If you would like to find out what we have doing lately, go read this… and then read this.

Life in Christ is so good!

I was introduced to a wonderful blog recently, Wrapped Emotions. The author of this blog is encouraging others to use an artistic expression of their emotions and create something….anything….with their hands. In her words:

“So I created this blog to hold myself accountable to spend more time expressing myself creatively…connecting with my heart…creating with emotion. I want to encourage you to do the same. There is no better way to do this than working with your hands, your mind…connecting them with your heart. This blog’s purpose is to encourage you and me to do just that and share it with others.”

This is very intriguing to me. So, I have decided to join in the hope that the creative juices to begin to flow again!
I’d like to share the latest challenge on Wrapped Emotions:

“This week let loose…get edgy with your style…free your spirit…absolutely no fear. We had enough of that last week. This prompt is not associated with any tangible or figurative wrapper. I simply want you to experience the fun of creating. This week we’re working to feel the emotion of JOY. Not necessarily expressing the actual word or symbolism of joy in your art…you can celebrate shoe polish if you choose. But enJOY the process. Let’s create our own graffiti.”

I actually came up with two works. I first one is something that I created by starting with the word JOY. It actually just flowed from there. In the end result, I think I can see how I deal with challenges in my life. The mountains of patience, personality conflicts, misunderstandings, etc and the unexpected issues that seem to “rain” down on me at times, are all overcome by the light that exudes from the JOY that only comes from Christ.

The second work is one that basically evolved from my doodling. I had created several different shapes and colors with their own distinct expression. Beneath those shapes I used the same colors together unified in a beautiful rainbow. To me this symbolizes my thoughts about relationships within the body of Christ. We can live separate lives from those we call our brothers and sisters in Christ not giving a thought to what is really going on in each others lives. But when we make the choice to come together to encourage and support one another intentionally, the result is something more beautiful than we could imagine.

I would encourage anyone to do this activity. Whether you post your results or not, this is an activity that can give you a way to express your emotions and release the artistic abilities that are within you. I know many people would say that they have no artistic abilities to be released….I would disagree…I believe we all have emotions that can be released though creating art with our hands. There is no right or wrong way. It becomes something that is all you…it is something in you that is released on paper, canvas or whatever you desire to form your creation. So, be bold, express yourself!

I feel like I have really neglected this blog. It’s not intentional… I don’t have any reservations about writing, no desire to take a break from it…..it has just turned out to be on the lower end of my list. I also have other blogs that have been gathering dust as well. Our family blog, my homeschool blog, our foster adoption blog….all are being neglected at this point in time. It also is not that I don’t have multiple thoughts running through my head at any given time… they just end up being either thoughts that stay in my head or thoughts that I share with the person closest to me…and that is where it ends. So, if for some reason you have been waiting for me to share my thoughts, I am sorry the posts have been sporadic. I also thought I would share what is taking my attention at the moment:

In August, Steve and I made the decision that I would return to work half-time. I had taken a year off from my teaching job in the school system, so that we could homeschool our son. I had a desire to be with our son at home and a desire to use the skills and talents that I have acquired over the years with other children as well. So, going back into the school system half time seemed to be able to fill that desire. I could work in the morning (while Steve is teaching a few subjects to our son) and I would return after noon to complete the remaining subjects (when Steve started his day at ASU). Sounded great in theory, but it has actually been a hard schedule to accomplish. We’re doing it, but we are also exhausted. I had forgotten how much of your life is invested in the people you spend time trying to help. A half time teaching job doesn’t really exist. It does on paper, but in reality, I have brought work home with me many nights since August.

The other aspect of this schedule is that we don’t want our son to get shorthanded. We want him to be fulfilled and know that he is important. So, with this schedule, we make sure that we are spending time together. We’re taking a pottery class together and spending weekends as a family going on trips…it seems like we are always going somewhere!

So, this should explain my absence here on the blog. It is not wanted but it is needed at the present time. I am sure that life will begin to balance out soon for us as we adjust to new schedules and possible changes in our lives. I may have time to blog and yet I may not….and for now that is the reality of my live right now.

In all this we know that God’s love for us is real. He is showing us new opportunities and is blessing us all the time! I will look forward to sharing all that He is doing in our lives very soon. We continue to look for opportunities to love and bless others as we have been blessed by God. Sometimes it is a hard task, but looking for those moments of sharing the love of God with others is really what drives our thoughts and actions.

I really would like to continue writing about life in Christ from an artistic standpoint. I am reminded every day of the creativity of God. Hopefully, you will be reading a post about this soon!

Be blessed in your walk with Him,

I have always been attracted to reading non-fiction. I like reading about something that I can use in my daily life, whether it be self-help or learning a new concept or method of accomplishing a goal. I didn’t think that reading fiction would help me accomplish that desire inside. Until recently. My aunt encouraged me to read Francine Rivers’, The Mark of the Lion series. At first, I felt that it lacked a flow of the plot, but as I read more and more, the book was completely riveting. I could not put it down. Not only was it an encouragement for me to continue an intimate relationship with God, it really caused me to reevaluate my own life and how I live daily. By the time I reached the 3rd book, I was totally hooked.

