Full of blessings this Saturday night:
- Home for dinner (a rare thing), Daddy played with Baby Beth so Mommy could stand at the stove and tend to the pancakes--uninterrupted.
- Meals are a crazy time around here, but I've learned to completely set the table, thinking of every detail, before calling the family forth. While it's still not exactly leisurely, everyone does stay seated, including Mommy and Daddy. That's progress to sing about. Hallelujah!
- Mommy is learning a lot about grace. Mary found a vest just before bedtime and put it over her sleeper. In the not-so-graceful past, I would have insisted she take it off and put it away for the night. Instead, I said she could wear it to bed. Twenty minutes later, I came out of Beth's room--having nursed her to sleep--and found Mary still sitting up in bed, intent on buttoning this vest. Buttoning is a skill she desperately wants to master. Admiring her perseverance, I decided to leave her be, not letting her see me. Next, I went into the playroom where the boys were waiting for me to read. Sure enough, when I checked on Mary fifteen minutes later, she was fast asleep.
I'm blessed tonight because I sense my parenting is beginning to reflect this important lesson: Only say no when you can't say yes. Once you put this into practice, you stop exasperating your children. I'm not there yet, but I'm pausing more and reflecting first. Is discipline really needed here, or should this moment be grace-filled?
Colossians 3:21 Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.
Ephesians 6:4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
- The boys and I began reading Little Men tonight, by Louisa May Alcott. This book has one of the most pleasant, engaging beginnings I've encountered in a while. Ms. Alcott manages to endear her characters to the reader in just under five pages. Now that's superb writing! I'm thankful tonight for all the amazing writers--for their countless hours of thankless practice, perfecting a beautiful craft, worthy of delighting generations of readers, young and old. Writing doesn't pay well, and there may never be any noteworthy recognition, but it's still a priceless endeavor.
- Auntie Lorrie, husband's sister, will be visiting Tuesday through Saturday morning. We won't see her again until the winter snow melts, giving way to spring color and new life. She lives in PA, eight hours away, and doesn't drive in snow if she can help it. As much as having an overnight visitor is a lot of work, I'm really looking forward to her visit. We've become friends, after eleven years of being mere in-laws. I'm teary-eyed just writing that. It's such a blessing!
- Husband will drive back with Lorrie, stopping at James' house (his best friend) to pick up James' late mother's car. It is old--some twenty years--but it received regular check ups and only has about seventy thousand miles on it. We will pay James $500 in February. As long as it works reasonably well (it wasn't driven much in the last year), we are on our way to having a second car! Auntie Lorrie's church singles' group is going to purchase the first six months of car insurance for us. This was all put together through phone calls between Auntie Lorrie, James, and my husband, over the past few months. What a blessing--specially since husband is putting 600 miles a week on our van, driving around to different janitorial contracts--with no gas reimbursement! Gas prices are killing us. The van, already having nearly 170,000 miles, is being run into the ground, which is a real problem, given our family size. Anyhow, God sure puts things together neat and tidy, doesn't he? Even when all looks hopeless to us.
- It has taken me far too long, but I'm also learning valuable lessons about toys and clutter. I gave away a large portion of our toys months ago, keeping only the things I thought were necessary. Now, several months later, I'm purging again. Lorrie will take several bags back with her, containing toys, shoes, clothes, winter wear, and children's movies, to a fourteen-month-old boy (my husband's third cousin). The little lad's parents are mere teenagers and they'll need all the help they can get. I'm thankful we can help, as well as being grateful for another important lesson. Less is more.
I'm keeping only the train track set, the Tinkertoys, the Lincoln Logs, the two sizes of Legos, small wooden blocks, a few puzzles, board games, the dolls, kitchen and shopping cart. That's still a lot of toys! Yet, each of them is a classic, given to much imagination, suitable to multiple ages, and capable of building attention span. What goes this time is Fisher Price Little People (barn, Noah's Ark, Little People figurines, and accessories), all toddler toys, and all movies except a few Pooh Bear, a few Dora, a few Barney, and number/alphabet movies.
I hate to say this, but next time Lorrie comes, I'm thinking of unloading some books. I have a massive amount of children's books, but most of them are paperback, purchased through Scholastic book clubs back in my teaching days. My children rarely look at them, except the board books, which Beth still likes and needs. Fancy-covered, beautifully illustrated hardcover library books won my children's hearts long ago. My books never had a chance. They were sent home with my students for nightly reading, so they've seen better days. This precious lad may not be taken to the library for years to come, or at all, so he'll need my humble books.
