Concepts from God's Way of Life

Recently I have started back on my building up to my running plan. I don't listen to any music while I run, but I have recently asked God to bring to my mind some of His concepts for life as I run. It has been fun and fascinating.

This morning ~ I will try to lay out the trail of my mind.

As I ran down one street a woman crossed in front of me and had a big dog on a leash. I decided to turn left there - it occurred to me, we each take different paths.

As I continued to run it began to get harder. I thought, life is hard, you have to work at it.

There were many flowers and a few cars that were red. Of course the blood of Christ came to mind and the more I ran, the more I saw of red. It was everywhere.

There were birds singing and I thought, there are times that we sing and then times we just need and want to be quiet.

There was a moving truck and I thought about the seasons in life, moving not only physically from place to place, but emotionally from A to Z.

I saw a bird fly to the top of the tree, and I thought I know there are times that we are at the top of something in life, but in general God wants us to give our seat up.

Our neighborhood is known for rattlesnakes and so I'm always on the look out for snakes especially in the empty fields that are at the end of the street. That, of course makes me think of Satan, such a sneaky one, lying in wait for an attack on God's people.

As I run on my street to get home, for some reason I always think of cows....I know that sounds funny. I'm not thinking of myself as a cow, but I do think of how cows come home to eat at the end of the day. I'm glad to get home when I arrive!!

When I get home I am ready for some water. I pray that I never get tired of Living Water from God. He is my refreshment!!

Running really isn't something I love, but I enjoy it more now than I have in the past.

New Things in Our Lives

Tried a new sugar cookie recipe and I would like to recommend it!! I didn't put the sprinkles on them, but I really enjoyed them.


New game in our closet!! Settlers of Catan. Rachel and Sean Landolt drove through and spent the night and taught us how to play. We are hooked now and so when you come, you will have to play!!

New Blackberry phones in our hands ~ ~ mine is the RED one. Our phones were exactly alike before May 1 (for the past 2 years) and they were very easy to get mixed up. Matter of fact twice we have been at the Pope's house and mixed our phones with hers. I kept calling Daniel and would get Beth Pope on the phone and kept wondering what the deal was!! Life is wild anytime you are with Beth Pope!! Since my new phone came in the middle of the wedding details I really am daily learning new things about it. I have enjoyed it!!

The best newness that we have in our life is a person - Jason Lee Grassie!! Our new son-in-love!! What should I tell you about him? Well, for starters he had enough wisdom to go slow in the beginning of his time with Hannah, to come and sit in our living room and ask Daniel --"Is there anything I need to know as I begin to date Hannah?" That is just the beginning of his humbleness!! Jason is a person who is good at making decisions and he is also totally confident enough to ask for advice before making his final decision. Jason is a very hard worker and if something doesn't work one way, he will try another way!! Remembering names is another gift that he has. Very personable when he meets you and is a great listener. He is a seeker of God's Word and has insightful questions. Well, I think you get the idea, We are totally in love with him and impressed with how God has fashioned his life. He is a grad student at GWU and works full-time with Frank Lucas, an Oklahoma representative. DC is the first home for Hannah and Jason and they are off to a fabulous start!!

Recap in Pictures

Hannah and I picked up Alison, Cailyn and Corban on Fri., April 30th. We had a rough drive because Corban wasn't really enjoying his seat. He was very happy to be in Abilene. Cailyn slept on a mat of blankets on the floor of on my side of the bed. We were able to sing and read and pray each night. What a JOY!! Corban slept in the room with Alison ~ he had a harder time getting use to a place other than his own bedroom. I pray his weeks back home can be settled back into a routine for his sake and Alison and Justin. We tried to keep the kids bed schedule for the most part. During the day we had "adventures"!!


The Grace Museum

Vulnerability

Written April 23rd
....Coming home with a new child or being a new bride ~~ these roles can put you in a season of vulnerability. I do remember questioning my mom about getting from raising a newborn to having such a loving relationship with her and getting to know God as I grew up. How was I going to repeat that experience with Alison, our first born? It would be easy to have an ABC plan and it also would be easy to give into the fear that is quick to come.

The years that our girls have dated and married (Hannah's sweet day is quickly approaching) have helped me see our marriage as new when we actually have been married over 30 years. It is helpful to see how the guys have pursued them - flowers, notes of endearment, laughing. Watching them has reminded me what we can lose or forget along the way. Fear can enter in and we become vulnerable and give up on this relationship that can at times be so hard.

This week, I heard that Do Not Be Afraid is the most frequent command in the Bible. I need to go check that out on Bible Gateway. The next chapter in Sacred Parenting sites verse after verse about fear and what God wants for us as parents. Satan is constantly trying to convince us to give in to fear and vulnerability, which can lead to robbing our children of experiences needed for their growth. The author reminds us, "Courage doesn't always get rewarded with success...through sacred parenting we learn to act courageously, regardless of how afraid we may feel. And when we step out in faith, we allow God to shape our souls in ways that will develop us far beyond the parenting part of our lives."

I am finally finishing up this post today, May 23rd. As you know much has been happening in our lives even when I wrote this back in April. I did not finish the book, Sacred Parenting before Alison and Justin left to return to Lima, so let me know if you have purchased it and are reading it and what you think.

Many pictures will follow about our wonderful time with Alison/Justin and the grandkids and also of the great experience of Hannah and Jason's covenant with God and one another. Blessings to all!!

