A Child of Mine

After my mommy-blogger friend Lisa posted an Edgar Guest poem the other day, I'm reminded of how much I love this faithful man's poetry. I've been looking for one I read a few years ago, to no avail.
But I did find this beautiful poem entitled "A Child of Mine". It so beautifully expresses that our children are a gift from our Father. They are not ours, but His, and we need to be faithful to the Lord as we raise them up in Him.

A Child of Mine, Edgar Albert Guest

I will lend you, for a little time,
A child of mine, He said.
For you to love the while he lives,
And mourn for when he's dead.
It may be six or seven years,
Or twenty-two or three.
But will you, till I call him back,
Take care of him for Me?
He'll bring his charms to gladden you,
And should his stay be brief.
You'll have his lovely memories,
As solace for your grief.
I cannot promise he will stay,
Since all from earth return.
But there are lessons taught down there,
I want this child to learn.
I've looked the wide world over,
In search for teachers true.
And from the throngs that crowd life's lanes,
I have selected you.
Now will you give him all your love,
Nor think the labour vain.
Nor hate me when I come
To take him home again?
I fancied that I heard them say,
'Dear Lord, Thy will be done!'
For all the joys Thy child shall bring,
The risk of grief we'll run.
We'll shelter him with tenderness,
We'll love him while we may,
And for the happiness we've known,
Forever grateful stay.
But should the angels call for him,
Much sooner than we've planned.
We'll brave the bitter grief that comes,
And try to understand.

Brief Biography of Edgar Guest, below,  found here, along with this poem.


Edgar Albert Guest was born in Britain but grew up and spent most of his life in the U.S.A. He was a product of "small town" America and the values and lifestyle he had as a boy permeates his writing both prose and poem. He worked most of his adult life as a newspaperman, syndicated country wide and is reputed to have had a new poem published in a newspaper every day for over 30 years.

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The Diligent Are Richly Supplied

 Quote from Managers of Their Homes, by Steve and Teri Maxwell:

It takes a conscious decision to be in charge of our homes and children rather than letting them be in charge of us. That decision is "bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (II Cor. 10:5b) When our thoughts are God's thoughts they go like this: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Phil 4:13); "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (II Cor. 12:9); "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love, and of a sound mind" (II Tim. 1:7); "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heavens" (Ecclesiastes 3:1). These kinds of Biblical thoughts will encourage us as we undertake the discipline of scheduling our God-given responsibilities. (Managers of Their Homes, Steve and Terri Maxwell, pg. 2)

Signs you may need a home management schedule:

~ The tyranny of the present rules you.

~ You're doing all the work around the house despite having children over 4-5 years old who are physically capable of helping.

~ Your housemates have time for leisure but you don't.

~ You can't seem to read your Bible regularly because you're always behind or too exhausted.

~ You feel constantly behind, leading to crankiness and the tendency to overreact.

~ You don't have time for your husband.

~ You're easily discouraged about all you have to do, so you end up doing too little, causing you to get more behind.

~ You keep forgetting to pay the bills, or you waste gas and time running errands inefficiently.

~ You never have time to cuddle with the kids and read books during the day.

In many ways, a schedule can relieve stress from your life. When tasks become routine, they require much less physical and emotional energy. A normal day is easier to get through without having to: make numerous draining decisions, answer questions from other family members concerning their direction, or feel the day has come to an end without getting anything done. You start your day with a plan already in place for what comes next. (Managers of Their Homes, Steve and Terri Maxwell, pg. 3)

Friend, I can suggest initial steps, based upon my own experience:

~ Make a personal schedule and learn to follow it, and then begin to schedule your children. As moms we need to be good role models of self-control and perseverance, so it makes sense to master the skill of doing the next thing, before expecting it from our children. Procrastination and disorganization are not cured overnight, but Lord knows it will improve your inner peace, your daily mood, and your witness, to finally establish rule over these vices. See it through for the glory of God.