There is an excerpt that I want to share because it really touched me.

In sharing information about her life with Atretes, Rizpah admitted to who she was and what she did in her past before coming into a relationship with Christ. Atretes was angered by her admission.

“I deserve death. I know that. A hundred times over.”

His chest tightened at her words and at the look of grief in her eyes. His mind filled with the faces of the men he had killed.

“It’s by God’s grace that my life is different,” she said.

He let go of her. Gritting his teeth, he shook his head, trying to deny everything that she has told him.

“I’m sorry, Atretes,” she said, trying not to cry and make it worse for him. “I never thought the choices I made mattered. My mother was dead. My father…” She lowered her head. “I didn’t care what happened. It was painful enough staying alive without thinking how I did it. But I was wrong, so wrong.”

“Jesus shed his blood so I could be cleansed of what I’d done. He forfeited his own life for every one of us, forgiving us all our sins. He opened a new path for any who choose to take it, and I did. And I will continue to do so, no matter the cost. I cling to Christ with all my heart. And I won’t let go.”

The interaction between these two characters is something I have had to face in my own life. Having made some disastrous choices, I have had to deal with the reality of the hurt that those choices have caused others around me. There have also been times of being rejected by others because of past choices.

I have felt the incredible peace of knowing that as I followed Christ, I was cleansed of my past. What I am sure of is this… Christ lives in me. He has changed me. I will cling to Him daily. I won’t let go.

*excerpt from As Sure as the Dawn by Francine Rivers

I was reading an article this evening that disturbed me. It is written about a church in PA that has created a Sunday school class specifically for special-needs children. At first glance, this doesn’t seem like a bad idea. In fact, you may see the idea as one that takes into consideration the needs of others. Give the child something they can do while mom and dad are able to worship without interruption. A few quotes from the article state:

“We have been finding that more and more families who have such a special child are not attending church because most churches do not have a program for them to attend”

Hmmm…

“Parents find themselves spending more time trying to redirect behavior,” “They are not really getting anything out of their weekly visit to church.”

To me this seems to be a problem of structure, not the child’s behavior. Why are we taking a child with special needs out of a situation that potentially would make us uncomfortable? And why did a whole different class need to be created for them? Were they not welcome in the typical Sunday School class? Why do parents of special needs children feel they cannot gather with believers?

Maybe the answers to these questions would be best left to the individual to decide. And honestly, this issue hits a bit close to home for me, as my child was asked to leave a Sunday School class because his behavior did not fit what was acceptable in the class. This left me feeling like the one place that I thought my child would be accepted was not a realistic desire on my part.

My thoughts are these: Give the child the love and compassion of Christ. Help him or her to feel accepted as a worthy member of the body of believers. If you have to change the structure, then do it. But don’t make the child feel that they are not welcome by separating them from their peers and the rest of the body. There is so much that a child with special needs can offer the church as a whole. They can encourage us to grow in ways that were not possible before. Don’t deny them or yourself the joy and the privilege of what God can do through them.

Read the article and let me know what you think……

Matthew 19:13-14

All of us go through situations in our life that are hard. Each day presents a new challenge the moment we awake. Some may see that challenge as trying to find the answer to the tough questions. Such as: “Will God heal me today?”, “Will I be able to find a job to support my family?”, “How will I face the person at work that is tormenting me?”, the list could go on and on. We all have very unique and interesting circumstances.

But I am wondering if maybe we are missing the challenge here. Could it be that the challenge is not in the specific circumstance, but how we deal with what comes our way each day?

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you.” I Peter 5:6-7

We are encouraged to present before God our cares. Actually, it is stated we are cast ALL our cares upon Him. Are we really taking this seriously? How often do we attempt to take on our own cares? It is the natural inclination, is it not? To say “I need to do this to make things better” is such an automatic response for each of us. But…We have the freedom available to us that enables us to turn from our cares. Why do we not take advantage of the reality that was given through the cross of Christ? Are we telling Him that it wasn’t good enough and we need Him to do more?

There is a situation from my own life that I’d like to illustrate for you. My husband and I have been trying to conceive a child for 3 years without success. Every time we looked into the eyes of a pregnant teenager or of a woman that did not want the child she was carrying, we wondered why this was happening. We questioned ourselves and yes we even tried to find a way to “fix it”. But today, are walking in the peace of Christ. We are traveling through new and exciting experiences. Have we resigned ourselves to the idea of not conceiving a child? Absolutely not. We have chosen to embrace each day as an opportunity to show love to others, in whatever way God places those experiences before us. Right now, that opportunity is the possibility of being foster parents in our community. So, that is what we are embracing at this moment with the knowledge that new experiences could be placed before us as well.

So, I encourage you today to listen to this important advice:

“Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen” I Peter 5:10-11

My friend, Amy, has written a great post today called The Wall. Go there and be encouraged. Thanks Amy for rekindling the passion in which I wrote this post!

