I have been lacking clarity and discernment lately in the area of friendships and our children. There are so many messages that I've allowed to populate my mind. Unfortunetely I have not been on my toes to the chaos these messages have caused until now. I've always had several ideas running around my head about how to spend time in friendships, but never really have come to a hard and fast conviction of what friendships and social time in my children's lives should look like. I suppose part of the reason why I haven't really evaluated what my convictions are is that my children are still pretty young and the subject didn't come up very often. The past 6 months have changed that. Now that my eldest is 9 I am finding that I need to figure out these convictions and quick! The pressure to spend time with others, invitations and oppourtunities for friendships are astoundingly many. The choices we make as parents will have a big impact on not only our children's friendships but their entire future.
I know that choosing the wrong company can lead to a plethora of issues. That was my childhood. I always seemed to choose the wrong crowd and suffered the consequences of shallow, rebellious relationships my entire childhood. It is really sad to look back and see that without any guidance the easy choice was always the wrong choice. Knowing this, I have complete confidence that I, as a parent need to be heavily involved in where our children spend their time and energy in relationship. The problem is that now I know I need to be involved what do I do? Praise God that I do not parent alone and have a very wise husband. I have much control over our daily schedules, but love that he ultimately looks at the schedule and can easily tell what is and is not wise. I find the more I consult my husband and pray to God the more readily I can make righteous decisions in this area.
The two biggest questions that seem to perplex me the most is who to allow the children to spend time with and how much time. As christians we want to be a light to the world. I want to train my girls to be able to to deal with difficult people and stand true to their convictions. I want them to share the love of Christ readily and show his love by speaking the truth in love. I find that this desire drives me to allow them to sometimes spend time with company that does not share the same convictions in their walk or a belief in God. I was under the idea that somehow my children were ready to be a shining example of Christ's love to others and they would not be tempted give into the temptation to follow the ways of the world. God ever to kindly rebuked me of this naiive attitude I've had. This morning as I was praying about a specific relationship in one of my children's lives I was reminded that we are not on earth to have pleasures and be popular. Was I allowing my child to compromise her character to be popular or liked? I was allowing her to pursue and spend much time in a relationship that was often causing her to sin. I am so thankful for God's gentle wisdom in this matter.
My dear friend Kim Doebler once told me that she often asks of relationships, "are we being more influential or being influenced." In this relationship my child wants to be in I am so dissappointed to say that she is being more influenced and unfortunetely it is for the detriment to her. I am not sure the other child has any intention to lead my little one into sin, but sin is what results from her time with this child. So as unpopular as I will be for limiting the time she has in this relationship I am convicted it is not for my or her popularity that we spend our time, it is for the Lord.
Thankfully we have many other relationships in our life that are uplifting and mutually encouraging in our walk with the Lord. We are so incredibly blessed to have others that lead us towards righteousness that we don't have enough time in our schedule to nurture all of those relationships in our lives and the childrens closely. We had a terrible afternoon of crashing this week after over committing and under discplining ourselves. It was a blaring red flag to me that I had mismanaged our time and stressed my entire family out by having too much time with friends and in enjoyment. We were no longer able to refresh and keep our home running and we all had a feeling of chaos. This has led me to evaluate how much time we spend with our friends. God has not spoken to me quite so clearly about this one. I think there must be a balance that I try and strike with this that happens before we commit to things. I know each family has a different tollerance for outside activities, ours happens to be very little. I know this about us. I know that we can only handle a few extras in our schedule before it has a bad effect. Given that understanding I think the best course is to look at the realitites of our capacity and schedule a little more clearly in the future and ask my husband a little more often his input!
I feel a have a little better vision and conviction to move forward with but still have a long ways to go. I don't want to raise children who are so guarded they don't know how to function outside of our home. But I also don't want children who value friendship more than God. It's a delicate balance, one that I am sure I'll continually be learning to seek God's will in.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Day 2 of Our Dietary Expirement
This morning I got up motivated to try a new recipe and was rewarded! It was fabulous and go two thumbs up from every family member. An unanimous two thumbs up vote at our house happens rarely so I'm feeling pretty good about myself right about now! I tried another recipe from Cooking for Isaiah, the chocolate banana waffles. The waffles were really good with a nice crisp crust. I found a gluten and dairy free chocolate sauce recipe on-line that I drizzled over the waffles and bananas. We added some sausage and fruit salad. That recipe will definitely stay. We had left overs for lunch and look forward to a roast with potatoes, carrots and onions for dinner with a salad. Day 2 was a huge success. My child's skin is looking better too. I'll just have to figure out a way to stretch our budget to keep up with all of these new recipes!
