Out of Gas

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10 (NIV)

Ice cold water: it was the only thing coming out of my tap. It had been one of those days with the kids when I thought to myself, “If I can just make it to bedtime, then I can…(you fill in the blank: clean the house, veg out on the couch, read something just for fun, talk to my husband in complete sentences—completely uninterrupted by children).” Yet it was bedtime, and my husband had just announced that we had no hot water…not even a little bit. So the thought occurred to me, I’ll go old school…I will heat the water on the stove and mix it with the freezing water from the tap, and wholla: warm water. Except, I turned on the stove and the pilot clicked and clicked and clicked, but it produced no flames. 

Well, it quickly dawned on me that our gas tank was empty. Needless to say, bedtime was going to be delayed a bit as we all headed to grandma and papa’s house for hot showers. On top of that, the gas company politely informed me that it would be 5-7 business days before they could come fill our underground gas tank. It appears I was not the only one who had run out of gas.

The truth is I knew better. God had been so gracious to remind me in His still, small voice many times before to go outside and check the gas gauge. But I had politely told God, “Thank you for the reminder. I will be sure to do that as soon as I finish (you fill in the blank again: wiping up this mess, putting away these clothes, feeding my hungry baby, etc.). Well, he had shown me grace time and time again, and we had hot water for many days…until the tank was completely dry.

How often are we like that in our spiritual lives? We run around wearing our many hats (wife, mom, sister, daughter, friend, etc.) and we let the busyness of this life drown out our quiet time with the Lord. We have all heard the saying, “Miss a devotional one day and you can tell the difference. Miss your devotional for a few days and everyone else can too.” By all means, this quiet time with the Lord was never meant to be legalistic-- another check on our everlasting to-do list. Rather God beckons us to spend time with him because he loves us ; because he knows we need him. Because he knows that this life without Him is just too hard and we will find ourselves feeling empty. Ever have one of those days when you just feel like you have nothing else to give? I have! When those times come, I hear God’s still, small voice beckoning me to come away with him and be his love. To remember that he is my first love, and without him I will be like the gas tank in my yard…empty.

The remedy is so simple. Let’s commit this day to run away with God daily. Instead of letting busyness consume us, let us intentionally drown out the noise of this life. You see? I needed much more than hot water, I needed living water, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14 (NIV)

Dear God, thank you for loving me so much and for desiring to spend time with me. Help me to remember that you are my first love and that you hold all things together in my life. With you I can do all things, but without you, I will continue to be frustrated, overwhelmed, and empty. Please still the voices of distraction that seek to draw me away from you and help me make the time to run away with you each day. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Application:

How often do we think we need other things more than time with Jesus, only to find out that we traded our peace for something temporal? Consider the course of your day. What are some things that tend to distract you from having a quiet time (TV, housework, fifteen more minutes of sleep, Facebook, smart phones, etc.)? How can you trade in those things for a truly relaxing and refreshing quiet time?

Verses to consider:

“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men; for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.” Psalm 107: 8-9 (NIV)

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” Psalm 42:1-2 (NIV)

This is a repost of my very first blog with Parakaleo. However, as I study the book of Revelation with the youth girls at my church, I feel the Lord beckoning me to spend more time with HIM....to allow him to be my first love...all over again. :)

Silence Please!

The other day, my sons and I were doing a devotional together during breakfast. It was the story about Zechariah in the temple. The angel appeared and told him that he and his wife were going to have a baby. Zechariah didn't believe God, so God took away his voice for a season. He was forced to be quiet and contemplate what God was doing in his life. I won't rehash the whole devotional, but there was one point that stood out in this devotional for little boys: "It's very hard to hear God speak, or anyone else for that matter, if you are always making noise." 

SO...we went outside. We were very quiet and listened carefully to all the sounds around us. We heard a car drive by, a motorcyle zoom past, a squirrel running up a tree, and a helicopter flying over head. But there was one more sound...a very quiet sound---a family of birds singing really quietly, but very beautifully. If we had been making a lot of noise--running around being preoccupied with ourselves--we would have missed this soft melody completely.

The above story actually segways into this next story : My husband was outdoors pressure washing our patio furniture. Even though it was a brutally hot day, he suited up in a long sleeve shirt and long pants to avoid being carried off by mosquitoes. He worked hard for hours, but he seemed to be consoled by the fact that he was able to listen to his IPod nano--a gift he received from us for his birthday.