School districts find millions of dollars for textbooks, but as a public-school classroom teacher, I found myself spending $100 a month on books just to keep enough around to encourage a love of reading! One lesson I wish public schools would learn--indeed, all schools--is this: Trust good literature to teach eager minds. Trust eager minds to devour good literature. And stop constant testing! It's dumbing down both teacher and student--a whole nation, essentially.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Children Are A Joy!
"Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them."
Psalm 127:4-5
Whether adopted or born to us, children fill our lives with unspeakable joy. When the nest empties, it isn't the child-rearing hassles that are forever etched into memory. It's the joy. Just the joy.
My husband wanted only two children, accepted three when Mary came along, and panicked when I fell pregnant with our fourth (we miscarried babies one and three). So panicked was he at number four, that he made a vasectomy appointment. While still sad and dismayed at that, I realized recently that in waiting until after the fourth (or rather, the sixth) to do the deed, he was sacrificing more than I know. He lost his job just after making the vasectomy appointment, and more than once, he's wondered if God was disappointed in that decision--especially since we're still paying the price of job loss nineteen months later. His age I'm sure has something to do with the slow return to full-time work. People over 50 just aren't hired at the same rate as younger people.
There are few things in life that require more faith than having multiple children, especially if Mom and Dad are older than the twenties upon starting. I don't find fault with anyone's family size, or with birth control or surgeries, but I do think we lose some of God's blessings when we limit our families. No, I don't think God punishes us. I just think we know a lesser joy for having limited what God might do through us. Sometimes he can do more through us by making us barren, or limiting our children, or having our children meet him early. Whatever the case, I think he wants to run the show exclusively. And our part is to trust his plan--even when it's unconventional (we're very old or young), or when it's painful (miscarriage, death, infertility).
All that said, I feel like listing the ways children bring us joy:
- They jump up and down when excited. Adults would never do that--or at least not when someone over ten is watching. :) Or is that just me?
- Their eyes dance when they've just seen something miraculous--like a lightening bolt, or a rainbow, or a frisky squirrel, or a hailstone, or a colorful bird.
- They marvel at the seasons and remind us that the seasons are marvelous.
- They forgive readily, love readily, believe readily.
- They fit against us perfectly when we cuddle up.
- They clap for themselves when they do something new (or is that just toddlers? :)
- They get super-duper excited about being served some cookies.
- Water gives them the giggles--in baths, pools, rain puddles, sinks, streams.
- They know it's the inside that counts, not the exterior. Thus, they aren't anxious about whether their hair is combed, their teeth brushed, their clothes wrinkled, their house messy, their face crumb-free.
- Pets fill them with joy, as though they've brought their first baby home from the hospital.
- Smearing things fills them with squealing delight--paint, jelly, frosting, butter, soap, mud (or is that just toddlers?).
- They love a story. And is it just me, or are animal stories a universal favorite, at least for the early years? Back to the pet phenomena, I guess.
- They learn new things effortlessly, all the time. Just not always in the order we'd like, or through the method we'd like.
- Adults come in out of the rain. Children play in it. Marvel at it. Laugh at it.
- They like cheese. A lot. They're already smiling when you reach for it in the fridge. Saturated fat, you say? Suddenly, at age two, I'm not supposed to indulge in so much cheese? Saturated, smaturated! Give me my cheese! Cheese baby! Gotta have it. What does that pediatrician guy know, anyway? Every time I go there I get sick!
- They wake up cuddle-ready. Every morning.
- They like to help. (Or is that just toddlers, again?)
- Excited, they show you their glorious scribbles, as though they rival the Mona Lisa in magnificence. And in your eyes, it's usually true.
- They love you unconditionally.
- When they see the first snow, they don't think of the work or hassle involved. Just the fun. Always the fun.
- If they're still in their pajamas at 11:00 a.m., it doesn't bother them in the least.
- Their eyes light up at the word pancakes.
- They call you Mommy, even at age eight.
- They love togetherness more than anything.
- Home is where their heart is.
- They like to be tickled--they don't mind out-of-control giggling. Adults get embarrassed if you try to tickle them.
- Shiny things delight them.
- They are unaware of your age. Don't enlighten them.
- They get excited about their years going upward. Adults get depressed about their "growing" numbers (or is that just after 35?).
- They sigh contentedly after nursing.
- They know what's important in life--God, love, family.
Last but not least, their love makes us feel like a million bucks. No, that isn't the reason to have children--for how they'll make us feel--but it's sure nice to rejoice in their love, for as long as we can.
