The Invisible Woman

I ran across this video today and it really spoke to me . . . reminding me again why I do what I do and challenging me to be purposeful in all I do! Enjoy!

(Before you play it, make sure you pause the music playing on my blog -- scroll down until you see the finetune player located in the right-hand column)

Words that made me think . . .

I recently read these words on another homeschool mom's blog . . . they were yet another reminder for me to be PURPOSEFUL in everything I do with my children. They are mine but for a short time and I need to carefully steward every moment that I have with them.

Find Your Wings

by Mark Harris

It's only for a moment

You are mine to hold

The plans that heaven has for you

Will all too soon unfold

So many different prayers I'll pray

For all that you might do

But most of all I want to know

You're walking in the truth

And if I never told you

I want you to know

That as I watch you grow

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams

And that faith gives you the courage

To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings

So let my love give you roots

And help you find your wings

May passion be the wind

That leads you through your days

And may conviction keep your strong

Guide you on your way

May there be many moments

That make your life so sweet

Oh but more than memories

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams

And that faith gives you the courage

To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings

So let my love give you roots

And help you find your wings

It's not living

If you don't reach for the sky

I'll have tears as you take off

But I'll cheer as you fly

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams

And that faith gives you the courage

To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings

So let my love give you roots

And help you find your wings

Lord God, help me to see my children every moment of every day as the precious gifts from You that they are . . . help me to see my job as a mother to help them grow to be secure in Your love for them and confident to use the gifts and abilities that You have given them to serve those in the world around them. I don't want to waste even a moment of the time that You have entrusted to me in raising my children -- help me, Lord, I pray.

Reflections on discipleship

I've been very contemplative lately . . . it amazes me how quickly time is passing. My children are growing up right before my eyes, and if I'm not careful, I'll miss it. It's so easy to have misplaced priorities, placing importance on things that, in light of eternity, don't matter at all.

I've been challenged about the importance of discipleship -- my pastor-husband has been preaching about it at church the past two weeks and a conference I attended in May had discipleship as its main thrust.

In the midst of all that, the Holy Spirit reminded me that my primary disciples are the little ones that live under my roof, that I need to be PURPOSEFUL (there's that word again) in how I mentor them and help them to grow to follow Jesus. They need to be able to follow my example as I follow the example of Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1).

Like my husband said in his message yesterday, discipleship is often inconvenient. It is time-intensive and requires sacrifice. It isn't a one-time event or a class. It's not simply reading my kids a Bible story and making sure we pray before we eat. It's a lifestyle of pouring into them what God has poured into me.

It happens while we're sitting on the couch cuddling, driving in the car, grocery shopping, playing at the park . . . just going about life. As I PURPOSE to invest into them, my prayer is that they will be continually transformed by the power of God at work in their little lives. And as one of the conference speakers reminded me, transformed people will leave behind transformed places!

I read this poem today and it touched me -- probably because of all that God is speaking to me right now about the importance of really investing into my children. That happens by purposing to connect with them, valuing what's important to them and taking the time to really listen.

If I had my child to raise all over again,

I'd finger-paint more, and point the finger less.

I would do less correcting and more connecting.

I'd take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.

I would care to know less, and know to care more.

Id take more hikes and fly more kites.

I'd stop playing serious, and seriously play.

I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.

I'd do more hugging and less tugging.

I'd build self-esteem first, and the new house later.

I would be firm less often, and affirm much more.

I'd teach less about the love of power, and more about the power of love.

~~Diane Loomans

One of the things God is challenging me to do in 2008 is to be more PURPOSEFUL -- to know why I'm doing what I'm doing and to make sure what I'm doing is what I'm supposed to be doing.

In my visiting to other blogs, I came across this article about being PURPOSEFUL in praying for your children . . . I really liked what the author shared and want to incorporate some of his thoughts into my prayer time for my children. Here's the link in case you want to check out the article in its entirety -- http://www.bobhostetler.com/writing/bestof001.html

31 Ways to Pray for Your Children by Bob Hostetler

Following is the list I have developed, complete with brief suggestions for prayer from Scripture. Feel free to duplicate it--or improve upon it--to help you pray specifically and purposefully for your children to experience and evidence:

1 salvation "Lord, let salvation spring up within my children, that they may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory" (Isaiah 45:8, 2 Timothy 2:10).

2 growth in grace "I pray that they may 'grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ'" (2 Peter 3:18).

