LENT

Happy Ash Wednesday!   To those participating in Ash Wed.,  I hope you enjoy spending time in His house today, take an extra moment and just soak up your surroundings.  We can sense His presence anywhere anytime but there is something special to be felt when we are in His house.
So, who is participating in Lent this year?  I am actually going to participate this year FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!  God laid it on my heart this year, I thought it will be a perfect way to stay grounded.  In Matthew 4:1 we learned that Jesus was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit.  So, I encourage all of you to pray and ask Him if he is leading you somewhere.  Maybe it is leading you to participate in lent, maybe it is leading you somewhere towards life change. 
Here are some fun facts for ya

• The biggest thing to remember if you choose to participate in lent, is that you are not giving something up just so that you can say you are giving something up.  You are giving something up so that when you feel the temptation for that thing (whether it is a food, luxury, even technology- as I know some of you have done this before) you take that time to instead be with Jesus.  Whether it is through prayer, praising, worshiping via some Christian music/song, repentance, read a devotional, or just plain acknowledging your desire for that thing but recognizing you CAN do this via Philippians 4:13  Amen?  Amen!
• The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer through prayer, penance, repentance of sins, almsgiving, atonement and self-denial. (Wickipedia.com)
• Lent is described as 40 days leading to Easter in remembrance of the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert.  Remember, he was STILL tempted in the desert.  Stay strong and pray your way out of the temptation
  when it comes.....b/c -it will come, sisters!
• The number forty has many Biblical references: the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai with God (Exodus 24:18); the forty days and nights Elijah spent walking to Mount Horeb (1 Kings 19:8); the forty days and nights God sent rain in the great flood of Noah (Genesis 7:4); the forty years the Hebrew people wandered in the desert while traveling to the Promised Land (Numbers 14:33); the forty days Jonah gave in his prophecy of judgment to the city of Nineveh in which to repent or be destroyed (Jonah 3:4).
  Jesus retreated into the wilderness, where He fasted for forty days, and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1–2, Mark 1:12–13, Luke 4:1–2). He overcame all three of Satan's temptations by citing scripture to the devil, at which point the devil left Him, angels ministered to Jesus, and He began His mininistry.  BOOM! my favorite part here to remember is, to cite scripture when you face temptation.  Make an index card, carry it in your purse, pocket, car, put it on your desk, put it in the notes section of your phone.  Don't be unarmed sisters....you ALL have a LTC --license to carry!  :)   Jesus further said that His disciples should fast "when the bridegroom shall be taken from them" (Matthew 9:15), a reference to his Passion. Since, presumably, the Apostles fasted as they mourned the death of Jesus, Christians have traditionally fasted during the annual commemoration of his burial.  t is the traditional belief that Jesus lay for forty hours in the tomb^[19] which led to the forty hours of total fast that preceded the Easter celebration in the early Church^[22] (the biblical reference to 'three days in the tomb' is understood as spanning three days, from Friday afternoon to early Sunday morning, rather than three 24 hour periods of time).  (Wickipedia.com)
  
•  The three traditional practices to be taken up with renewed vigour during Lent are prayer (justice towards God), fasting (justice towards self), and almsgiving (justice towards neighbor). (Wickipedia.com)
• here is a pic of the desert wilderness of Judea
•  
  pic compliments of compliments of http://www.swordofthespirit.net/bulwark/feb08p5.htm I think I'm going to print this picture as it really captures the bareness and stillness that Jesus was surrounded by.  (even if it wasn't this exact location- desert is desert!)   FINALLY, I encourage you who are participating in lent to JOURNAL through this time.  There is so much power in capturing your thoughts.  It is one way God can speak to you.  It is also a great way to look back later and remember.
  
  
  
  

  
  

  DO YOU HAVE A LENT STORY?  DO SHARE IT WITH US!

7 Keys to Infusing Faith into Your Home

I wish I was more "techy" so I could find an easy way to make this a printable for you, but, I am not.  So just hit "file, print" or copy/paste it into word if you want to print this.  Amen?

Here are 7 SIMPLE SOLUTIONS

1.  Develop a relationship with God yourself.  Speak to him often and intentionally.  About any and everything.

2.  Model this relationship to your children.  Let them catch you praying- over a parking spot at the grocery store when it is raining, or praying over a aunt who has cancer.  Nothing is too big or too small.