Saturday, October 1, 2011
A Dietary Expirement
Our family has been almost completely dairy free for almost a year. Our little Gretta kept having skin rashes and digestive issues that prompted us to have her tested for food insensitivities. The only thing that came up was pasteurized dairy so we decided to go dairy free. On occasion we've enjoyed a little raw cheese but otherwise we don't use dairy. Our goal has always been to gratefully accept whatever is offered when we are out. However, Gretta complains of belly aches after dairy so we try and really avoid it.
This fall as one of my children started experiencing allergy symptoms and a skin break out a friend suggested that it may be gluten so we are on day 4 of her not having any dairy or gluten and by golly her skin is clearing up! So we are going to do an experiment in no dairy and no gluten in our diets for a few weeks and see how it effects our family. I plan on reviewing here how it is going and what sort of recipes we are using. Here is tonight's review.
Dinner: chicken rice tetrazzni with mushroom gravy and mustard crumbs from the cookbook Cooking for Isaiah, maple roasted acorn squash and salad. Squash is a huge hit with our kids so that went over well. The children did not really enjoy the tetrazzini, but Pete and I did. We will not make it again as Pete wasn't thrilled about it and none of the children really liked it.
Dessert: Chewy Chocolate Chunk Cookies from the Cooking for Isaiah cookbook. I used Earth Balance margarine in place of the shortening and a mix of chocolate, white chocolate and butterscotch chips. This was a hit! I made them to bring to church so the kids could have a cookie with their friends. I loved these. In this cookbook there is a baking mix and pancake mix you pre-make. It makes the prep for baking gluten free easy.
So far so good. I had one child pretty upset she couldn't have some french bread with garlic butter, but was happy to have the garlic butter on our sprouted bread so other than that hiccup it's been going well. We'll see how tomorrow goes.....
This fall as one of my children started experiencing allergy symptoms and a skin break out a friend suggested that it may be gluten so we are on day 4 of her not having any dairy or gluten and by golly her skin is clearing up! So we are going to do an experiment in no dairy and no gluten in our diets for a few weeks and see how it effects our family. I plan on reviewing here how it is going and what sort of recipes we are using. Here is tonight's review.
Dinner: chicken rice tetrazzni with mushroom gravy and mustard crumbs from the cookbook Cooking for Isaiah, maple roasted acorn squash and salad. Squash is a huge hit with our kids so that went over well. The children did not really enjoy the tetrazzini, but Pete and I did. We will not make it again as Pete wasn't thrilled about it and none of the children really liked it.
Dessert: Chewy Chocolate Chunk Cookies from the Cooking for Isaiah cookbook. I used Earth Balance margarine in place of the shortening and a mix of chocolate, white chocolate and butterscotch chips. This was a hit! I made them to bring to church so the kids could have a cookie with their friends. I loved these. In this cookbook there is a baking mix and pancake mix you pre-make. It makes the prep for baking gluten free easy.
So far so good. I had one child pretty upset she couldn't have some french bread with garlic butter, but was happy to have the garlic butter on our sprouted bread so other than that hiccup it's been going well. We'll see how tomorrow goes.....
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Compromise
Having a blog is a bit of a soap box for me. The great thing is that no one has told me to get off it yet. Maybe today will be the day?
I can't count the times I've heard someone say that marriage is a 50/50 relationship. It's give and take. You must compromise. For years these sort of attitudes have rubbed me wrong. It's sort of like how Revelations 3:15-16 says, "I know that your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." Compromising often leads to a similar feeling. We are fed this idea that if I take a night out, then my spouse gets one. If my spouse gets a new toy than I get the next one. It's my night to get up with the children tomorrow, you do it tonight! That's my play money use your own. I don't know that it is a sin to set up a plan in marriage as far as who does what when. But I know that it can lead to sin in our human hearts when we only give in expectation of getting back.