~ Start by praying for wisdom, and then make a list of the things you think the Lord wants you to accomplish each day, around the house and with your children and beyond. It may take a week to finalize this list. A winning schedule does not come together quickly. It takes prayer, effort and revision, and definitely perseverance. Use your list to write your personal schedule, deciding what must be done daily and weekly, and how long the tasks will take. Build your schedule around your daily devotional time. That is the most important thing and the foundation upon which your success depends.

~ When you are ready to schedule your children, start with a half-day schedule first, get the kinks out, and then add an afternoon schedule.

Order Managers of Their Homes here. I'm not receiving any compensation for recommending this resource. It seems strange to write that on a small, non-commercial blog, but when I mention a resource repeatedly I guess it doesn't hurt to add it.

Proverbs 13:4
The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. 

No, not every disorganized person is a sluggard, but the discouragement that comes from disorganization can lead to laziness. A diligent person knows how to do the next thing, rather than succumbing to idleness.





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Multitude Monday 5/6/13

This Momma stayed up very late dealing with Paul's first asthma attack. Exhausted and weary of health issues, I desperately need to count blessings today. This morning at the pediatrician's, the doctor informed me that we don't call it asthma until it's chronic; insurance companies don't like to see a chronic disease on health records so doctors have to be careful how they label issues.

So to clarify, Paul had his first wheezing and uncontrollable coughing attack, which goes with the curse of allergies.

My husband was treated for asthma this week also, and Peter needed a couple puffs of his inhaler. I've learned that tree and grass pollen, mixed with a cold virus and a little vigorous basketball, prove a terrible combination for the men in my life. Exercise during cold viruses at any other time of year is fine, but not during allergy season.

In heaven there are no inherited diseases or chronic issues. Today and everyday we can celebrate that.

Giving Thanks Today

Dear Father, thank you for these blessings and graces:

~ Glorious sunshine

~ For the way 4-year-old Beth looked in that pretty spring church dress. A little girl in a pretty dress with white fancy socks.... Why does that image of my daughters always make me feel a mixture of delight and sadness, as though the whole affect is too fleeting for words, because I know how fast times passes? And a little girl's manners are so pretty and pleasing on Sunday morning, to match the dress and fancy socks it seems, doesn't it?

~ Making chocolate chip cookie-bar batter with my Beth after church. Nothing delights that girl more than princess clothes, pretty shoes, and chocolate chip bars. Mary, my other daughter, went through a fleeting princess faze only, being more of a frog- and worm-catching tomboy. Each child under this roof is so unique!

~ New art books eliciting drawing excitement around here, once again.

~ Beth got a Max and Ruby video from the library and Paul, paying some minor attention to it, announced that Ruby is a very bossy sister and how did Max stand it? And where are the parents anyway?

~ Hugs and prayers from friends at church

~ A good sermon

~ Explaining the Ephesians verses about husband and wife roles to my sons, who are going through Ephesians as part of their homeschool load. After our talk, it occured to me how blessed the boys are to be learning such important wisdom so early in life. Sometimes it makes me so sad that I was saved so late in life (age 31), but I can give heartfelt thanks that my children are growing up so differently. While their lives will still come with monumental challenges, the comfort of the Father, the beauty of a bigger picture, an eternal one, will always be there for them. How beautiful is that?

~ A husband comforting a son through the panic of an asthma attack

~ Albuterol with spacer already on hand, making a middle-of-the night ER visit unnecessary.

What's beautiful in your life today, my friend?

 

 

Building Your House

Each spring brings many blessings to our lives and I'm forever grateful for the variety God offers us in the natural world. Every three months He changes the sights, sounds, textures and aromas by bringing us a new season. His many seasonal surprises for us are gifts...heart gifts, grace gifts...to render the human condition less tragic. There's always something to look forward to and that greatly encourages the human heart.