3.  Bring Him into every day life.  When you see something worthy of praise, acknowledge Him as the creator.  "Thank you Jesus for the sunshine today!"  "Look at that beautiful sunset, our God is quite an artist!"  "Do you know the original story behind the rainbow?  ...Let me tell you all about it how God promised Noah a rainbow..."

4.  Pray before meals.  Keep it simple but not the same every day.

5.  Go to church together.  Going to church is crucial in your relationship with the Lord...point blank.  You can grow on your own BUT growing with others is part of what The Lord calls us to do.  (Heb 10:25, Rom 12:5, 1st Corinth 12)

6.  Make faith FUN!  If your church doesn't have a children's ministry program A) talk to an elder about why not?  B) bring church home in a kid friendly way and talk to your children about it in a relate able way so they don't think it is just boring ol' Sunday service

7.  Bring Christian Music into your home.  Play it while you make dinner, or in the kid's room for a dance party.  (...even if it is Christmas music in July- if you are praising God, who cares?!)

31 Days of Infusing Faith Into Your home via modeling

My son turned 8 months old today.  He was welcome on this birthday with nothing other than CROUP!  This nasty bug is sure taking a tole on my local community and I'm fleeing it out of my house...in the name of Jesus!  HA!  So, needless to say the past few days have been challenging on him, and me!  Poor little bud is also cutting another tooth and is ticked off!  I don't blame him, those little gums are more swollen than Cabrerra after getting beamed with a fast ball!
By the way....

Root Root Root for the home team...as they are in the playoffs WOOT WOOT!



So, if you were following along on this 31 day journey you may have noticed I skipped a few days.  Well, life happens and my family always comes first.  Thanks for joining us back up again! :)
Moving right along...

I have a simple but not always easy approach for you today - MODELING.  

You can apply this to anyone in your home- especially your children but also your spouse.

So far we have discussed prayer, faith based projects & creating a dynamic home environment. 

Modeling- what does it mean to you?  To me, it means walking the walk and not just talking the talk. 

If you find that you feel you are already doing life pretty well but wonder why it is not transparent in your own home it may be time to just pray over it and reevaluate your walk.  If you head out the door for bible study, leave there feeling refreshed and ready for life but then as soon as you walk in the door at home notice a pile of clothes, a child up past bed time AND eating ice cream and a husband laid out on the couch with his bare feet all over the fresh laundry you did earlier that day watching football....how do you react?  If you are like many of us you may just let that serotonin get the best of you and freak the heck out.... which means you may not be walking the walk to the best of your ability.  If you do freak the heck out- don't hang your head low just yet, go ahead and apologize to all involved for your reaction and dare I even challenge you to share with them what you learned at bible study that had you all fired up on life 12 minutes prior?  Don't choose the option to steam walk upstairs full of rage, lock the bedroom door, throw on your sweat pants, flick the TV On HGTV and call it a night.  Trust me....been there, done that too.  I'm a work in progress.  I can tell you, that MOST of the time I do come home feeling recharged and full of life and the very first person I can't wait to share what I learned with is my husband.  He often stares with a serious face and as I ramble I wonder "is he listening?"  "does he even care?"  "will he think I'm too- Jesusy?" ...but I just keep going.  I share every detail (most of the time).  << For the record, double whammy for the teaching opportunity and the opportunity to model what I have learned.
I have found over the years that he DOES listen, he doesn't (always) think I'm crazy, and he actually enjoys being a part of it all.

I have no doubt that if you asked anyone in my household today- if I walk the walk, they will tell you without hesitation YES.  BUT (I once heard you should never start a sentence with "But"....but what else would I say?!)  I can also tell you that no one knows me as well as my husband and he and I communicate clearly when we mess up.  That will always happen.  When we have that understanding up front it clears up a whole lot of unmet expectations.  Amen?!

So there is your simple ...but not always easy....tip for today.  Just simply model what you learn as you grow in your faith journey.

Be blessed today, friends!

This quote was in my morning bible study today so I thought I would share it.  I sometimes feel like it really is THAT simple.  No one likes things forced on them.  So, if we, as believers, simply create an environment based on love in a dynamic and attractive way...God will take care of the rest. 

I hope you find peace and rest in that simple truth.

Have a blessed day ya'll....

DAY 3

Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it.  Proverbs 22:6

This picture is PERFECT to discuss! (...I did NOT say the picture itself is perfect- LOL- keep reading!)

But before I get to the beautiful-flawed story behind this piece of art I'll share a quick practical way to infuse faith into your home.  

