by Tessa | Faith
Welcome to this week’s Word on Wednesday post!
This is a verse that I’m reflecting on this week. It is a great reminder to me at this “back-to-school” time of year that neither my children nor I will learn true wisdom by sitting in a classroom. If we are open to the Lord’s guidance and instruction, nothing will be able to take away from us the Wisdom from the Lord.
It goes hand in hand with Romans 1:20 which states that “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – His eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” My primary role as a mother is to teach my children about God and this will be understood from what He has made. So we will continue to spend our time in His world and learning about Him through the life He has blessed us with.
by Tessa | Faith
I came to Christ at a very young age and truly can’t remember a time when I didn’t have the gift of salvation. I feel so blessed that I was allowed the opportunity to know God my entire life but that also means that I forget how big of a gift salvation really is.
I chose this verse this week to remind myself that salvation is a cause to celebrate. It is a prayer to ask God to reignite the joy and appreciation in my heart. Even in times when circumstances aren’t perfect, I can (and should) still find joy in the fact that Christ is my Saviour.
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by Tessa | Faith
We do not run our family as a democracy. We respect each other and listen to everyone’s thoughts and opinions, but the final decision is not based on majority.
Sometimes the majority is wrong.
This is why I married a man who is after God’s heart and listens to His voice. I can’t say that I’ve always agreed with his judgment on certain things (and you can be certain that I let him know when I don’t) but I have always agreed that he is the head of our household. He has different insights than I do and, most importantly, it is His God given role. Does this mean he “rules” over us with an iron fist? Absolutely not. There are areas where I take the lead and there are areas where he does. We discuss things to come to conclusions that work for all. We make use of each other’s strengths and even give our children the chance to speak up and voice their thoughts on certain things.
A family is a unit. It works best when it works together. But, at the end of the day, everyone still knows that my husband is the leader. And I trust that God has provided our family with a leader worth following. After all, with my husband keeping his eye on the Lord, he is headed in the right direction.
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by Tessa | Faith
I have often tried to live by Paul’s word to “Be content in all circumstances.” I’m not. Content that is. There are certain things that I am content with and others things that I wish I could change (or fast forward). It’s very difficult to find the balance between being content and striving to move ahead. I also believe that dreaming and goal setting is important.
One of my goals is to increase my scripture intake over the year. I have been reading Exodus lately. I read the part when the Israelites were grumbling about not having any water. (Ex 17:22-27) In my mind it seems like a legitimate complaint. They were in the desert and hadn’t had any water for 3 days. I’d be thirsty too! The part that really stuck me today was the part where it says that the Israelites were not grumbling against Moses. They were discontent (to say the least) with their circumstances and complained to Moses. But God said that their grumbling was to the Lord. That was a bit of a slap in the face to me. How often do I complain about certain circumstances in my life? Right before I wrote this (and during the writing of this) I have complained and grumbled. Some internally and some out loud. It doesn’t really make a difference who hears it because the One who it is against hears it all.
So here is my prayer:
Dear Lord, Please forgive me. I try to be content in the circumstances and situation you have put me in but so often I fail. I really need your strength to stop grumbling and please extend Your patience toward me as I take steps backward. Help me to appreciate every day the gifts you have bestowed on me. Lead me to the balance of contentment without complacency.
Amen.
by Tessa | Faith
I have all but given up on rising early. I know that the early bird catches the worm and I would love to start my day with an hour of Scripture and prayer but it’s just not happening. Instead of trying to guilt myself about it, I’ve found another strategy.
I really like the idea of morning quiet time with God. I used to be an early bird. Then I had children. I now really love (and need) my sleep. I still sleep-share (co-sleep) with my littlest and he has a sixth sense. As soon as I try to leave the bed in the morning he will wake up and want to nurse for an hour. So I remind myself that he’s only young once and we snuggle in for an hour of dozing/nursing.
Here are some alternatives to rising early yet still getting into God’s Word in the start of my day:
- Set an alarm and go to bed on time. For me this means at 10:15pm my phone starts jingling and I start getting ready for bed. This is often step one to getting a good start the next day.
- Set an alarm for the morning (mine is at 7am). This one drives my husband crazy because he’s usually the one turning it off while I roll over to go back to sleep. But every once in a while he will be unavailable (i.e. outside working already) and I have to jump out of bed to turn the alarm off. Most of the time the littlest wakes up, but sometimes he doesn’t. And by that point I’m out of bed anyway so I (try) to stay awake and read.
- Another alarm perk: they are on my smart phone. My smart phone also has a Bible app. Since I have my phone in my hand anyway I can flip open the app and start my daily reading while laying in bed.
- Sleep through the alarm and wake up around 8ish with the kids. This has been my usual routine as of late. They run around in jammies while I grab my already made coffee (did I mention I have the best husband ever?) and sit at the table.
I have started grabbing a journal to jot down my thoughts on my daily reading and I click “play” on my phone and Max Lucado reads the Bible to me. Sometimes it takes me half an hour (or more) to get my 15 minutes of reading in. Sometimes they play so nicely that I allow myself a bit of extra time to delve further into a verse that really spoke to me. Or write a quick blog post to tell you that, even if you have little ones and sleep is too precious to wake up early (can you say “multiple night wakings?”), you can still start your day right, with the Lord.
C is now back in the house and will be wanting some breakfast (or probably a cookie as I gave Biscuit one while he was playing outside to buy me a few extra minutes) so I’m off to get everyone dressed, fed, and out the door to do chores.
Do you have any other tips for getting in a few minutes of God-time before you start your day? I’d love to hear them!
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Welcome to this week’s Word on Wednesday post!