When we fight for our rights to our half of our share in life we are settling for mediocrity. We are steeling away the opportunity to bless others by simpling serving. Perhaps we become a terribly tepid taste in our Father's mouth. I don't care to think of my God wanting to spit me out due to my taste. When we insist that others take care of us and expect that others put us first, again we lose our flavor. It is better to choose to be cold and indifferent than feign the middle ground. The Bible doesn't speak much of the middle ground, it does ask us to walk righteously and give all.
So how do we stay hot, on fire and motivated for God? We serve like Jesus served us and we take time to be with our Father. Get up with the baby at night. Prioritize a quiet time of prayer and Bible reading. Take care of the children instead of expecting to get a sitter or someone else to always help you. Look to someone elses needs first.
Does this mean that we never ask for help, NO! But we ask God to give us discernment and wisdom about how many favors we are asking of others. Don't be a score keeper, especially in marriage. Let your husband take care of his flock, especially you by simply relating to him the needs that you have. Be careful that Satan doesn't fool you into thinking that you can't get by without a little "me" time. We as wives and mothers can and should be able to take care of our homes, our children and our husbands. If we are struggling with doing these things it is a wise woman that learns to assess her time. If you run so much you can't keep up, prayerfully go to God and your head (husband). Surely they will be able to lead you into what needs to stay and go so you can accomplish their will.
"Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another." Mark 9:50. It's not easy to be a mother and wife. We have so many balls to keep up in the air these days, but we can choose to be at peace in our marriages and lives. This is the one solution offered in Mark 9:50. BE AT PEACE! The key word here is be. We keep house by work, we keep up our children by effort and diligence, we try and keep good health why would we not spend as much time working on keeping peace? So next time you are asked to get that thousandth cup of water for your little one, or to serve another family, or to run that extra errand for your hubby or to not go out with the gals so your man can do something remember to be at peace and remain salty.
I can't count the times I've heard someone say that marriage is a 50/50 relationship. It's give and take. You must compromise. For years these sort of attitudes have rubbed me wrong. It's sort of like how Revelations 3:15-16 says, "I know that your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." Compromising often leads to a similar feeling. We are fed this idea that if I take a night out, then my spouse gets one. If my spouse gets a new toy than I get the next one. It's my night to get up with the children tomorrow, you do it tonight! That's my play money use your own. I don't know that it is a sin to set up a plan in marriage as far as who does what when. But I know that it can lead to sin in our human hearts when we only give in expectation of getting back.
When we fight for our rights to our half of our share in life we are settling for mediocrity. We are steeling away the opportunity to bless others by simpling serving. Perhaps we become a terribly tepid taste in our Father's mouth. I don't care to think of my God wanting to spit me out due to my taste. When we insist that others take care of us and expect that others put us first, again we lose our flavor. It is better to choose to be cold and indifferent than feign the middle ground. The Bible doesn't speak much of the middle ground, it does ask us to walk righteously and give all.
So how do we stay hot, on fire and motivated for God? We serve like Jesus served us and we take time to be with our Father. Get up with the baby at night. Prioritize a quiet time of prayer and Bible reading. Take care of the children instead of expecting to get a sitter or someone else to always help you. Look to someone elses needs first.
Does this mean that we never ask for help, NO! But we ask God to give us discernment and wisdom about how many favors we are asking of others. Don't be a score keeper, especially in marriage. Let your husband take care of his flock, especially you by simply relating to him the needs that you have. Be careful that Satan doesn't fool you into thinking that you can't get by without a little "me" time. We as wives and mothers can and should be able to take care of our homes, our children and our husbands. If we are struggling with doing these things it is a wise woman that learns to assess her time. If you run so much you can't keep up, prayerfully go to God and your head (husband). Surely they will be able to lead you into what needs to stay and go so you can accomplish their will.
"Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another." Mark 9:50. It's not easy to be a mother and wife. We have so many balls to keep up in the air these days, but we can choose to be at peace in our marriages and lives. This is the one solution offered in Mark 9:50. BE AT PEACE! The key word here is be. We keep house by work, we keep up our children by effort and diligence, we try and keep good health why would we not spend as much time working on keeping peace? So next time you are asked to get that thousandth cup of water for your little one, or to serve another family, or to run that extra errand for your hubby or to not go out with the gals so your man can do something remember to be at peace and remain salty.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
The American Dream. Heaven On Earth?