• Find meaninful (unbeautiful) faith based projects to do together and then discuss them.  Just google faith based projects if you need a starting point.  Also, check in with your kids Sunday School teacher to see if they have any suggestions based on the curriculum at church- I LOVE tying in things in more than one place.  One thing I have learned is that consistency is key for children of all ages  * and yes, I'm aware unbeautiful is probably not a word :)

Us parents know that our children are always watching.  They watch what we do, how we do it, what we say, how we say it and they also sense where our heart is.  Even if you don't have children- your friend's children are watching you too!  I was reminded of this recently at church when I sat next to one of my friend's little's in 'big kid service.'  Bless her sweet little heart- she would underline what I underlined.  And highlighted what I highlighted.  What a GREAT reminder!  I would lean over and whisper to her why I underlined it or explain a bit of the context around what we were learning.  We would giggle afterwards as if no one else was watching- like the talk was just for us!  It was a sweet moment.
This painted tile means so much to me as momma b/c it is literally imbedded into my bones!  I love this verse b/c God promises us that if we do our part- he will do His.  The verse does NOT say that the child will never vear off to the side and take a worldly route...it just promises that when end meets end- they will always be with the Lord.   Whew, peace.  We all need peace.  

Story behind the story:
This past summer, Kaylee, Kole & I headed to paintin' plates in downtown Plymouth on a rainy day.   The original idea was to assist Kaylee in making a gift for my gramma's 80th birthday.  We were having so much fun (truly!) I also decided to make one myself for our home.  Alright, so as you can see- I AM NO ARTIST!!  I never got good grades in art class, luckily I never had aspirations to be an artist so my parent's didn't give me the try harder talk, they just kept encouraging give your best and find your own strengths :)  This picture is flawed in so many ways BUT that is why it is PERFECT  to discuss! I'm literally laughing as I type remembering how HARD it was to get Kole's little foot print on this tile.  I mean ya'll we had paint everywhere!  This was after we had a blowout diaper that I changed right there in the main painting room- woops- it was to late to move to a bathroom when I discovered the madness.  So needless to say, we were out of wipes to wipe off our messy hands.  Kole man was getting hungry, I didn't have any more snacks with me and I knew our time left was limited.  I also remember letting Kaylee help with the cross stamp.  I cringed as she is borderline perfectionist and I knew the clock was a tickin before the next bomb went off but I'm really working on trying to NOT rush her.  So naturally, the beautiful cross got smudged and we tried to make it look pretty with a black outline.  Which then bled into the white paint and soon we had an even bigger mess.  But I loved it anyway.  It is currently sitting  on our beautiful and full of life 100 year old barn shelves for all to see b/c we're proud of it anyway.  It is the meaning behind it which gives it so much character.  Even in our flawed lives, we are beautiful anyway.  Amen?

So my point today is simple....just trying new things at home can look messy, out of your wheel house or unordinary (is that a word?!)...but try them anyway.  Your children, or spouse, will remember the effort more than the finished product.  I do have a ton of practical stuff to share but was reminded again today to just keep it real.  None of us are perfect, not even one.  In today's world with social media at our fingertips exposing much of what goes on behind closed but FILTERED doors- we often think we just don't have it all together.  The truth is...we DON'T!  Some do a lot of things well, others do a few things great.  Which is better?  I don't have the answer. 

So take this journey with us and try new things in your home.  Try to find work arounds (again, am I making up MORE words?  Perhaps I'll compile a master list some day) when things don't go as planned.  Whether it is in literal terms with arts and crafts- or trying the whole praying before a meal on a consistent basis thing out.  Give yourself room for failure and PLEASE...don't be afraid of transparency.  When we try to hold a mask over our real selves.... it doesn't do anything but make the world tougher to live in for others.  Listen, I'm not saying we should keep comparing ourselves to others (b/c we should not) but I'm also sayin'

KEEP IT REAL!

31 days of Infusing Faith into the Home- Day 2

I'm super excited to share with you all some ideas on infusing faith into your home!  I joined the 31 day link up challenge being hosted by www.thenester.com  which is taking me WAY out of my comfort zone to blog THAT much, but this is the season of my life right now.  A season to be stretched...all for His glory.