Listening and JOY

A couple of weeks ago I experienced a time of more intense listening. The idea of listening as a spiritual discipline came to mind. I found it very hard to hold back, I so enjoy talking and I certainly have to pray against pride. Listening is fun, though, when it is intentional. I spend time with one of our precious girls at Hope and we had a time of reading the Bible and praying together. Our reading time was mainly reading and letting her comment - I told her I only wanted to listen. She is very wise for her age and I totally loved some of her comments. When we prayed we enjoyed just some silence. We were sitting at Jacob's Dream on ACU campus and we could hear the sound of the water and the birds. It was wonderful and a great memory we now share. The same week I read the next chapter in Sacred Parenting entitled Seizing Heaven - How Raising Children Teaches us to Listen to God. Not an accident that something on listening came my way. I love the way God puts experiences together for us.

Verses shared in this chapter include:

Listen and understand. (Matthew 15:10)

He who has ears to hear, let him hear. (Mark 4:9)

Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, ‘Listen to me, everyone and understand this.’(Mark 7:14)

Consider carefully how you listen. (Luke 8:18)

Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you, (Luke 9:44)

My sheep listen to my voice. (John 10:27)

Gary L. Thomas says, "Listening to God provides the true test of our humility. Humble people listen; prideful people never seem to have the time to wait on God."

The next chapter is on JOY. It taught a lesson that I also learned from Calm My Anxious Heart. Think about the two most often requests you have for your children -- Protect them and Change them .... is that true in your prayer life? Well, Gary Thomas suggest a third request. Prayers of thankfulness. They have a way of putting life in perspective. Praying for only protection and change has the emphasis on fear and their weakness. As we put into practice thanking God for His work in their lives, thanking Him for the progress they are making, thanking Him for who our children are (their strengths) then the mind set is very different.

This whole chapter is about JOY and how God wants us to not be so serious. I love the sense of humor Daniel has added to our family. I'm way to serious and need too read the verses about JOY more often!!

Guilt

The third chapter in Sacred Parenting is about guilt. Something that just comes along with our fallen humanity!!

William Sullivan ~

"There is in repentance this great mystery--that we may fly fastest home on broken wing."

Psalm 38:4 My guilt overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.

Gary L.Thomas, the author points out how Samuel was a faithful servant and yet had sons who did not walk with God, and then he also points out Kings Ahaz and Asa who fell from God's favor and yet had sons, Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah, who were faithful servants. He reminds us we are "not raising robots; we are shepherding image bearers of the Creator God who live with freedom of choice, their own wills, and a personal responsibility of their own."

There are some good things about guilt if we will allow God to work in our lives.
1. Guilt can point us to God
2. Guilt can motivate us to do better
3. Guilt can remind us of God's providence
4. Guilt can teach us to love mercy (my favorite)
5. Guilt has a positive "hidden agenda"

The picture of God that Gary Thomas gives at the end of the chapter was precious and reminded me that my picture of how God parents me affects how I look at my own parenting. That picture of who God is becomes so important as we live out our lives in the Way!!

Sacred Parenting

Walking around at a local flea market I stumbled across a book I have been wanting to purchase. Sacred Parenting by Gary L. Thomas. I read one of his other books, Sacred Marriage awhile back. This author really makes me think.

As I read the first chapter, I asked Daniel, "Why did we decide to have children?" We laughed because we weren't really trying to have a child when Alison came around so Daniel's reply was, "We didn't, God put all of that in motion!" So why did we have another child?? As I read this first chapter, Gary L. Thomas says as God's people he feels having children is not about us but all about Him. He goes on to say, "We are called to bear and raise children for the glory of God." Now if you believe that statement, then it really makes a difference when parenting gets difficult.

The context of II Corinthians 7:1 isn't parenting, but Thomas thinks it is helpful in parenting.

"Dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God."

Thomas continues, "Christian parenting is truly a sacred journey. It invites us parents to purify ourselves, to use the process of raising kids to perfect holiness, and to do this consistently, every day, out of reverence for God. If we enter it armed with this understanding, each segment will gain new meaning and purpose -- even the difficult ones."

You may ask yourself why do you do all that you do for your child? If the answer is just for the joy or for the proud moments in our children's lives then that will not last for long. Another Thomas quote that I pondered and talked with Daniel about was this...."to pin our hope and joy on the response of a sinner (our children)in his or her toddler years or teen years is to beg for disillusionment and to risk waking up in despair." We must have a higher calling than our own hope or joy, it must be out of reverence for God. Good read and that was just the first chapter.

Chapter 2 - The Hardest Hurt of All..."Sunshine without rain is the recipe for a desert."

Raising children teaches so much. We build character and we hit serving dead in the face. Letting our children struggle through challenges forms and matures them. It is just so hard, though, to watch. Many times we step ahead and fix it and our children lose out on the experience God has meant to shape them for the future He has planned for them. We make the journey harder when we are chasing our tail trying to make it easier. A good question for us to ask is what do we want for our children as they grow up -- comfort or character. This book is helping me see we must choose service and character over the pain-free life. Do you really think we are helping our children when we coddle them and let them avoid hard experiences? It has been so very hard for Daniel and I to watch the girls struggle with things, but we have mentors that have helped us, encouraged us to let them walk through disappointments. I have never wanted my immaturity to handicap them, although I know I have struggled with this. God has been very merciful to them and us!! I do believe that God sees His kingdom more important than our children's personal comfort. The author encourages you to ask your children as they grow, "What do you think your daddy and mommy feel most passionate about?" They serve as our heart's mirror in a way, Gary Thomas suggests. As we become parents it is interesting to ask what would God do as a parent in this situation? God let His Son suffer because there was a bigger picture. There are some values that are more important than our happiness and comfort.

At the end of chapter 2, the author says, "Sacred parenting calls me to accept the hardest hurt of all -- for the sake of God's kingdom and for the sake of our children's own development. I need to allow my kids to face challenges, failure, rejection and pain, and then teach them to use these seemingly negative events to fuel their sense of mission and to foster their dependence on God."