then “died” and plant them next year. 

So in our small garden right before shower and bedtime I gathered some seeds, enlisted the help of our four year-old daughter, Jordan and started to plant them ALL over the place.  Then watered and prayed for them.   

I think I even surprised myself when I let her help me plant the seeds.  Just as in baking, it’s hard for me to let the kids help me do things that I could do in less time and neater.  But thinking back, I love the memories I have of washing the dishes with my mom and sister, gardening, pinning the clothes on the clothesline outside, and helping make macaroni and cheese from scratch.  Pushing our kids away just so it gets done perfectly neat and in an efficient manner of time, will not reap a rich harvest and it will limit our connection and the memories they could have for a lifetime.  Don't give up Momma.

School of Temptation

Do you ever wonder why temptation doesn't just flee? Why do we have to continually choose to stand against it?

Judges 3:1&2 tells us "These are the nations (temptations) that the Lord left in the land to test those Israelites who had not experienced the wars of Canaan.  He did this to teach warfare to generations of Israelites who had no experience in battle."

As a mom, I pray all the time that my children (spouse and self too) would be "easily entreated."  You see, I don't like trials and I don't want to go through them.  I just want to hear the Lord's voice and stay on His best path for my life to bring fruit to His kingdom.

The Israelites had a pattern, called the "sin cycle" that went something like this:

1.  The generation that saw His rescuing hand worshipped Him and kept His commands.
2.  The next generation, who didn't have that first hand knowledge, started to compromise.
3.  They started intermingling and worshipping other gods.
4.  God sent His punishment, usually in the form of an oppressor, to subdue them.
5.  They cried out to the real God for help and God sent them a rescuer.
6.  That generation followed Him.  Repeat cycle.

God, in His wisdom knows our human nature.  If our lives were easy, battle free, we too would grow complacent in our determination to set ourselves apart for Him.  Likewise, when we go through trials, our children see first hand how we handle it.  They see us on our knees and in the Word. They see us seeking His face.  Then they see His deliverance! Our children are learning the art of warfare, which they will pass on to their children, and so on.

God's plan is for us to be sharp, persistent and victorious. The trials will continue in the life, until we enter in to His final rest for us, but they are purposeful and He promises (1 Cor 10:13) He will not give us more than we can handle.