Crank It Up!

Let’s be honest. Sometimes as a mom you want to scream at your kids. You want to tell them how ungrateful they are being, how they need to get along with their siblings, stop complaining, be respectful, use kind words, keep their hands to themselves, clean up their own mess, etc. These are all good things that we should tell our kids, but if I’m honest…in my moments of deep frustration I want to snatch up ‘em and just yell the truth at them. As if that is what God is calling me to do…

Well, I know it’s not.  I would only end up saying things that I regret or in a way that I would regret…I would end me apologizing to my kids and feeling horrible for losing it and setting such a bad example. So, when those times come when I feel like I want to shout from the rooftops…I do…but in a healthy way….

I crank up the music and start dancing and praising God. Seriously, the kids join in and we all end up having our own Jam Fest in the living room…or in the car. If the truth be told, I needed to “get it out”. I needed to let go of my own junk, refocus on Jesus, and “press on” in the joy to which HE is calling me.

In those moments when I decide to “shout to the Lord” or make a joyful noise, I am exchanging the lie of the enemy (that yelling at my kids will somehow force them into submission and make me feel better all at the same time) for the truth of God (his grace is sufficient for my weakness and words aptly spoken are like apples of gold).

So fellow momma’ in Christ, let’s take the “no yelling, start praising” challenge together. Let’s choose to exhibit self-control and look to the Lord for our joy and strength as opposed to unleashing the ugly on our kids. They are watching our example. If your kids are yelling a lot…guess who they may be getting it from?

It is NEVER too late to change that. When we are feeling at our wits end, let’s crank it up and choose praise.

Prayer:

God, you are perfect and holy in all your ways. May we exhibit your Holy Spirit control when we are feeling pressed on all sides by our kids, our circumstances, or the storms of life. May our worship be sincere. May you be our rock of safety and our refuge for peace in the midst of life’s frustrating and challenging moments. May we press in to you, and choose not lean on our own understanding or justify our own sin. May we set YOU before us so that we will not be shaken.

In Jesus’ name we pray,

Amen.

Ready to Jam? Click on the link below:

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=mandisa+overcomer&FORM=VIRE1#view=detail&mid=1717B535536ADFE200FE1717B535536ADFE200FE

THIRD Times a Charm!!

I have a bad habit I need to break. It is something I try so hard to manage but fail at miserably. It is something my friends, family and children can attest I need help on. What is this habit,  you ask?? MULTI-TASKING!! Most women can do this well, but not me!

It was a few weeks ago when I had this "A-HA" moment and realized I needed to change. I was talking on the phone and fixing lunch for the boys at the same time when my friend on the other end very lovingly stated, "Kate, I've shared that with you three times already." My lack of undivided attention caused me to miss information and gave the impression I didn't care. WOW, but I did care!


How often we do this to our little ones too! Our kids are super excited about something ...maybe a bug or a big tower of blocks they've built and because we are doing laundry or dishes we miss the moment to let them know we value their insight and what they have to say.

There is a time for play and work, but I think too often we try to combine the two, causing ourselves frustration and stifling our excitement.  Allow yourself free time with each child where they can have your undivided attention.  Push pause on life as they show you something new.  Praise God daily for how HE created them and the interests they have. Plan out a scheduled time for "chores" when your kids are sleeping or snacking.

Do you multi-task well? How do you react when your child comes in need of your ear? Do they repeat themselves many times, like my phone friend, wondering if this time you will stop & receive what they have to say? My husband said it well, "Kate, there are many things we can multi-task, just not people." I try so hard to balance phone calls, lunches and cleaning but have learned it's better to let the machine get that call and return it later rather than only giving myself partially to the conversation because of tasks at hand I am already involved in at that moment. I am learning!

 As shared in "Words of Wisdom" Part #1...Cherish every moment you have with your child. Time passes so quickly and the day will come when you look back on those memories.

Half Empty or Half Full?

Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have.  I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. -Philippians 4:11-12

I frequently go grocery shopping with my two boys, and each time I ponder why I didn't wait until a time I could come by myself and peruse the isles without chaos :) But more times than not, the Lord uses those few minutes, I am stretched pushing my two in the cart, to teach me many life lessons :). So as we shopped today, and our cart continued to fill up, I noticed my boys kept asking for more and more things. I let them pick out a few snacks, as usual, and they still wanted more. I let them pick out some special candy for "Movie Night" and they still wanted more. They got a free cookie from the bakery and still wanted more. I started to get a bit frustrated over the fact that their heart never seemed satisfied no matter how many things I blessed them with. It opened my eyes to how the Lord's heart must break as He continues to stretch out His hand of blessings my way...and yet my heart continues to yearn and desire for more.

Why am I so vertically challenged? Oh not in my physical stature but in my heart. I get so horizontally focused where my heart continually looks at what is right in front of me and wonders why I don't have more. I find myself sometimes comparing what I have to other stay -at- home moms until He gently reminds me that we are each in different financial seasons. I, too, can find myself looking around the "store of life" instead of praising the Lord for those things already in my "cart."

My wonderful husband works two jobs so I can stay home. Praise God my husband has work. Praise God that I get to stay at home. Praise God we have a home, clean water to drink that I don't have to travel somewhere to get, a hot shower, food to eat, clean clothes to wear, gas in our car, a car to drive.  So often the world dangles eye candy in front of us making us think our joy is conditional upon having those things. The funny thing is that even after acquiring the latest gadget my heart still yearns at it's core for more. It is only when I am seeking the Lord's face daily (Psalm 105:4) that I find true contentment within my soul.  But the ads and commercials will tell us otherwise these days, right?

I want to be content. I want to thank the Lord for the small things in life that so often go unnoticed. I want to cultivate and grow a lifestyle of thanksgiving I can pass onto my children for them to replicate for generations once I am gone.  This Sunday our small group pondered some Thanksgiving questions I'd love to share with you...
1.  What are you most thankful for when you think about your life as a whole? When you think about the past year? the past day? What everyday blessings do you take most for granted?
2. Do you incorporate gratitude into your everyday life in any intentional way? If so, how? If not, how might you cultivate a "practice" of gratitude?

That last question really hit me hard. How intentional am I to practice a heart of gratitude DAILY? I shared with them about Courtney's suggestion of making a list of things you are thankful for, as a good reminder of the blessings you have received for those days your eyes and heart longs for more. Sometimes we just need to push pause on our wants/desires and push play on our praise to God. I have started a list on my computer and plan to jot down each day a few things I am thankful for. Hopefully this will cause my heart to reflect more on what He has given and less on what I don't currently have.

I recently noticed as my boys pray before meals that their prayers have gotten shorter and shorter with the hopes of getting to our food faster :) After reading Courtney's blog I decided to challenge my boys to start their prayer out by praising the Lord for a few things first. They are usually very elementary and simple things, being that they are only 2 and 4 years old :) By doing this they are remembering His goodness in their lives first. I am really trying to do this in my prayer life too! It's so easy to jump right into the things we want and miss the opportunity to praise Him for what we already have :)

So is your glass half empty or half full? Or should I say...is your "cart" half empty of half full? Which of the small group questions above resonated with you the most and why? What resolution can you make today to live a life of gratitude year round instead of just at Thanksgiving?