Thoughts on being a Mother

I spent the day today at a Mother Daughter Luncheon Fashion Show.  I brought my Mother-in-Law, and unfortunately Laura had to work and couldn't be there.  As I was organizing my purse in the morning, I noticed a book mark that I had in my bible that made me stop in my tracks.  The scripture on it reads:

"Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord;

lift up your hands toward Him for the life of your children."

Lamentations 2:19

I had to take a moment to really reflect about my responsibility, as a mother, to take every burden and concern that I have for my children to the Lord.  After all - no one will pray as earnestly for a child, than the mother.

Let's break this down...

Pour our your heart like water before the face of the Lord.
If you have a cup full of water, it will not empty itself.  Someone or something has to come along, pick it up and intentionally pour it out into another cup, pot, sink, etc.  When it is gone, it's gone.  I believe the Lord desires for us to pick up all of the worries, cares, concerns and so on that we are carrying around for our children, and let them flow out of us (to Him).  We are not meant to contain those things, we are meant to "cast all our care on Him, for He cares for us..." 

Not only that, we are to pour out our heart like water before the face of the Lord.  This again is an intentional seeking of the Lord.  Going to the Lord is what He longs for.  It is what He desires of us.  When we go before the face of another person, it is to meet them, to talk with them, to share and to converse.  It is not a one way street - although that is what many of us are most comfortable with.   When we go before the face of the Lord, we are looking eye to eye in full engagement.  It is in the hour, that you have full assurance of the Lord, that He is with you in that moment, ready to listen, ready to guide and ready to wrap His loving arms around you.

Lift up your hands toward Him for the life of your children.
Have you ever just thrown your hands up in the air and say something like: "I give up!"  "I don't know what the heck to do now!" "Whatever, what's the point!"  That is the big give up - not the big lift up!  The lifting up of our hands toward Him is totally symbolic of the surrender of our own will, for the ultimate will of the Father.  It is our acknowledgement of our seemingly hopeless condition, that must have the help and wisdom of Christ.  Ever been there?  I know I have!

I am so thankful to see the fruit of answered prayer in the lives of my children, now as they are adults. Those times of praying and crying before the Lord to help my kids through a rough time in school, with classmates, in seasons of rebellion, in times of the emotional roller coaster (yes boys have those too) really helped me to grow as a mother.  I want to encourage you to not to settle for the status quo.  God has much bigger and better things for you, for your family, for your kids!  Be intentional.  If you sense something is needing to change, something has gotten out of control, something needs to happen, be specific and pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord.    Keep the spiritual life of your children at the forefront, and battle accordingly!

Happy Mother's Day!

What now?
I learned to apply this scripture when my kids were very young as I was a part of a Mothers prayer group called:  "Mom's In Touch International".  It's mission was to encourage mom's to pray for their kids and schools.  We would meet weekly and literally pray for the needs of our children, and the concerns of their schools.  Visit them online to see if there is a group already meeting at your child/ren's school and join!

Mother to Son

Ok, so this past week was prom.  I thought it was next week.  Anyway, 2 days prior, Steve said that he didn't want to wear a Tux, but his new suit and a gray shirt and dark tie.  To be perfectly frank, I didn't like it for prom.  Prom is formal...and it bothers me that some of the kids now a days tend to lean towards the more casual side of prom.  I didn't know why this bothered me so much, but I decided to keep my mouth shut.  For now.

On Thursday after work, I decided to take Stephen to The Men's Wearhouse to just 'look' at some things.  I told him he would have the last word, but I wanted to atleast let him look at a Tux shirt, more appropriate tie (of which he refused a bow tie) and cufflinks.  Within 20 mintues we had it all picked out and he left the store sky high.

I told him in the car that when it comes to dating or even just going to an event like this with a friend, that it is your job as a dude, TO MAKE HER LOOK GOOD!  Don't show up to disappoint, but show up ready to measure up to what SHE is wearing and to what SHE has prepared for.  It is all about the lady - step it up to HER level - not YOUR COMFORT level!!!

In the scripture, we are the 'bride of Christ' - he is ready, waiting for us.  Are we spending our time right now, getting ready and preparing for eternity with Him, or are we just settling for the bare minimum?  Let's get out of our comfort zone and step it up for the sake of our relationship with Christ.  Let's be prepared, let's invest our time, talent and resources into giving our absolute best to Him. It is, after all, all about Him anyway! 

Blessed Assurance

Today we celebrate Jesus, the One and Only!  Our table talk today was about those who are searching for meaningful spiritual truth and often find themselves mad at God for letting bad things happen, or excessivly searching for ways to gain inner strength through self help and psychology of our emotions, mind, body, etc.  It was all about self.