Well, little did I know, but he mistakingly left his treasured birthday gift in the pocket of his pants... and I threw it in the wash with his clothes. Needless to say, it came out squeaky clean, but it no longer worked. I expected him to be upset... Not with me, but just a general frustration for not having his iPod anymore. However, upon me gently breaking the news to him he said the oddest thing--or at least the last thing I had expected him to say.

He said that he felt the Lord telling him that he was too preoccupied--he needed more times of silence. I must say that my husband mainly uses his iPod for listening to contemporary worship, Christian hip hop, scripture podcasts, and 3dm devotionals--all good things. BUT, these good things were blocking out ALL of his quiet time to listen and hear the Lord's still, small voice. Although my husband felt this in his heart, he was having trouble implementing it...so the Lord lovingly helped him out.

Are you having the same struggle? Is your time too preoccupied with stuff (electronic or otherwise)? Determine today to put the Lord at the center of all you do. Be diligent about making quiet time with him, and be blessed by the peace you receive from time well spent with Him..

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for being so patient with us. Thank you for creating us to need you. Please help us to take the time to quiet our hearts and minds and spend much needed quality time with you.
In Jesus' name, Amen.

"But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him." Habbakkuk 2:20

This is a repost from last year, but I pray that you will be still long enough to hear HIS still, small voice today. :)

Exhausted & Overwhelmed

Yesterday my daughter Quinn turned four weeks old! I have been in a fog over here barely keeping my head above water...but it is above water. I am not drowning although I totally felt it last night as my newborn cried for a few hours without ceasing. As an exhausted mommy, I passed her off to my husband, when he came through the door, and ran off to take a much needed hot shower....my haven.

I wept for a few minutes and let the hot water wash away my tears. I realized that I am overwhelmed and need help. But there is only One who can help me climb out of this perverbial pit...Jesus.

Since giving birth my devotion life has been little to none. My wonderful husband has taken over (and done awesome) running our morning routine letting me sleep longer! But as I have done this my quiet time with Jesus has been obsolete.

I miss hearing HIS daily encouragement that HE has called me to this position called "motherhood." His sweet voice reminding me that He will equip me in those moments when I want to give up. I love those "AH HA" moments with Jesus that refresh me and lift my head. Those times that HE allows me to share with another mom some truth HE has shown me. All because I choose HIM. Carving out time to chat with the Creator is life changing and will breathe new life into your soul.

I need to discipline myself to rise and have some quiet time, again, each morning to let my Heavenly Father remind me of who I am in Him. How is your quiet time? Do you need to carve out some time to be reminded of truth too?? 

Keep me safe, my God, 

for in you I take refuge. 

I say to the Lord, 

“You are my Lord; 

apart from you 

I have no good thing.”

 -Psalm 16:1-2

PRECIOUS MOMENTS

                                          Psalm 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God”

     I came home from work last night to my mom asking to take the girls for the weekend. After having just worked 13 hours I didn’t have to think long before giving her a yes answer. My husband was working the next day and he does 24 hour shifts so it was just going to be my 2 year old son and me. I thought about all I could accomplish tomorrow with only one child by my side before quickly falling asleep.

     When the morning came it occurred to me that I couldn’t remember the last time my son and I had been able to be alone together, if fact, sadly I am not sure there has been a time? His 2 sisters are usually here and my husband but today it seemed God had carved out a special day for he and I to spend together. Isn’t it amazing how the Lord knows exactly what we need! I know we have many things that have to be done but I chose to make this a special day, to put the chores and errands aside and just spend the day getting to know him more.

     We started our day with breakfast, then reading books. He decided he wanted to play musical instruments so we were a 2 man marching band in the living room for a while. I asked him what he would like to do and he chose to go to the park to play soccer and ride bikes so that’s what we did. I took him out to lunch then home for a nap. We ate dinner together then watched, “Honey I Shrunk the Kids” (one of his favorites). After the movie I took him for ice cream. What an amazing day of bonding with my son!

     I got to hear his heart on so many things today about our family. I was able to experience his personality and character like I have never seen before. There is a lot of chatter and business in our house normally, but today it was about him. I really think he felt special! At the end of the night he said, “Mommy you are my best friend.”  Moms, if you have many children or only one, there are multiple things that can distract us from knowing them and investing in them. Take the time today to invest in each one personally. God has many children but He is so personal with each of us! I was the one truly blessed today! I am praying that each of you gets to take these one on one opportunities with your children!