Psalm 127:4-5
Whether adopted or born to us, children fill our lives with unspeakable joy. When the nest empties, it isn't the child-rearing hassles that are forever etched into memory. It's the joy. Just the joy.
My husband wanted only two children, accepted three when Mary came along, and panicked when I fell pregnant with our fourth (we miscarried babies one and three). So panicked was he at number four, that he made a vasectomy appointment. While still sad and dismayed at that, I realized recently that in waiting until after the fourth (or rather, the sixth) to do the deed, he was sacrificing more than I know. He lost his job just after making the vasectomy appointment, and more than once, he's wondered if God was disappointed in that decision--especially since we're still paying the price of job loss nineteen months later. His age I'm sure has something to do with the slow return to full-time work. People over 50 just aren't hired at the same rate as younger people.
There are few things in life that require more faith than having multiple children, especially if Mom and Dad are older than the twenties upon starting. I don't find fault with anyone's family size, or with birth control or surgeries, but I do think we lose some of God's blessings when we limit our families. No, I don't think God punishes us. I just think we know a lesser joy for having limited what God might do through us. Sometimes he can do more through us by making us barren, or limiting our children, or having our children meet him early. Whatever the case, I think he wants to run the show exclusively. And our part is to trust his plan--even when it's unconventional (we're very old or young), or when it's painful (miscarriage, death, infertility).
All that said, I feel like listing the ways children bring us joy:
- They jump up and down when excited. Adults would never do that--or at least not when someone over ten is watching. :) Or is that just me?
- Their eyes dance when they've just seen something miraculous--like a lightening bolt, or a rainbow, or a frisky squirrel, or a hailstone, or a colorful bird.
- They marvel at the seasons and remind us that the seasons are marvelous.
- They forgive readily, love readily, believe readily.
- They fit against us perfectly when we cuddle up.
- They clap for themselves when they do something new (or is that just toddlers? :)
- They get super-duper excited about being served some cookies.
- Water gives them the giggles--in baths, pools, rain puddles, sinks, streams.
- They know it's the inside that counts, not the exterior. Thus, they aren't anxious about whether their hair is combed, their teeth brushed, their clothes wrinkled, their house messy, their face crumb-free.
- Pets fill them with joy, as though they've brought their first baby home from the hospital.
- Smearing things fills them with squealing delight--paint, jelly, frosting, butter, soap, mud (or is that just toddlers?).
- They love a story. And is it just me, or are animal stories a universal favorite, at least for the early years? Back to the pet phenomena, I guess.
- They learn new things effortlessly, all the time. Just not always in the order we'd like, or through the method we'd like.
- Adults come in out of the rain. Children play in it. Marvel at it. Laugh at it.
- They like cheese. A lot. They're already smiling when you reach for it in the fridge. Saturated fat, you say? Suddenly, at age two, I'm not supposed to indulge in so much cheese? Saturated, smaturated! Give me my cheese! Cheese baby! Gotta have it. What does that pediatrician guy know, anyway? Every time I go there I get sick!
- They wake up cuddle-ready. Every morning.
- They like to help. (Or is that just toddlers, again?)
- Excited, they show you their glorious scribbles, as though they rival the Mona Lisa in magnificence. And in your eyes, it's usually true.
- They love you unconditionally.
- When they see the first snow, they don't think of the work or hassle involved. Just the fun. Always the fun.
- If they're still in their pajamas at 11:00 a.m., it doesn't bother them in the least.
- Their eyes light up at the word pancakes.
- They call you Mommy, even at age eight.
- They love togetherness more than anything.
- Home is where their heart is.
- They like to be tickled--they don't mind out-of-control giggling. Adults get embarrassed if you try to tickle them.
- Shiny things delight them.
- They are unaware of your age. Don't enlighten them.
- They get excited about their years going upward. Adults get depressed about their "growing" numbers (or is that just after 35?).
- They sigh contentedly after nursing.
- They know what's important in life--God, love, family.
Last but not least, their love makes us feel like a million bucks. No, that isn't the reason to have children--for how they'll make us feel--but it's sure nice to rejoice in their love, for as long as we can.
Friday, October 29, 2010
little rascals and some recipes
Here are a few pictures of my little rascals. But first, a few food/baking tidbits.
I found it! Finally! The perfect cornbread! You've got to view this delicious honey cornbread recipe. I substituted 1/3 melted butter and 3/4 cup milk for the heavy cream. I also substituted 100% whole wheat flour for the white flour. The honey and wheat are a heavenly combo. You wouldn't believe how tasty this is!