But over the past couple years, I've found that each season change brings new challenges for me as a mother and homemaker and teacher. Greatest among them is distraction. In the spring, for example, the weather and the flowers beckon us outside and as we follow their sweet aroma, we can get off track with other responsibilities. It takes time for new rhythms to develop and take root each season. A family's rhythms will naturally change with the seasons.

This spring, like last spring, I again pulled out my Managers of Their Homes scheduling book, by Steve and Teri Maxwell. As I work through a spring schedule for our family, I'll be sharing bits of wisdom from the authors. All of their materials are scripturally based, something I dearly love about their ministry. Jesus is always Lord.



God has given us a powerful example and analogy of scheduling in the natural world. Everything He has created, from atoms to the universe, has a periodic cycle. There is a timetable God has applied to each part of His creation. This is easily seen in the weather. Year by year, each season comes at its "scheduled" time, bringing with it predicable changes. Here we have a picture of our daily-life schedules. These change, too, as the "seasons" in our families change. Teri Maxwell p. 1, Managers of Their Homes

What does this speak to me? It reminds me that God loves order, not confusion. When we allow our false gods to distract us from needful tasks, our daily lives become battlegrounds for Satan and sin; selfishness and discouragement take root in our homes, poisoning our relationships and damaging our witness.

When we order our lives according to what God wants us to accomplish, we experience peace and our homes have a sweet, godly aroma...the aroma of righteousness, not the stench of sin.

We live in an era of distraction. In an era of me-first. A willingness to get up each morning and commit the day to the Lord, with the help of a prayed-about schedule, will keep us insulated from the idol trap.

1 Timothy 5:14
"I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully."

Let's guide our homes, my friends, for the glory of God.

If you've tried scheduling and failed in the past, let me give you a tip from my own experience. The failure rests squarely on the mother, in the form of sin.  As the guide of the house, we must have the strength and integrity to just do the next thing. Not get distracted by the phone or our e-mail or the news, or our scrapbooking or gardening. We can schedule some down time for our interests, but until that segment comes, we must endeavor to do the next thing, to the glory of God.

In our Smart Phone- and Facebook- and Twitter-obsessed society, the person who can keep on going will triumph. We've become slaves to the idol of recognition. We want to be recognized, celebrated, so we stay attached to devices that will give us another "hit" of recognition, as though it were a drug. And in fact, studies show that checking statuses on social media stimulates our pleasure center, causing us to do it again and again.

Maybe your idol is something different, but regardless, one thing is sure. You have one. Satan assures that we all have them...some of us more than others, depending on our time in the Word and in prayer.

Just say no; not me. Let's diligently do the next thing and sing praises to the Lord, squashing Satan's voice.

Homeschool Mother's Journal (May 3, 2013)

In my life this week…
The four kids are recovering from colds and mom and dad are beginning them (spring allergies complicate the health landscape). William Wordsworth made his way into my life this week. I ordered several art books from Homeschool Classifieds and the woman selling them had long lists of additional $.50 and $1.00 books for sale. One of the books I picked out was a compilation of the top 29 Wordsworth poems. His work represents true brilliance in words and thought. I actually took it into the bathroom with me twice and found it a welcome break from mundane household tasks.(When your youngest is 4 years old you can finally read about 2 pages in the bathroom before someone comes knocking).

What I'm thinking about...
Overwhelmed by the amount of work mothers do with no break even on the weekends, I began to think about what God wants in terms of workload. Does He agree with all work and no play for mothers? When I play I get behind and when I get behind we all get stressed, so it doesn't pay to play. Are you with me?

It occurred to me once again that a big part of my job as a mother and homemaker is training the children to pull their weight (not just make their bed). A veteran homeschooling mother said to me several years ago that if I didn't train my children to clean up their messes, than the teenage years would be no different for me, in terms of work. Certainly it's true that my kids need to see me engaged in relationships, not just in tasks.

When things are going smoothly here, I do well with the training. When I'm stressed however, I forget to fully involve the children. My emotional state compels me to isolate myself rather than engage them. The Lord helped me see this unfortunate pattern today.