3 love "Grant, Lord, that my children may learn to 'live a life of love,' through the Spirit who dwells in them" (Ephesians 5:2, Galatians 5:22).

4 honesty and integrity " May integrity and honesty be their virtue and their protection" (Psalm 25:21, NLT).

5 self-control " Father, help my children not to be like many others around them, but let them be 'alert and self-controlled' in all they do" (1 Thessalonians 5:6)

6 a love for God's Word " May my children grow to find your Word 'more precious than gold, than much pure gold; [and] sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb'" (Psalm 19:10).

7 justice " God, help my children to love justice as you do and to 'act justly' in all they do" (Psalm 11:7, Micah 6:8).

8 mercy " May my children always 'be merciful, as [their] Father is merciful'" (Luke 6:36).

9 respect (for self, others, authority) " Father, grant that my children may 'show proper respect to everyone,' as your Word commands" (1 Peter 2:17a).

10 strong, Biblical self-esteem " Help my children develop a strong self-esteem that is rooted in the realization that they are 'God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus'" (Ephesians 2:10).

11 faithfulness "' Let love and faithfulness never leave [my children],' but bind these twin virtues around their necks and write them on the tablet of their hearts" (Proverbs 3:3).

12 courage "May my children always 'Be strong and courageous' in their character and in their actions" (Deuteronomy 31:6).

13 purity "'Create in [them] a pure heart, O God,' and let their purity of heart be shown in their actions" (Psalm 51:10).

14 kindness "Lord, may my children 'always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else'" (1 Thessalonians 5:15).

15 generosity "Grant that my children may 'be generous and willing to share [and so] lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age'" (1 Timothy 6:18-19).

16 peace, peaceability "Father, let my children 'make every effort to do what leads to peace'" (Romans 14:19).

17 joy " May my children be filled 'with the joy given by the Holy Spirit'" (1 Thessalonians 1:6).

18 perseverance " Lord, teach my children perseverance in all they do, and help them especially to 'run with perseverance the race marked out for [them]'" (Hebrews 12:1).

19 humility " God, please cultivate in my children the ability to 'show true humility toward all'" (Titus 3:2).

20 compassion " Lord, please clothe my children with the virtue of compassion" (Colossians 3:12).

21 responsibility " Grant that my children may learn responsibility, 'for each one should carry his own load'" (Galatians 6:5).

22 contentment " Father, teach my children 'the secret of being content in any and every situation. . . . through him who gives [them] strength'" (Philippians 4:12-13).

23 faith " I pray that faith will find root and grow in my children's hearts, that by faith they may gain what has been promised to them" (Luke 17:5-6, Hebrews 11:1-40).

24 a servant heart " God, please help my children develop servant hearts, that they may serve wholeheartedly, 'as to the Lord, and not to men'" (Ephesians 6:7, KJV).

25 hope " May the God of hope grant that my children may overflow with hope and hopefulness by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Romans 15:13).

26 the willingness and ability to work hard " Teach my children, Lord, to value work and to work hard at everything they do, 'as working for the Lord, not for men'" (Colossians 3:23).

27 a passion for God " Lord, please instill in my children a soul that "followeth hard after thee," a heart that clings passionately to you (Psalm 63:8, KJV).

28 self-discipline " Father, I pray that my children may develop self-discipline, that they may acquire 'a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair'" (Proverbs 1:3).

29 prayerfulness " Grant, Lord, that my children's lives may be marked by prayerfulness, that they may learn to 'pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests" (Ephesians 6:18).

30 gratitude " Help my children to live lives that are always 'overflowing with thankfulness,' 'always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ'" (Colossians 2:7, Ephesians 5:20).

31 a heart for missions " Lord, please help my children to develop a heart for missions, a desire to see your glory declared among the nations, your marvelous deeds among all peoples" (Psalm 96:3).

At the end of this list of things to pray over one's children, the author shared that he not only prayed these things for his children in his personal prayer time each day, but he would also pray it over them when he prayed with them at bedtime. Over time, he began to hear them praying for the same character qualities to be developed in them that he was praying about. His commitment to PURPOSEFUL prayer changed not only his own prayer life, but also that of his children. This is such an encouragement and challenge to me as I desire to PURPOSEFULLY parent my children and see them grow up to pursue God passionately.

A quote that I am pondering

I heard this quote on the radio the other day and had to write it down to think about later. I'm still pondering . . . here's the quote:

Raise children that make heaven rejoice and evil shudder.