Terra, by the way, commented on the other post about red frosting. You have to buy the Milton gel colors to get a decent red frosting. She is a cake director and says she usually uses pre-made red and black frosting because they are so difficult to make on your own. Thank you, Terra!
We were reading a story the other day that mentioned fudge, and thereafter the kids desperately wanted to make some. Never having made any myself, or even watched someone, I perused some sites to learn a thing or two--mostly because Peter wasn't going to give me a moment's piece until I did! :)
This recipe seems good, and it included some tips, one of which was the purchase of a candy thermometer. Apparently things can go wrong easily if you step away or get distracted. I get that part. But have any of you done it successfully without a candy thermometer?
I found it! Finally! The perfect cornbread! You've got to view this delicious honey cornbread recipe. I substituted 1/3 melted butter and 3/4 cup milk for the heavy cream. I also substituted 100% whole wheat flour for the white flour. The honey and wheat are a heavenly combo. You wouldn't believe how tasty this is!
Terra, by the way, commented on the other post about red frosting. You have to buy the Milton gel colors to get a decent red frosting. She is a cake director and says she usually uses pre-made red and black frosting because they are so difficult to make on your own. Thank you, Terra!
We were reading a story the other day that mentioned fudge, and thereafter the kids desperately wanted to make some. Never having made any myself, or even watched someone, I perused some sites to learn a thing or two--mostly because Peter wasn't going to give me a moment's piece until I did! :)
This recipe seems good, and it included some tips, one of which was the purchase of a candy thermometer. Apparently things can go wrong easily if you step away or get distracted. I get that part. But have any of you done it successfully without a candy thermometer?
Little rascals playing dress up with some long-lost mittens and hats.
Some fingerpainting on a balmy October day. The past two days have been quite cold, but earlier this week it felt like summer again.
They decorated some leftover cookies. These were too small in diameter to give away.
Never leave your baby alone with colored frosting--not even for a minute. Yikes!
Did you ever notice that babies are forever putting food in their mouths sideways?
This is how a six year old looks when his football team isn't doing well.
Sweet little rascals!
Thursday, October 28, 2010
I'm blessed by...
Some current blessings:
- It was Christmas in October night at AWANA. The children fill Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes with gifts the AWANA families have purchased. Each child also makes a card to insert. Afterwards the AWANA kids have Christmas cookies for their snack. I offered to make three dozen, because in helping the prior two years, I noticed they often run short. The AWANA director likes them fancy (a real Christmas feel, you know). Why is it when you bake for your family, things usually go well. But when you have an outside engagement to bake for, things tend to go wrong?
Okay, you veteran bakers. Why does it take so much food coloring to get red icing for sugar cookies? We started counting six drops at a time, and eventually used the whole little bottle of red food coloring (big batch of icing) and we still only got dark pink. So, yes. I sent some really gaudy cookies to AWANA. Dark pink with green sprinkles, rather than a nice red/green Christmas combo. But you know what? My kids were proud, despite the hot pink. When all the kids went through the line to get their two cookies, it made my kids happy to know we'd contributed. I'm blessed by that. Very blessed.
- Paul, my six year old, loves football. Do you know he makes a list of PAC Ten teams and actually writes himself a playing schedule? Then he goes outside and plays football with himself, pretending to be both sides. (Sometimes big brother is involved.) Paul even does some sensational announcing of plays while he's at it. We do not have cable TV, and even when we did, football wasn't on much due to husband's lack of time. He taped games then never watched them. (Paul now watches these old, taped games.) How did my son develop this passion at such an early age? Is it the mathematician in him? He likes to calculate how many yards are left to go. What blesses me is that Paul has found a passion--something that brings him great joy and excitement. I think we are healthier people when we have strong interests.
Paul's other passion, by the way, is playing board games. If you want to make that child feel loved, sit down and play a board game with him!
Now, if only he'd get better at properly putting his games away. Sigh. We have a lot of game pieces around this house.
- Peter, age 8, has moved on from Junie B.Jones; he's now a Cam Jansen Mystery fan. Paul, age six, still enjoys Junie immensely. When I see them lounging around and reading for pleasure, I feel so blessed. I ached for this to happen-- for them to view books as their friends! Not just the ones Momma reads, but the ones they read on their own as well.
- My husband is very forgiving--never holds a grudge toward any of us. I'm not a needy wife; I don't really require anything from my husband. But I am sensitive, so being married to someone who doesn't hurt my feelings is a huge blessing..