As I was listening to this discussion, all I could think of was the hymn:  Blessed Assurance.  Strange, since it has been years since I have sung most of the old hymns.  None the less, I couldn't help but share that it is our blessed hope, assurance and confidence that Jesus is the One and Only savior to mankind.  The world searches all of time for the type of comfort and peace that only the Lord Jesus Christ can bring.  It is with this, that I share this most powerful song that we sang in church this morning:

I WILL RISE

(Chris Tomlin)

There's a peace I've come to know

Though my heart and flesh may fail

There's an anchor for my soul

I can say 'it is well'.

Jesus has overcome

And the grave the overwhelmed

The victory is won

He is risen from the dead

I will rise

When He calls my name

No more sorrow no more pain

I will rise

On eagle's wings

Before my God fall on my knees and rise

The Gospel is simple.  And to be able to confidently say, "There's a peace I've come to know, though my heart and flesh may fail.  There's an anchor for my soul, I can say 'it is well'."

Have I really Changed THAT Much???

I read a book several years ago entitled "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman.  I just loved this book!  The five love languages that people most respond to is:

1.  Words of Encouragement
2. Acts of Service
3. Gift Giving
4. Quality Time
5. Personal Touch and Closeness. 

We all need all five of these in operation, however there will be one or two that will be off the chart, far and away, YOUR love language!  If you are not sure which one it is, just ask yourself, "What do I do most of the time to show my spouse, kids, family or friends, how much I love them?".  That will most likely be how you best receive love.

Any way, when I first read the book - my love language, hands down, was Gift Giving.  I just love getting things for people (even from the dollar store) and giving.  I also loved receiving.  Sometimes it was the gift of service, time, kindness, etc... no matter what it was, I would get butterflies of joy within me when someone would hand me something...it just said "I saw this and I thought of you."

My friend Lou Ann is Words of Encouragement.  She always blessed me with cards filled with words of encouragement.  This was such a gift to me over the years.  I still have all of the cards that she gave me and look at them from time to time.  Our friendship is deeper and more precious because she took the time to give me those gifts of encouragement. 

My friend Christina said last weekend, without hesitation, that I am totally a Quality Time person.  When she said that, I had to agree.  I really began to reflect on how much I have changed over the years.  Is it my age?  I don't know, but she was completely right!  One of my most favorite things to do is hangout with friends.  If anyone calls to go for coffee, or to get together to scrapbook or card craft, I'm there!  I will drop everything (within reason) to make it happen.  Why?  It is such a joy for me to DO LIFE with people I love, people I want to get to know, people I admire, people who make me laugh and who listen...those that make me feel better when I leave than when I got there.  I hope that is how I make my friends feel! 

So what is YOUR love language, and how do you use it to love on others?

Unscheduled Coffee Break

A friend called wanting to meet up for coffee at the Sbux right around the corner. Todd and I were in the middle of cleaning the garage, so when she called I was both excited for the welcome break, but needed to keep my hubby motivated! I asked my friend to give me 30 minutes - so we could finish - and me being in the garage with hubby, helping him, keeps him motivated. I was willing to do anything to keep him motivated to not just start the garage project, but to finish it in the same day! The topic of the day - the husband.

The more I talk with other women about the struggles they have with their husbands, the more it encourages me to 'take my own advice and do what I know to do to make the relationship grow and mature'. Because you know why? It doesn't just happen. Just because you can say you have been married for 10, 21 (like us) or even 30 years, doesn't mean that you have a mature marriage. Yes, it is always a process...but do we really want to keep going around the same tree every time something comes up? Sure, there are things that we agree to disagree on, however when it comes to demanding the menial on every issue - that can just exaust any body!

John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends." Our spouse is our friend. When there is a conflict with a back and forth spewing of words, the greatest thing (and often the hardest thing) is to lay down your own will, your own need to control or overly guide the conversation, your desire to have the last word - and give place to your love. There is nothing more humbling, freeing, and in time, fruitful. When guided by the principles in God's word - there is only good that can come from it.

Welcome to my very first blog! I am new to this, so new in fact, that during this process in creating the blog it asked me for a blog title. Title? What?! I don't know! After thinking for about 20 seconds - it hit me square between the eyes - THE COFFEE HOUSE!

I love the atmosphere of The Coffee House - it says "come on in, have a drink, stay a while, let's talk about what is going on in your life" and that is what I want to bring here. A place where you can grab a cup o' joe, sit down for a few minutes and have devotional time, sharing time, encouraging time.