In my previous post, Systems, I discussed some thoughts about a type of system that many of us take part in, that is, the traditional church system. I alluded to the fact that my husband and I have discussed other systems as well and I’d like to share my thoughts with you.

The second system that has gotten my wheels turning a bit, is the educational system. This is a difficult one for me to tackle because I feel that I have been raised in the middle of a system that I didn’t even think to question, as I have written about in my post, Identity. But in the past few years, I have had reason to question how this particular system works. (or how it doesn’t work). The main motivation for asking those questions was after realizing that it wasn’t working for my own child. No matter how hard I tried to force him to fit that mold, it wasn’t going to happen. Now, that we have made the change to teaching him apart from the school system, I see so much progress. And He is evolving each day into the man that God has created him to be. It is a very inspiring transformation.

I would have to say that my main problem with how the system operates is that children are not allowed the freedom to follow their natural bent or curiosity. They must fit the “norm” and if they don’t, there must be something seriously wrong. Now on the flip side of the coin, I don’t believe that children in the public schools are expected to be respectful. Yes, it is included in the rules of the classroom posted on the wall, but it does not penetrate their heart. How could it? How can one teacher of 20+ students possibly know and be able to speak to the heart of each child in his/her classroom? (As I write this, I can see the correlation between this system and the previous one I have written about.)

Here’s an interesting perspective on Margaret Spelling’s views on this system:

My main point is that what we are able to see in our child is where his heart is, and frankly, for the last 9 months, it has not been pretty. But we are beginning to see changes, positive changes that if he carries them throughout his life, will make an impact on those who come in contact with him.

I have been pondering thoughts about “systems” and have discussed them at length with my husband. The first system that we have discussed is that of the church. We are currently out of the traditional church and are attempting to meet from house to house. (I will discuss my thoughts on other systems in another post)

But I am coming to the point of realizing, it is not about what we create “each week”. It is about being available to do whatever God is instructing us to do in “each day”. Letting go of some of the bondage of what is required according to church structure has been very liberating for us….also very difficult. We want interaction with like-minded individuals, desperately. But we also realize it is not about what we can create ourselves. We must be available to go as God guides us or wait when He tells us to do so.

So, today, we wait…

Alan, at The Assembling of the Church, has some excellent thoughts on how we can step outside of our box and be the church, in his post, The Church Meets Here… His thoughts on this issue have encouraged me today. I am sure they will encourage you as well.

So, today, I ask you. How can we be the church to others? In what ways can we come out of our comfort zone and be uncomfortable in order to love someone else?

What does a mother do to express her love?

When I came into motherhood, I had a picture of how things would be. You know the picture I’m talking about. Endless nights of reading and playing, children obediently following directions and life filled with smiles and laughter. Hmmm—Something else happened on the way to the nursery!

What I found out is that my perfect picture was not necessarily destroyed, but was molded into a picture that brought more clarity. See, what I was bringing to motherhood was an idea that I created. But, what I found out was that my son was not another “me”. He was created by God to be an individual. I can’t make him into the man I picture. God is molding and shaping him into the man He wants him to be.

Perspective change– I see my child for who he is and all that he has brought into my life. Just when I think I have figured him out, he does something different. (This keeps me on my toes!) Just when I think I can’t handle another wild idea, he hugs me and tells me he loves me. (this encourages me to be thankful for his love). Just when I think he is still a child, I look at him and see a young man. (this helps me to appreciate each moment).

How do I show a child that has brought such meaning to my life, the depth of my love for him?

I can hold him, tell him I love him, spend time together (for a teenager, sometimes that’s not desirable!). These are the ways I know to show a tangible love to him. But what I desire most is to lead him to a relationship with Christ. And I don’t think that means leading him in a prayer and walking away thinking everything is taken care of. I believe that means living a life before him that shows my love for Christ—showing him that everyone has worth, relationships do matter and loving one another is our true calling—all else just falls into place.

This is how I want to love my child, with the love that Jesus has shown me. Then, His perfect picture can become clear and all will see why this child was created.

“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled or let it be fearful.”

It is so easy to become consumed with the everyday responsibilities and demands that are placed on us. I know too well the stress that can result from busying ourselves with “things”. But these things only bring us temporary feelings of accomplishment and contentment. These things cannot fulfill the deepest longings in our heart and soul. Christ alone can fill that need.

It is also easy to trust God when things are going well. When you have enough money in the bank, when your health is well and when everyone around you is happy. But your faith and trust in Christ really becomes clear when you are faced with some “not-so-pleasant” issues and you can still say “I trust you, Lord and I love you, no matter what the outcome”.

My riches are not found in this earth. My riches are in Him and in the relationships that He has given me. There is nothing material on this earth that can be taken away from me that should cause me to worry or fear. Nothing! This is the lesson that I am learning today. Isn’t that the coolest thing about God…we can feel that we have it all figured out, but He lovingly shows us a better perspective-one that brings us life and freedom that surpasses anything we ever experienced before.

I love being a follower of Christ.

Let us rest in the peace that Jesus has freely offered us. Not in the peace that the world attempts to give us, but the kind that is only found in seeking daily the Prince of Peace.