- Mary's passion is butterflies, and more recently, building train tracks and Tinker Toy creations. I'm blessed by her contagious, animated enthusiasm. The butterflies have disappeared for now, so I'm curious about what other interests she'll develop this winter.
- My baby must be sleeping better at night. I'm starting to dream again. Three times in recent days, I dreamed I was pregnant. I've also had dreams about being a teacher and being late to pick up my kids from the playground. What's my excuse? I don't know. I only remember the part about arriving to pick up kids from recess ten minutes late--making the yard duty person angry. What's the meaning of that dream? Just a sign of stress, like dreaming about being in an exam you didn't study for?
- My husband sold our second car for $250 dollars today, to an auto scrap business. It became clear we needed some of it for the house payment, so husband looked about a month for a buyer. They came to get it today via a flatbed tow truck (which thrilled the kids!). For my part, I'm thrilled to have a little money to buy Paul a birthday present. I don't want much, Lord, I prayed. Just to be able to pick out a present for my precious boy. The money came within six days of Paul's birthday. To say I'm blessed and relieved is an understatement.
- The children's director has a copy of the adult version of Hinds' Feet on High Places. She's going to loan it to me, as well as a story version of Pilgrim's Progress. I didn't know she loved to read, but we got to talking about books tonight, and in the end I got blessed with the loan of two books I couldn't afford to order. I didn't ask--they were lovingly offered.
1 Chronicles 16:8
Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.
- It was Christmas in October night at AWANA. The children fill Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes with gifts the AWANA families have purchased. Each child also makes a card to insert. Afterwards the AWANA kids have Christmas cookies for their snack. I offered to make three dozen, because in helping the prior two years, I noticed they often run short. The AWANA director likes them fancy (a real Christmas feel, you know). Why is it when you bake for your family, things usually go well. But when you have an outside engagement to bake for, things tend to go wrong?
Okay, you veteran bakers. Why does it take so much food coloring to get red icing for sugar cookies? We started counting six drops at a time, and eventually used the whole little bottle of red food coloring (big batch of icing) and we still only got dark pink. So, yes. I sent some really gaudy cookies to AWANA. Dark pink with green sprinkles, rather than a nice red/green Christmas combo. But you know what? My kids were proud, despite the hot pink. When all the kids went through the line to get their two cookies, it made my kids happy to know we'd contributed. I'm blessed by that. Very blessed.
- Paul, my six year old, loves football. Do you know he makes a list of PAC Ten teams and actually writes himself a playing schedule? Then he goes outside and plays football with himself, pretending to be both sides. (Sometimes big brother is involved.) Paul even does some sensational announcing of plays while he's at it. We do not have cable TV, and even when we did, football wasn't on much due to husband's lack of time. He taped games then never watched them. (Paul now watches these old, taped games.) How did my son develop this passion at such an early age? Is it the mathematician in him? He likes to calculate how many yards are left to go. What blesses me is that Paul has found a passion--something that brings him great joy and excitement. I think we are healthier people when we have strong interests.
Paul's other passion, by the way, is playing board games. If you want to make that child feel loved, sit down and play a board game with him!
Now, if only he'd get better at properly putting his games away. Sigh. We have a lot of game pieces around this house.
- Peter, age 8, has moved on from Junie B.Jones; he's now a Cam Jansen Mystery fan. Paul, age six, still enjoys Junie immensely. When I see them lounging around and reading for pleasure, I feel so blessed. I ached for this to happen-- for them to view books as their friends! Not just the ones Momma reads, but the ones they read on their own as well.
- My husband is very forgiving--never holds a grudge toward any of us. I'm not a needy wife; I don't really require anything from my husband. But I am sensitive, so being married to someone who doesn't hurt my feelings is a huge blessing..
- Mary's passion is butterflies, and more recently, building train tracks and Tinker Toy creations. I'm blessed by her contagious, animated enthusiasm. The butterflies have disappeared for now, so I'm curious about what other interests she'll develop this winter.
- My baby must be sleeping better at night. I'm starting to dream again. Three times in recent days, I dreamed I was pregnant. I've also had dreams about being a teacher and being late to pick up my kids from the playground. What's my excuse? I don't know. I only remember the part about arriving to pick up kids from recess ten minutes late--making the yard duty person angry. What's the meaning of that dream? Just a sign of stress, like dreaming about being in an exam you didn't study for?
