Sharing Victories

Lately, God has been speaking to me a lot about redemption. What a sweet word that is! What awesomeness to contemplate! Our loving Daddy grinds up all our poop into manure that grows beauty & life! 

We must share regularly with each other & with our kiddos about how God has redeemed us, all His mighty works in our own lives. Psalm 78:5-8 talks about how these reminders will keep our children from becoming rebellious against God. What a gift to us both: Sharing God's victories in our lives with them so they can learn & stay faithful, seeing His victories in their own lives!

Let's tell each other the almighty works of our redemptive Daddy who is greater than our pasts & creates new futures out of poop!

~We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
and the wonders that he has done.~
Psalm 78:4

Freedom from Mommy Guilt

As women - as moms - we're subtly fed the lies that we should always carry some degree of guilt & an endearing tendency toward worry. It's almost like a membership card or a badge of honor.

Here's the crazy part: Jesus died to set us free from all that! It breaks His heart when we choose to cling to shame, anxiety, & regret. He wants us to choose life & the freedom that cost Him so much.

As servants of the conquering King, it's time we raise our flags high & claim that victory as ours! Ask our loving Daddy, the Breaker of chains, to increase your faith in His ability to remove guilt & worry, and to replace them with His Spirit of steadfast peace & confidence in the blood that redeemed you. Look for others who live this so you can believe it's a real thing! Pray & praise Daddy every time a self-condemning or fear-based thought crosses your mind, and He will claim that territory as His. You belong to Him!

~I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.~
Psalm 34:4-5

Grudge Removal

~I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn’t want his children holding grudges. And, oh, yes, Syzygus, since you’re right there to help them work things out, do your best with them. These women worked for the Message hand in hand with Clement and me, and with the other veterans—worked as hard as any of us. Remember, their names are also in the Book of Life.
~Philippians 4:2-3

Is God calling you to let go of a grudge & be reconciled to another brother or sister in Jesus? Or is He asking you to be a Syzygus & be the peacemaking mediator in others' lives? Listen to the Spirit today with humble openness, and trust Him for the courage to act - it will make the journey together with each other much easier & amazing!

Dethroning Money

Please take a moment to STOP, READ, & PRAY on the following statement. It applies to so many of us. Our Savior can & wants to free us all in this way! Thank You, loving Daddy. Guide us out of our shackles.

~When Christ redeemed you, He forgave your moral indebtedness and your wrongdoing. You were spiritually reconciled to God... But if you haven't received a second reconciliation - a financial reconciliation in which the power of God breaks the power of money in your life, His love cleanses your shame and guilt about your financial state, and the Holy Spirit fills you with the power to move ahead with all-new financial practices - well, friend, in my opinion, you're still one reconciliation short. You cannot be fully free from shame and guilt until you experience that second redemption.~
-Bill Hybels, Simplify: Ten Practices to Unclutter Your Soul

Flame Retardants Need Not Apply

~Don’t burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don’t quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality.~
Romans 12:11-13

What does all this point to? Regular rest, self-care, & quiet time in the King's presence. If you aren't making time for these, humbly cry out to Daddy, the Creator of time, and He will guide you into R&R so you can truly worship & serve with a fresh filling of the Spirit. Burnt-out, grumpy servants are no pleasure to Him, no matter how much work we accomplish.

It's Okay to Be Happy

When someone you know is sad, suffering, or searching and God has gifted you with a season of abundance, it can feel wrong to celebrate it & feel joy. Romans 12:15 tells us to "weep with those who weep," after all.

However, it also says to "rejoice with those who rejoice" - and He wants that to be you! Your grieving friends - if they are of sound mind & heart - do not want you to miss out on enjoying the blessings Daddy designed & delivered to you. They may even need that time of rejoicing with you to encourage their broken spirits! The key is sensitivity: being careful not to flaunt your blessings & season of joy, but rather be grateful & share it in wisdom.

So let's let the Spirit of God lead us to dance & to cry, never depriving ourselves of either critical experience of life & community.

~...God...richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.~
1 Timothy 6:17

We are more than just the givers of life to our children. We form their templates of who women are & how they should act - & demand to be treated. We introduce them to the beginning of their values, worldview, & the authenticity of what we claim to believe.

Be in consistent community - church, Bible study, Christian friendships, etc - that supports what you want to instill. I grew up with fairly healthy messages about Jesus & Christian living in my home, but the summer Bible camps & youth group I attended were more conservative & legalistic & sent a lot of damaging messages I've had to learn to undo by God's grace.

As we work to train up our children in the way they should go, let's pray & strive to make sure the messages they're getting outside the home from fellow Jesus-followers reinforce that training instead of dismantle it.

Temptation Is...

Temptation doesn't just mean lust. For some of us, the temptation is to react in anger, judge others, please others, or overeat; for others, the temptation is to get bogged down by our past or give in to anxiety about our future.

Temptation will affect us all - especially when we're striving to obey our loving Daddy. The temptation is not sin; the response to it can be. The great news is our All-Powerful Defender gives us the power to resist temptation! When we feel the tentacles of temptation, we need to cry out in praise & prayer to Him, and He will provide a way out or through it for us. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

~When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin.~
-Charitie L Bancroft

5-Minute Reflection

Take 5 minutes at the end of each day to record the following from that day:
-3 things you're grateful for
-1 thing that touched you
-1 thing that inspired you
-1 thing that challenged you

Sabbath as a Preemptive Strike

I'm just starting to get that God gave us Sabbath rest not as a rule but as a blessing. He knows the frailty & limitations of our human bodies, and He lovingly has given us a proactive guideline to keep us from becoming our own worst enemies! Take that, burn-out!