Heavenly Father, thank you for clearing my day and giving me the opportunity to spend one on one time with my son. What an amazing boy he is! We are so blessed to call these children our own. I pray that each mom who reads this blog will be encouraged to take personal time with each child. I pray Lord that you would clear their day, like you did mine, so they can focus on each special gift you have given to each one of these babies. I pray that all distractions be put aside and that they would get to experience the blessing in the hearts of their children.

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth (1 John 3:18)

But He Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. ( Luke 5:16)

Thoughts to ponder:

Is there something you are doing that could be put off for later so you can spend some time with your little one?

 Try to get a friend or family member to take turns watching one or two of your kids at a time so you can spend one special day with each of them. Schedule days for you and your husband to have some one on one quality time with each child, you just might be amazed at what you may learn!

Quiet Waters

“The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” Psalm 23:1-3

There’s a quote that I ran across the other day that I thought was so true. It stated, “Babies don’t come with directions on the back or batteries that can be removed. Motherhood is twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. You can’t “leave the office.” Hmmm, I love my kids very much…sometimes so much it hurts because I feel so responsible and so vulnerable at the same time. After all, I can only control so much. I have to commit my kids to God each day. I need to let my mind rest even if my body can’t yet. I need God to lead me beside still waters.

In “The Bathtub is Overflowing but I feel Drained: How to Deal with Mommy Stress” by Lysa TerKeurst ( a book I highly recommend), she tells a funny story about her dog named Champ and his tendency to run away…over and over and over again. She humorously states that while their little Jack Russell terrier loved them, he loved to run away even more. He simply “had no idea of the dangers of speeding cars, poisons that can be found in many garages and bigger dogs who would eat him for lunch.” Lysa lived on 12 acres of land at the time so she could not get a fence and she thought shock collar fences were very cruel…until he ran away for the umpteenth time and could not find his way home. She eventually ended up investing in an “invisible fence”—something she once abhorred. (As a side note, I think many moms start off feeling this way about spanking (NOT BEATING, slapping, or smacking—that is wrong), until their little one gets out of hand. I would argue that this should also be done in love and not overused, but there is definitely a time when the threat of momentary, slight physical pain can save your kids life. They may not remember all the good reasons why they should not run into the street, but maybe a little healthy fear of punishment will keep them out of it. Anyway, that lesson is for another day!)

What I really want to emphasize is Lysa’s point that just like her Champ, we too need to set boundaries as moms—for our kids, BUT also for ourselves. Perhaps she says it best:

“The demands on mothers seem to be never ending, but even the best athletes require a time-out every now and then. So do we. Whether we lean more toward being a slacker mom, supermom, or realistic mom, the reality is we need to give ourselves permission to stop being a mom for a while and just be a woman…a wife…a friend. I can’t tell you how many moms I’ve met who pride themselves on having never left their children for any reason. They put everything on the back burner in the name of being mom extraordinaire…If you don’t take care of yourself, and give yourself permission to get refreshed and refilled, don’t be surprised when you constantly feel drained and secretly resentful of your family.”

Lysa has so many other good points about a myriad of topics, and I would encourage you to get this book…especially for the “Refresh my Soul” scripture and devotional section at the end of each chapter, but I really want to harp on this idea of rest, quiet waters for moms. I went out for a mom’s night this past Saturday with a few of my girlfriends. We talked, laughed, ate good food, and listened to music. We had a great time! It was just what I needed…to simply be a friend and have friends without kids around, knowing that my husband was capable to watch our kids…even if he doesn’t do things exactly like me.

I would encourage you to first and foremost, be aggressive about your quiet time with the Lord—nothing can take the place of that time. Only God can fill the impression of your heart that he left when he made you. BUT after that, plan a little time to get away with your hubby or your friends…or just yourself and enjoy being a wife…a friend…a woman. Here’s the real challenge, try to make your escape somewhat regularly (once a week, twice a month, etc.). :)

Prayer:
Dear Father,
How we yearn to be more like you! You model the perfect balance for us. You created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. Please help us to have a healthy balance of rest and work so that we do not become so consumed with cares of this life that we feel exasperated. Lord, we need alone time with you to hear your still, small voice. Thank you that you are always speaking to us. Please help us to take time to listen. Lead us beside your still waters and restore our souls for your name’s sake.
In Jesus’ name I pray,
Amen.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give your rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)