- My husband sold our second car for $250 dollars today, to an auto scrap business. It became clear we needed some of it for the house payment, so husband looked about a month for a buyer. They came to get it today via a flatbed tow truck (which thrilled the kids!). For my part, I'm thrilled to have a little money to buy Paul a birthday present. I don't want much, Lord, I prayed. Just to be able to pick out a present for my precious boy. The money came within six days of Paul's birthday. To say I'm blessed and relieved is an understatement.
- The children's director has a copy of the adult version of Hinds' Feet on High Places. She's going to loan it to me, as well as a story version of Pilgrim's Progress. I didn't know she loved to read, but we got to talking about books tonight, and in the end I got blessed with the loan of two books I couldn't afford to order. I didn't ask--they were lovingly offered.
1 Chronicles 16:8
Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
a recommendation
Hinds' Feet On High Places, by Hannah Hurnard (Delightfully Illustrated and Arranged for Children by Dian Layton)
Excerpt from pages 108-111
"At last she put her hand in His and said softly, "My Lord, I will tell You what I learned."
"Tell me," He answered gently.
"First," she said, "I learned that I must accept with joy every path that You lead me on and everything that You let happen to me. I am not to try to get away from what You want for me; I am to lay down my own desires and be Your little handmaiden, Acceptance-With-Joy."
He nodded without speaking and she went on. "Then I learned that I must forgive when others are allowed to hurt me. I am to say, 'Here I am, Your little handmaiden Bearing-With-Love.' Then I will have the power to bring good out of the bad things that happen to me."
He nodded again and she smiled happily.
"The third thing I learned was that You, my Shepherd King, never looked at me as I was--weak and crooked and fearful. You saw me as I would be when You had done what You promised. You always treated me as though I were already the King's daughter and not poor little Much-Afraid." She stopped and looked up into His face. "Oh, King, I want to treat others the way You have treated me!"
He smiled at her with a very lovely smile and nodded for her to keep on.
"The fourth thing was really the first lesson I learned up here, on the High Places. Everything that happens in life, no matter how crooked and ugly it may seem to be, can be changed if I treat it with love, forgiveness, and obedience to Your will."
"You let us meet with the bad and wrong things that You want changed. Maybe that is why we are in this world. You want the sorrow and suffering, the ugly and wrong things, to be made into something beautiful. You want us to overcome evil with good."
At last He spoke. "You have learned well. Because of these lessons, I was able to change you from limping, crippled Much-Afraid into Grace and Glory with the hinds' feet. Now you can run and leap on the mountains."
"So remember this: As long as you are willing to be Acceptance-With-Joy and Bearing-With-Love, you can never again become crippled, and you will be able to go where I lead. Now use your hinds' feet again. I am going to lead you to another part of the mountain."
Excerpt from page 113, toward the end of the book:
Then Grace and Glory (formerly Much-Afraid) looked over at the great waterfall, which joyfully sang the water song as the waters poured themselves forth.
Come, oh come! Let us away
Lower and lower every day.
From the heights we leap and flow
To the valleys far below.
Always answering to the call,
To the lowest place of all.
Suddenly she understood. She was only one of the many, many servants of the King who had been brought to the High Places. She was only one drop among the millions of self-givers who could now pour out their lives like the waterfall.
"He brought me here for this," she whispered to herself.
The King nodded.
______________________________________
Buy this book for your children, please! Or borrow it from your church library. It may not be five-star writing, but my boys understood every word of it. Each night, they didn't want me to stop reading. Each night, I cried over the beauty and truth of the words. I grew spiritually, too, while reading it!
Most importantly, it has given me valuable tools and language for speaking to my children about hardships, and about why God allows them. After reading this book, youngsters will actually understand why they must surrender their will (desires) to God. Too, it can be reread often, and the concepts alluded to, throughout a child's upbringing and young adulthood.
Children my boys' ages (6 and 8) often understand the concept of salvation, but not that of Lordship. I have spoken of it for years, but this book introduces it in story form, and I sensed a deeper comprehension in both boys. I am so excited for them!
Sorrow and Suffering are Much-Afraid's helpers (given to her by the Shepherd (Jesus)), who hold her hands as she climbs to the High Places. Much-Afraid starts out crippled at the mouth and legs--later to be healed, which is symbolic of Jesus making our hearts more beautiful, after we surrender our will.
Along the journey she meets some enemies (her unsaved relatives), in the form of Pride, Self-Pity, Resentment, Bitterness.