I read an article on world news about social security and viewing retirement from a christian worldview http://www.worldmag.com/articles/18569. There was a quote by John Piper that said, "we must reward ourselves now in this life for the long years of our labor." Retirement—playing, traveling, sleeping late—is "the world's substitute for heaven since the world does not believe there will be heaven beyond the grave."
This was in reference to retirement but I couldn't help but think I have run into this sin lately. In my quest to be comfortable have I been trying to exchange the pleasures of a true heaven for earthly ones? In my desire to have things look just right, taste well, to feel well, to make sure the children have experiences have I turned my heart away from God? The trials of this world seem to mount up on my shoulders so quickly and I forget that trials are what this world is made of. I will not be able to replicate what my perfect God has made for eternity in this fallen place, not only that I will lose the opportunity to glorify him. Taking this thought a step further I realize that my children miss out on the opportunity to hunger for God when I pacify them with pleasures here.
God's timing is amazing. After going to the dentist this morning and spending way more money than I desired to, it was good to be reminded that trials are where I have the opportunity to "prove my mettle" as Oswald Chambers said. God has provided for this and will continue to. He does not promise a nicely decorated suburban home in keeping with everyone else I know. He doesn't say that my days will be easy and that I will flawlessly mother, teach, mentor and submit. I find myself challenged to remember and truly believe what he does say each day, that he will never leave me or forsake me, that he will provide all things, that he will work all things for His good. It is really much easier to believe what the world says.
What a gift the Bible is in times of temptation and confusion. My heart overflows with gratitude for truth and direction from His Word. It would be easier to construct my own heaven here on earth without any concern for eternity. But I've never been one to follow the crowd! I can undoubtedly say that I hunger for heaven more than the American Dream.
This was in reference to retirement but I couldn't help but think I have run into this sin lately. In my quest to be comfortable have I been trying to exchange the pleasures of a true heaven for earthly ones? In my desire to have things look just right, taste well, to feel well, to make sure the children have experiences have I turned my heart away from God? The trials of this world seem to mount up on my shoulders so quickly and I forget that trials are what this world is made of. I will not be able to replicate what my perfect God has made for eternity in this fallen place, not only that I will lose the opportunity to glorify him. Taking this thought a step further I realize that my children miss out on the opportunity to hunger for God when I pacify them with pleasures here.
God's timing is amazing. After going to the dentist this morning and spending way more money than I desired to, it was good to be reminded that trials are where I have the opportunity to "prove my mettle" as Oswald Chambers said. God has provided for this and will continue to. He does not promise a nicely decorated suburban home in keeping with everyone else I know. He doesn't say that my days will be easy and that I will flawlessly mother, teach, mentor and submit. I find myself challenged to remember and truly believe what he does say each day, that he will never leave me or forsake me, that he will provide all things, that he will work all things for His good. It is really much easier to believe what the world says.
What a gift the Bible is in times of temptation and confusion. My heart overflows with gratitude for truth and direction from His Word. It would be easier to construct my own heaven here on earth without any concern for eternity. But I've never been one to follow the crowd! I can undoubtedly say that I hunger for heaven more than the American Dream.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Balancing Truth and Grace
Recently I heard truth and grace explained this way. Truth alone is legalism and grace alone is lawlessness. I can't get this analogy out of my head. Perhaps God is speaking to me? As I face situations in each day as a disciple, wife, mother, friend etc. I am astonished at the opportunities that come up for me to practice truth and grace. What is alarming is the times I automatically respond to situations without balance.
I tend to lean to the side of truth. I love truth the way it cuts through the chaotic confusion of emotions and worldly opinions. I love that I can pick up the Bible and know truth, that I can pray and hear truth. Truth is a beautiful boundary, solid, unmoving, unchangeable, like my God. In my life it is so easy to concoct a rule and adhere to that than to have to patiently, gently, mercifully and graciously extend myself in times of trial. Whether the trial be large or small I always tend to go for a rule, for a truth and stick to it. This trait of mine has it's merits, but I believe the Lord is trying to increase the merits of it's counter balance, grace, in my life. Grace is the example that Jesus gave us on the cross. Grace is the tenderness that extends love when wrath is deserved. Grace is the beauty of trial and the triumph of love. If I adhere to the rules so closely I lose the opportunity to extend grace, to be truly alive in Christ. The truth I love so dearly if not properly balanced will lead me down the same road as the Pharisees. I too will miss the grace of a saviour.