As I've thought some about this quote, it really reminds me of what my priorities are as a parent. Yes, I want them to be well-educated and able to interact with others in social settings. I'd love to see them excel in the gifts that God has given them, whether that be in music or sports or the arts. I dream about what the future may hold for them in terms of marriage, ministry, career. But ultimately, none of those things are what matter most.

The deepest desire of my heart is to see my little ones grow to love their Savior more and more each day . . . that they will follow Him wholeheartedly and serve Him faithfully. I want them to be more focused on making a difference for the Kingdom of God than they are on making a living. So when things get busy and I feel overwhelmed with all that parenting entails, I want to come back to this quote and remember that my goal is to raise children that make heaven rejoice and evil shudder. As I concentrate on being purposeful this year, this is a good reminder.

A Day Apart!

Saturday, I had the privilege of participating in "A Day Apart" -- a ladies' day retreat sponsored by our church's denomination. Along with 15 other ladies from our church, I was able to take part in a wonderful time of worship, fellowship and encouragement in the Word. What a refreshing day!

The worship leader (and guest musician) was Frances Drost -- check out her website at http://www.francesdrost.com/ -- it was obvious that she is passionate about worshipping God and leading others into His presence as well. The speaker for the day -- Brenda Gay Shumaker (her website is http://www.designsforliving.org/) -- had us laughing and crying throughout the day. She was an interior decorator for 25 years, and now has a speaking ministry as well as a radio broadcast where she combines her background in decorating with challenging people to design their lives according to the Word of God.

In one of the sessions, Brenda took us through a house and paused in different "rooms" to encourage us in how we could apply principles from that room to our lives in order to be the women that God has called us to be. From that session, there were a couple of rooms that God impressed on me to be more purposeful in focusing my attention in the coming weeks and months . . .

• Children's bedrooms -- I want to be purposeful in praying over them consistently, especially prayers that come from the Bible. Years ago, when our oldest was just a baby, I read a book called How to Be a God Chaser and a Kid Chaser by Tommy Tenney. In that book, I remember that he gave Scripture passages for a parent to pray over their children. I let someone borrow that book and never got it back, but I think I want to try to track it down. In the meantime, I want to begin a list of areas to pray for each of my children along with verses of Scripture to go along with each one.



• Kitchen -- The kitchen is a place of nourishment . . . I want to grow in being purposeful about the kind of spiritual nourishment that I seek for myself, as well as helping my children learn how to "taste and see that the Lord is good". Just like I put thought into planning our meals, I need to give thought as to what the spiritual diet is in our home and plan appropriate "meals".



• Family room -- I really want to see our family be a light to those around us, to show the love of God to our neighbors and those with whom we come in contact each day. Our speaker challenged me by saying that we never know what God wants to use to draw someone else to Himself. I want to be a vessel that God can flow through to touch others.

In this, like so many other things that God is teaching me this year, the key is being PURPOSEFUL -- making deliberate choices to do what God is calling me to do and be the person He made me to be. It's not always easy . . . I can become lazy and apathetic, but that doesn't change what God is saying. I just need to change my response; I need to be PURPOSEFUL!

Word for 2008

If you know our family at all, you know that we love music. We usually have something playing on the stereo downstairs (or lately, I've been using our computer to play favorite songs). And you can almost always catch our princess singing her way through the day!

That being said, it's no surprise that God often uses words of songs to draw my attention to things He wants me to give some attention to in my life. I was encouraged back in December to prayerfully choose a "Word for 2008" -- an area that I felt God was encouraging me to grow in. After much prayer and consideration, I chose the word "purposeful" . . . I want to be purposeful, focused, diligent in every area of my life -- relationship with God, family life, ministry, everything I do.

This morning I was reminded of my "Word for 2008" while listening to a song by Nichole Nordeman called Legacy. The words are (in part):

I want to leave a legacy

How will they remember me?

Did I choose to love?

Did I point to You enough

To make a mark on things?

I want to leave an offering

A child of mercy and grace

Who blessed your name

Unapologetically

And leave that kind of legacy . . .

Not well traveled, not well read,

Not well-to-do or well bred

Just want to hear instead,

"Well Done, good and faithful one . . . "

As I think about the choices and decisions I make every day, I want to be more purposeful and mindful of the legacy that I am leaving behind -- not financial investments or widespread fame, but of a life sold-out for my Savior -- that those around me and especially those closest to me will see more of Him in me tomorrow than they saw today. That will be a lasting legacy which will impact my children and even generations to come.