How I wish I had known about these enemies, growing up! Think about how useful (in Kingdom speak) our children will be, if we teach them early about Lordship, about Acceptance-With-Joy, about Bearing-With-Love. And about our enemies--Pride, Self-Pity, Resentment, Bitterness--who would stifle the voice of God, if allowed.
Now, there are no shortcuts to the learning that sorrow and suffering afford us. How I wish there were! I know my boys will have to go through things on their own, as adults, to fully understand the beauty of sorrow and suffering. But all the things they are enduring now, as a result of financial strain, fit right into these concepts, and they will remember this time, and these lessons.
This book can be read at any time with young children, but it's especially valuable when your family, or your child, is going through a trial.
I plan on looking for the adult version right away, which I understand is a classic devotional.
Peter was especially blessed, since he deals with some huge hardships--vocal/motor tics, ADHD, Obsessive/Compulsive issues (distortion of religious beliefs and contamination obsessions).
One person some of you know online, who reminds me of Much-Afraid (who became Grace and Glory) is Ann Voskamp. Ann has suffered in her life, in ways chronicled on her blog A Holy Experience. Her mother was diagnosed with Split Personality Disorder while Ann was still a child, and went into an institution for an undisclosed amount of time, which left Ann to mother and cook for her whole family, at the age of nine. Her father would not allow the family to discuss the mother's absence or illness. They lived in secrecy, rather than with support.
Later, when Ann was older, her mother disappeared for awhile, which eventually led to her father remarrying-- breaking Ann's heart.
Also, Ann has agoraphobia, which apparently used to be more debilitating than it is now. Most of you have probably visited Ann's blog many times, but if not, know that it's always a good read--very spiritual and also poetic, partially because of her signature sentence length (she writes very long and winding sentences, which no one else could get away with. But from her, it is poetry.).
I don't want to sound like I'm worshipping a person, which we humans are apt to do. Ann is only spiritually beautiful because of what God has allowed in her life--none of her stunning spiritual revelations or her poetry are of her. It's all God, using the gifts he has given her to bring glory to Himself. She has learned to willingly pour herself out for Kingdom purposes. She walked the path to the "High Places", and now God uses her mightily every day, at home and in the blogsphere. She is a giant in the Christian blog world, and her post today will illustrate why.
Ann's life work is her family, and only secondly, her writing. Her most important life lesson to date, that of gratitude, marks the cornerstone of her Christian walk. She has learned that to deal with our enemies--Pride, Self-Pity, Resentment, Bitterness--we must be grateful. We must choose gratitude, clothe ourselves in it, even. (Humility finds its way into all her posts, as well.)
It's not a new lesson, but it's a timeless one. The Christian mothers in abject poverty have no education or speaking platform, but I know they've come to the same conclusion. Gratitude.
It heals, strengthens, and endures.
Excerpt from pages 108-111
"At last she put her hand in His and said softly, "My Lord, I will tell You what I learned."
"Tell me," He answered gently.
"First," she said, "I learned that I must accept with joy every path that You lead me on and everything that You let happen to me. I am not to try to get away from what You want for me; I am to lay down my own desires and be Your little handmaiden, Acceptance-With-Joy."
He nodded without speaking and she went on. "Then I learned that I must forgive when others are allowed to hurt me. I am to say, 'Here I am, Your little handmaiden Bearing-With-Love.' Then I will have the power to bring good out of the bad things that happen to me."
He nodded again and she smiled happily.
"The third thing I learned was that You, my Shepherd King, never looked at me as I was--weak and crooked and fearful. You saw me as I would be when You had done what You promised. You always treated me as though I were already the King's daughter and not poor little Much-Afraid." She stopped and looked up into His face. "Oh, King, I want to treat others the way You have treated me!"
He smiled at her with a very lovely smile and nodded for her to keep on.
"The fourth thing was really the first lesson I learned up here, on the High Places. Everything that happens in life, no matter how crooked and ugly it may seem to be, can be changed if I treat it with love, forgiveness, and obedience to Your will."
"You let us meet with the bad and wrong things that You want changed. Maybe that is why we are in this world. You want the sorrow and suffering, the ugly and wrong things, to be made into something beautiful. You want us to overcome evil with good."
At last He spoke. "You have learned well. Because of these lessons, I was able to change you from limping, crippled Much-Afraid into Grace and Glory with the hinds' feet. Now you can run and leap on the mountains."
"So remember this: As long as you are willing to be Acceptance-With-Joy and Bearing-With-Love, you can never again become crippled, and you will be able to go where I lead. Now use your hinds' feet again. I am going to lead you to another part of the mountain."