Coming to this information has been thought provoking to say the least. All the times I want to create a new rule to keep my little women in line I have now stopped to wonder if perhaps it is not a rule they need but a bit of grace and someone to help them sort out their heart's intentions. As my husband makes decisions and my foolish independence seek to cram a rule in his face to prove I am right I have been convicted that it is grace that is needed not more of my truth. Maybe that is where the crux of the problem is, that truth when it becomes our truth instead of His truth is dangerously out of balance.
What about when grace is too heavily weighted. Is that when I allow what I know I should be dealing with. When I hear the children bickering but get a little lazy and let it go? Is it when I choose to not be disciplined and sleep a little more, or do a little less and suddenly things are not going as smoothly as they should be? I confess this is not generally my trial, but I have made friends with lawlessness and the results are not desired.
Either end of the extreme leaves something in want. The best way is to live in balance. To cry out to the Holy Spirit to speak to us so clearly each moment of the day that we know when to act in truth, when to extend grace and how to do both. Jesus was such a wonderful example of both. He kept the law but did not become legalistic. He extended grace, but never became permissive in allowing sin to continue. I've just begun to consciously think on this profound idea of balance between these two wonderful gifts of grace and truth. It seems that the more I think on these and pray over them the more I realize that balance is not found in a moments realization but in a lifetime of following the master of both. Even then at the end in this fallen state I think I will still be just as in awe of the perfect man and his balancing of grace and truth as I am at this moment.
I tend to lean to the side of truth. I love truth the way it cuts through the chaotic confusion of emotions and worldly opinions. I love that I can pick up the Bible and know truth, that I can pray and hear truth. Truth is a beautiful boundary, solid, unmoving, unchangeable, like my God. In my life it is so easy to concoct a rule and adhere to that than to have to patiently, gently, mercifully and graciously extend myself in times of trial. Whether the trial be large or small I always tend to go for a rule, for a truth and stick to it. This trait of mine has it's merits, but I believe the Lord is trying to increase the merits of it's counter balance, grace, in my life. Grace is the example that Jesus gave us on the cross. Grace is the tenderness that extends love when wrath is deserved. Grace is the beauty of trial and the triumph of love. If I adhere to the rules so closely I lose the opportunity to extend grace, to be truly alive in Christ. The truth I love so dearly if not properly balanced will lead me down the same road as the Pharisees. I too will miss the grace of a saviour.
Coming to this information has been thought provoking to say the least. All the times I want to create a new rule to keep my little women in line I have now stopped to wonder if perhaps it is not a rule they need but a bit of grace and someone to help them sort out their heart's intentions. As my husband makes decisions and my foolish independence seek to cram a rule in his face to prove I am right I have been convicted that it is grace that is needed not more of my truth. Maybe that is where the crux of the problem is, that truth when it becomes our truth instead of His truth is dangerously out of balance.
What about when grace is too heavily weighted. Is that when I allow what I know I should be dealing with. When I hear the children bickering but get a little lazy and let it go? Is it when I choose to not be disciplined and sleep a little more, or do a little less and suddenly things are not going as smoothly as they should be? I confess this is not generally my trial, but I have made friends with lawlessness and the results are not desired.
Either end of the extreme leaves something in want. The best way is to live in balance. To cry out to the Holy Spirit to speak to us so clearly each moment of the day that we know when to act in truth, when to extend grace and how to do both. Jesus was such a wonderful example of both. He kept the law but did not become legalistic. He extended grace, but never became permissive in allowing sin to continue. I've just begun to consciously think on this profound idea of balance between these two wonderful gifts of grace and truth. It seems that the more I think on these and pray over them the more I realize that balance is not found in a moments realization but in a lifetime of following the master of both. Even then at the end in this fallen state I think I will still be just as in awe of the perfect man and his balancing of grace and truth as I am at this moment.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Who's Your Saviour?
I am struck by how many saving influences we have at our beck and call in modern society. What has been more striking to me in our 2nd week of a new year of school is how often I want to run to one of these worldly saviours. I am feeling overwhelmed with the education of my children, I am ashamed to say the thought of sending them off on a golden chariot to school has crossed my mind. My emotions seem ablaze and out of control, maybe I could call on a friend or someone to just listen to me. I am exhausted physically, perhaps another cup of coffee will do the trick to perk me up. Yikes! This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to my automatic reaction to life and my buckling under the tiniest amount of pressure. Running to the world for comfort has been my all too immediate response lately.