After prayerfully considering where to even begin, I feel the Lord led me to start right at the beginning with prayer.  Imagine that?!  You may be thinking "I got this one in the bag- easy breezy!"  Or you may be thinking "Pray for my family...what does that even look like?"  Which ever camp you are in- I invite you to join us on this journey for the next 30 days to learn, grow and maybe even teach!  I plan to share ideas that we do as a family in our home, ideas I have learned from others and share new ideas I plan to try.
Feel free to comment or contact me with ideas that you use to infuse faith into YOUR home.  We are all in this together after all!  *if you are new to the blogging world, the comment box can be a little tricky if you don't have a blog or gmail account so don't get frustrated- just hit my contact me tab and shoot me an email if your little heart desires!

So what does prayer look like to you?  To me it is very simple...it is just a conversation between me and God.  Or, if I'm praying with others it is a conversation between all of us and God.  (Matt 18:20)  God wants us to have a RELATIONSHIP with him and we can not do that with out conversing with him.  Amen?  This conversation is a two way street.  We have two ears and one mouth- so you may say we are supposed to listen twice as much as we are to speak.  I have never audibly heard the voice of God, but I have heard from Him many many times.  He speaks to us through many ways: the living word- the Bible (2nd Tim 3:16), through other believers (James 3:17), through nature and our surroundings (Rom 1:20) and through His spirit that resides in us as believers (often known as that small inner voice- John 14:17, 1 Corin 3:16).

In Matthew 6:9-13 Jesus gives us a GUIDE on how to pray which we commonly know as The Lord's Prayer.  I say this is a guide because Jesus never intended us to ONLY pray those same exact words over and over again.  Just imagine if you had the same exact conversation with your husband over and over again- day after day or multiple times a day.  That will drive you batty!!  Of course, The Lord is soverign and not on the same exact level as our spouse or anyone from that matter- but He desires to have a relationship with us just as our spouse or friends do.  We can certainly pray the Lord's prayer together on occasion as it is a beautiful prayer, however, we are also to use this as a guide.  In fact, I taught my daughter Kaylee The Lord's Prayer this summer- it just melts my little heart hearing her say it...even when she does get goofed up a bit!

Let's take a quick look at The Lord's Prayer and see what we can learn from it

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father, which art in heaven,   we recognize here that He is King of Kings and resides in Heaven

Hallowed be thy Name.   we can bless his righteous name.  I often use many of The Lord's names when in prayer such as Abba, Sovereign Lord, El Shaddai, Yahweh etc

Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth,
As it is in heaven.  Here we learn to pray for His will to be done on this earth.  That doesn't always mean that He won't give us something NOT in his will...he gives us the free will and the ability to make our own choices.  We should however, pray that His will be done.  Even in the daily task.

Give us this day our daily bread.  There is simple peace in only praying for what we need TODAY.  Worrying about the future is exhausting. 

And forgive us our trespasses,  yes friends, we need to repent of our sins

As we forgive them that trespass against us. and also ask for hearts to forgive others that have wronged us

And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil. Temptation is ALL around us.  We are constantly advertised to and surrounded by temptations.  Part of our daily prayers for our self AND for our family can be to lead us not into temptation.  I love 1st Corinth 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

For thine is the kingdom,

The power, and the glory,

For ever and ever.  We pray to our Lord, our King because it is His world.  It is His power that can deliver us and all of the glory goes to Him for getting us through day by day- every single day for ever.  He wants us to be fruitful (successful- in all areas of life), He is glorified when we are set apart from the world.  How humbling but also how powerful this is. 

Amen.


By simply using The Lord's Prayer as a guide to pray for not only our self, but also for our family we can create a strong foundation for our family to be built on.

Other ways to incorporate prayer into your home

• Pray at dinner or before a meal (again, doesn't have to be the same 'ol prayer day after day so that it looses its freshness). 
• Invite your children to lead the prayer *see printable examples below
• Prayer at bedtime with your children and/or your spouse
• Family devotional time.  If your children are little- you can read a story from a Children's bible as a family.  If they are bigger you can find an age appropriate devotional to do together and discuss as  a family.  Or maybe even bonding time between mom & daughter and dad & son or vise versa

Here are my daughter and son's personal bibles.  (Well, we love us some bibles up in this house so we have several- but these two are special as they received them on the day we dedicated them.)  Children like having something they can "own" so I encourage you to invest in one for all of your children...age appropriate of course
 

• Pray as a family before a big event (job interview, first day of school, road trip, vacation etc)
• Pray FOR your family before a big event
•  A great book is The Power of a Praying Parent or The Power of a Praying Wife both by Stormie Omartian

Printable Prayers

Until we meet again.....I'll be praying for YOU! :)