Excerpt from page 113, toward the end of the book:
Then Grace and Glory (formerly Much-Afraid) looked over at the great waterfall, which joyfully sang the water song as the waters poured themselves forth.
Come, oh come! Let us away
Lower and lower every day.
From the heights we leap and flow
To the valleys far below.
Always answering to the call,
To the lowest place of all.
Suddenly she understood. She was only one of the many, many servants of the King who had been brought to the High Places. She was only one drop among the millions of self-givers who could now pour out their lives like the waterfall.
"He brought me here for this," she whispered to herself.
The King nodded.
______________________________________
Buy this book for your children, please! Or borrow it from your church library. It may not be five-star writing, but my boys understood every word of it. Each night, they didn't want me to stop reading. Each night, I cried over the beauty and truth of the words. I grew spiritually, too, while reading it!
Most importantly, it has given me valuable tools and language for speaking to my children about hardships, and about why God allows them. After reading this book, youngsters will actually understand why they must surrender their will (desires) to God. Too, it can be reread often, and the concepts alluded to, throughout a child's upbringing and young adulthood.
Children my boys' ages (6 and 8) often understand the concept of salvation, but not that of Lordship. I have spoken of it for years, but this book introduces it in story form, and I sensed a deeper comprehension in both boys. I am so excited for them!
Sorrow and Suffering are Much-Afraid's helpers (given to her by the Shepherd (Jesus)), who hold her hands as she climbs to the High Places. Much-Afraid starts out crippled at the mouth and legs--later to be healed, which is symbolic of Jesus making our hearts more beautiful, after we surrender our will.
Along the journey she meets some enemies (her unsaved relatives), in the form of Pride, Self-Pity, Resentment, Bitterness.
How I wish I had known about these enemies, growing up! Think about how useful (in Kingdom speak) our children will be, if we teach them early about Lordship, about Acceptance-With-Joy, about Bearing-With-Love. And about our enemies--Pride, Self-Pity, Resentment, Bitterness--who would stifle the voice of God, if allowed.
Now, there are no shortcuts to the learning that sorrow and suffering afford us. How I wish there were! I know my boys will have to go through things on their own, as adults, to fully understand the beauty of sorrow and suffering. But all the things they are enduring now, as a result of financial strain, fit right into these concepts, and they will remember this time, and these lessons.
This book can be read at any time with young children, but it's especially valuable when your family, or your child, is going through a trial.
I plan on looking for the adult version right away, which I understand is a classic devotional.
Peter was especially blessed, since he deals with some huge hardships--vocal/motor tics, ADHD, Obsessive/Compulsive issues (distortion of religious beliefs and contamination obsessions).
One person some of you know online, who reminds me of Much-Afraid (who became Grace and Glory) is Ann Voskamp. Ann has suffered in her life, in ways chronicled on her blog A Holy Experience. Her mother was diagnosed with Split Personality Disorder while Ann was still a child, and went into an institution for an undisclosed amount of time, which left Ann to mother and cook for her whole family, at the age of nine. Her father would not allow the family to discuss the mother's absence or illness. They lived in secrecy, rather than with support.
Later, when Ann was older, her mother disappeared for awhile, which eventually led to her father remarrying-- breaking Ann's heart.
Also, Ann has agoraphobia, which apparently used to be more debilitating than it is now. Most of you have probably visited Ann's blog many times, but if not, know that it's always a good read--very spiritual and also poetic, partially because of her signature sentence length (she writes very long and winding sentences, which no one else could get away with. But from her, it is poetry.).
I don't want to sound like I'm worshipping a person, which we humans are apt to do. Ann is only spiritually beautiful because of what God has allowed in her life--none of her stunning spiritual revelations or her poetry are of her. It's all God, using the gifts he has given her to bring glory to Himself. She has learned to willingly pour herself out for Kingdom purposes. She walked the path to the "High Places", and now God uses her mightily every day, at home and in the blogsphere. She is a giant in the Christian blog world, and her post today will illustrate why.
Ann's life work is her family, and only secondly, her writing. Her most important life lesson to date, that of gratitude, marks the cornerstone of her Christian walk. She has learned that to deal with our enemies--Pride, Self-Pity, Resentment, Bitterness--we must be grateful. We must choose gratitude, clothe ourselves in it, even. (Humility finds its way into all her posts, as well.)
It's not a new lesson, but it's a timeless one. The Christian mothers in abject poverty have no education or speaking platform, but I know they've come to the same conclusion. Gratitude.
It heals, strengthens, and endures.
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