What is more disappointing than my weakness and lack of faith is that I have passed it on to my children! When school gets hard they fight the temptation to fuss. When they have to work hard they cave into the temptation to sigh and whine about the work. When relationships get difficult they often act in a selfish way.
Years ago before all of the modern day comforts we enjoy I wonder if it was so easy to run to the world for relief from our everyday problems? I recently watched just a snippet of a documentary on Theodore Roosevelt. As a young man he lost his wife and then his mother. In his grief he headed west to Dakota Territory where he lived a solitary and hard working life. It was a time of healing not by escaping discomfort but working hard through it. There were not many therapists and physcologists to run to when the trials of life got hard. He and others at the time had to simply live through the trials and grief of life. What a beautiful example of fortitude, one that we see less and less these days.
The temptation to run to pop-phsycology, medication and worldly interventions is overwhelming in our society. We are promised a cure for every ail. When we run to the world's saviours will we ever find true healing? Perhaps there is a place for what the world and science have discovered in the way of drugs and therapies, but dare I say in this politically correct world of words that first we must seek our true Saviour Jesus Christ? I wonder how many times it even crosses the mind of a sufferer to run to Jesus?
We are not promised happiness or ease of life. We are promised comfort, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves received from God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4. We are not promised worldly wealth or riches, we are promised provision, "My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19. We are not promised happiness in life, but we are promised peace, "I will listen to what god the Lord will say; he promises peace to his people, his saints." Psalm 85:8. With all of these great promises in a true saviour why is it we continue to throw His ways away and try the world's?
Parenting is not easy. Especially if you choose to take on the majority of the responsibility of caring for your children on your own. The past two weeks have highlighted this fact in my life over and over again. However, we have a saviour that will certainly be able to help us in each of our trials, but we must take the step to call on Him and accept the help He gives. It is not usually in the form of a pill or a quick fix, but rather of a molding our character and soul into the likeness of Him. This way runs so contrary to how the world deals with issues. His way always has lasting satisfaction, even if we don't get to see the entire result until we enter eternity with Him! In the mean time, "We say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?'" Hebrews 13:6
What is more disappointing than my weakness and lack of faith is that I have passed it on to my children! When school gets hard they fight the temptation to fuss. When they have to work hard they cave into the temptation to sigh and whine about the work. When relationships get difficult they often act in a selfish way.
Years ago before all of the modern day comforts we enjoy I wonder if it was so easy to run to the world for relief from our everyday problems? I recently watched just a snippet of a documentary on Theodore Roosevelt. As a young man he lost his wife and then his mother. In his grief he headed west to Dakota Territory where he lived a solitary and hard working life. It was a time of healing not by escaping discomfort but working hard through it. There were not many therapists and physcologists to run to when the trials of life got hard. He and others at the time had to simply live through the trials and grief of life. What a beautiful example of fortitude, one that we see less and less these days.
The temptation to run to pop-phsycology, medication and worldly interventions is overwhelming in our society. We are promised a cure for every ail. When we run to the world's saviours will we ever find true healing? Perhaps there is a place for what the world and science have discovered in the way of drugs and therapies, but dare I say in this politically correct world of words that first we must seek our true Saviour Jesus Christ? I wonder how many times it even crosses the mind of a sufferer to run to Jesus?
We are not promised happiness or ease of life. We are promised comfort, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves received from God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4. We are not promised worldly wealth or riches, we are promised provision, "My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19. We are not promised happiness in life, but we are promised peace, "I will listen to what god the Lord will say; he promises peace to his people, his saints." Psalm 85:8. With all of these great promises in a true saviour why is it we continue to throw His ways away and try the world's?
Parenting is not easy. Especially if you choose to take on the majority of the responsibility of caring for your children on your own. The past two weeks have highlighted this fact in my life over and over again. However, we have a saviour that will certainly be able to help us in each of our trials, but we must take the step to call on Him and accept the help He gives. It is not usually in the form of a pill or a quick fix, but rather of a molding our character and soul into the likeness of Him. This way runs so contrary to how the world deals with issues. His way always has lasting satisfaction, even if we don't get to see the entire result until we enter eternity with Him! In the mean time, "We say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?'" Hebrews 13:6
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