A good reason to be a consistent manager is that a household in which one person does all the work is not healthy or desirable for anyone involved. A mother should be happy and grateful to have a family to serve, but should she be a martyr? Doesn't our worst come out when we aren't physically and mentally resting enough? (I don't work hard because I want a perfect house. No, our house is never picture worthy. I strive for containing the chaos most days and on Bible study day, having everything in its place with dusted surfaces and vacuumed and mopped floors.)

Side note on my husband: He's gone from 7 to 7 Mon - Fri.and another 5 hours on Saturday, so I don't expect anything from him. But he does help with the kids at night and before the dishwasher broke he helped load it.

In our homeschool this week…
We finished our Sonlight Core E books early so I ordered some from old Core E lists and some from the new Core E list, one of which was Half Magic by Edward Eager. We'll definitely be reading all that Edward Eager wrote. The boys thoroughly enjoyed this hilarious book and needed the lighter reading after Bruchko. Four siblings find a magic coin that allows them different adventures, including going back in time to the days of Camelot. Each adventure is short and laugh-out-loud funny. A great read aloud for the whole family, though it's listed as a reader.

I'm reading Cheaper By the Dozen by Frank Gilbreath aloud to the boys, one of the old Core E read alouds I ordered. It's also hilarious but my 4- and 6-year-old girls aren't into it. I plan on reading another Little House book to them.



 

 The boys are also reading The Story of Inventions for history, which I found on e-bay, listed as an older Core E book (Core E teaches history from 1850 -1950). My boys are grateful to have this book. Publisher synopsis: Great inventions, historical biographies, strong morals, and the godly character traits necessary for success are highlighted in this collection of stories. From the steam engine and the printing press to television and computers, a wide range of inventions is covered in short chapters that include reading comprehension questions. For older elementary students. 354 pages, softcover from Christian Liberty Press.



For science they finished up the Usborne Complete Book of the Microscope and will start See & Explore: Space, Stars, Planets and Spacecraft. We love, love, love Sonlight Science!


My girls continue to enjoy their Sing, Spell, Read, Write K-1 combo reading program. Mom still loves it too--something I can't always say after using something two months (this was an excellent curriculum choice).

I'm not using any other formal learning program with them, other than a K math book. We have plenty of social studies and science and art trade books on hand to share with them.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
 Trust good-quality books to impart knowledge, spark the imagination, and put your children on a lifetime learning path. Don't worry about assigning worksheets to prove that you did something in science or social studies. Seek out and trust good literature. Just because a child didn't produce something doesn't mean her mind didn't expand and make important connections. The more worksheets you assign your kids, the less time they'll have to fill their heads with real knowledge. 

Believing this is a bigger leap if you haven't been an avid reader yourself, and especially if you haven't been a non-fiction reader. My boys have been as interested in their non-fiction selections as in their fiction.

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
The kids skipped church last Sunday because of colds, but they were better by Wednesday and thoroughly enjoyed AWANA's last hurrah (a carnival-like fair). We have an awards assembly next Wednesday but then no more AWANA until September.

I was politely encouraged to help with Vacation Bible School at this AWANA church, working with the preschoolers again. (I worked with Cubbies for AWANA). Preschoolers are exhausting and they aren't good listeners yet, but I do love the funny things they say. I'm sure I'll enjoy the VBS preschool experience.

I did learn something about how preschoolers learn while working with the Cubbies this year. I don't have a background in early childhood education but I didn't need it to discover that preschoolers need to play to learn. As parents we read that all the time, including warnings not to choose an academic preschool. Now I know first hand that it's true. They don't have the listening skills to sit and drink in what a teacher is saying about a topic, but when they can use their hands to discover and manipulate, they learn.

Even Bible stories are better taught with things they can manipulate, rather than with just a storybook. I watched 13 preschoolers squirm their way through every oral and visual lesson, not gleaning much at all. Around 5.5 years old they seem more capable of learning through hearing and seeing and need less doing (except those who go on to have a tactile-kinesthetic learning style).

My favorite thing this week was…
...reading aloud to my kids and watching spring truly arrive. Color is everywhere. Also, watching my 4-year-old daughter play dress up and carry around hardbound chapter books. She will be quite the scholar I think. Always wants to carry a chapter book with her everywhere we go, and she keeps asking me if she's ready to read yet. Her Sing, Spell, Read, Write phonics song tells her if she learns the sounds, she'll be ready to read. She's learned them all rapidly thanks to this excellent program, but I've found over the years that going from learning sounds to blending sounds isn't always a quick transition. Each of my children has been unique in this.

My kiddos favorite thing this week was… 
AWANA fair, and catching frogs and crayfish and snakes. Peter, the oldest, also researched snakes quite a bit this week and Paul researched the states on our new 2010 World Book DVD ROM (purchased to go with Sonlight Core F for next year). Paul is very interested in everything about America.

Things I’m working on… 
I'm finally done with the spring clothing switch after one month of having a disheveled, clothes-filled living room. We kept transferring it all into the master bedroom before our Saturday Children's Bible Studies (3 to 4 kids now attend), but otherwise the clothes and storage boxes took up space in our living room so I could work on the project as I had time.

My kids love this house and never want to move, and yes, we do have nice living spaces. But there's no garage or basement and too little storage space makes my homemaking life a little different than what other women experience. I try to remind myself of that frequently when feelings of failure set in.

Next week we'll begin to tag all our Sonlight books. We have Core D & E (American History parts 1 and 2) and Core F books (Eastern Hemisphere) that need a small colored spine sticker so they'll be kept together in the shelves.

I’m cooking…
They probably put in this feature for the gourmet cooks in the bunch, but I stick to the same basic 10 - 12 dishes. Sorry it's so boring to read this. Only one of my kids isn't picky and I buy a lot of lean ground turkey to make different things. On taco night everyone eats everything so we have tacos weekly, as you might have noticed if you ever get down this far in the reading. Hopefully hubby will get the grill up and running soon.

Dinner this week so far: crockpot chicken, pizza, sloppy joes, tacos, baked ziti

I’m grateful for…
~ finding 2 jean skirts and a cotton dress at thrift stores so I can look and feel more feminine

~ the women I work with in children's ministry

~ that four seasons really exist in Ohio (not so where I lived in So.Cal for years)

~ my husband's hugs and appreciation

~ the Lord speaking to me about how to make things go smoother

~ the Lord giving me mental and spiritual rest as I pray

~ having a house that the kids love. Believe me, it's modest...we only owe $84,000 if that gives you any idea...but it's home to them and that makes me happy. It's much more than our Compassion children have to call home and I'm glad my kids realize that. Perspective is everything and helps tremendously with true gratitude. We need only as much as God gives and wanting more is really ingratitude. We can trust Him in all things, including in how many and of what quality our possessions are. Trusting him in this means we can stop wishing for more or better...and just smile and give thanks for what's before us. And not only that, but when extra comes in we can give it away!

I’m praying for…
...beyond the usual supplication prayers I'm praying especially for my husband, who needs encouragement from the Lord.

A photo, video, link, or quote to share (silly, serious or both!)…quote found in this Desiring God blog post

Many people describe marriage as the laboratory where our spiritual growth is fostered and developed. I find it to be equally true of parenting as well. God has used parenting in my life to refine and change me in ways I had not anticipated. He’s given me a child who requires more than I was trained to handle so that I would depend on him and not my own strength. I’ve also learned things about myself I never knew and have seen things in my heart I never wanted to see. I’ve come face to face with sins I didn’t know were buried deep inside, sins like impatience, selfishness, irritability, and discontent. While uncomfortable and sometimes downright painful, the sanctifying work of parenthood has been necessary and good. (Christina Fox)

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Thank you for visiting Glory to God and have a blessed weekend, friends!