Can I Wear Pants and Still Love Jesus?

...or listen to pop culture music...
...or watch movies...
...or play sports...
...or wear make up...
...or have tattoos...

The list goes on and on, right!?

We have talked about modesty here in the past several times.  As a matter of fact, our most read post of the blog history is a post my oldest daughter wrote years ago called Modesty- a Command, Not a Conviction. Obviously it struck a chord with a lot of people.  Two other posts that sent people thinking was  What ARE You Wearing and Where Did Modesty Go?

Some people know exactly how they feel about the subject of modesty.  Some are just searching for answers and quite frankly, some of us are just terribly confused.

Modesty in the way we dress is pretty easy for me to understand.  Don't dress in a way that shows personal parts of your body to others.  Period. As we tell our kids, there is more than one way to share your body.  Low necklines and tight clothes often do that.  But after that, the lines get a bit more fuzzy.  Where do jeans fit in, and pants and shorts?  Does wearing those things make you love Jesus less?

How about music and movies?  Yes, things with filthy language and sexual themes are an easy out.  But what about sweet love songs, or timeless operas or old movies?  I may decide to avoid them, but do they somehow make you love Jesus less if you choose them?

And playing sports?  And wearing makeup?

See where this could go?

I do not claim to have all the answers.  Trust me I have been looking.

What I am here to say is don't be quick to judge!

It's that simple.

We can think we know the hearts and minds of others based on what we see and what we think, but the truth is no one can do that besides Jesus.

Don't mishear me.  God's rules are GOD'S rules and they are to be followed.  But man made laws based on personal convictions and ideas are a different thing.

Just think of the people we may miss in our lives because of quick, un-informed judgements.

I can love Jesus and not be JUST like you.  And vice versa.  Praise the Lord for those who understand that and love regardless.

May I continue to learn to love regardless!

Blessings,

Do You Have a Warning Sign?

In our Sunday School class we usually open up with a quick discussion question and then go around the room and each person answers it.  A few weeks ago the question was "If you came with a warning sign, what would it say?"

Seriously?  (and thank you, Morgan! ;))

My mind immediately started processing and a million ideas flashed through my head, OK maybe not a million, but some doozies.

Where should I even start?

Mad military mom. Don't mess with me. That would be for the banking lady who got snippity with me on the phone a few weeks ago.

Unhappy Home Tenant. That is because I keep having water heater problems, an air vent that leaks water,  and a door that lets in cold air.

Homeschooling mom and no, it is not summer yet!  That is because February is the month to grow weary of school, homeschoolers and public schoolers alike, right?!

Beware of random tears! That is because deployment is a hard and lonely journey. 'nuff said!

To be honest I do not remember what I even responded.  My kids might remember.  But later in the day that question kept coming back to me.  What I wanted to say was not what I said, I know that much.

Contents under pressure.  Yep, right now that would be my warning sign.  Pressure to "do" this deployment right.  Pressure to take care of my responsibilities and now my husband's as well.  Pressure to raise the kids right, alone.  Pressure to set a good example.  Pressure to live up to everyone's expectations.  Pressure to... on and on and on.  Some days it is enough to make me feel like it is all going to blow up in my face.

Those are the days that I have to remind myself that I will succumb to those pressures if I try to do this alone.  I KNOW that is not possible and that I am not able.

The good news is that God is.  I cannot handle all of the pressure, but He can.  Even when I cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel, it is there.  HE is there!

So daily I am putting on a new warning sign-

Relying on Jesus!

Because, quite frankly, what else can we do?

Matthew 11:28 says "Come to me , all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

I pray that if you too are feeling burdened, pressured and weary, that you cling to Jesus.  He WILL give us rest.  He is able when we are not.

Blessings,

Our Sovereign Joy

Unto You- 52 Weeks of Family Scripture Memorization

OK, I know we do not know exactly when Jesus was born.  I get that.  But none the less, we celebrate His birth in 6 days!  6 days ya'll!

And regardless of when THIS DAY really was, He was born for us!

You and me, friends!

Celebrate that!

Blessings,

How Was the Birth? 52 Weeks of Family Scripture Memorization

As we focus on our Savior's birth this month of December, I thought it would be fitting to end our 52 week scripture memorization journey with verses that point our children towards Jesus!

If you have kids, do you remember their births?  Surely you do, even if only a few faint memories.  After all, after hearing the gender of your child, their weight and height and then their name, everyone wants to know "How was the birth?"  Some of us details people want to know even more details...what was your labor and delivery room like, were the nurses nice, what did you eat, did the doctor show up on time?  

OK, mostly women ask those kinds of questions.  But those are the things we think about.  I mean, I remember obsessing over whether I would have a private room or have to share with someone I didn't know.  Or whether the bathroom was in the room or down the hall.  Or if a shower or better yet, a whirlpool tub, was at my disposal.  You know, the important things! ;)

But Mary.  Well, she was unlike the rest of us I imagine.  We cannot know what the scripture does not tell us, but I would imagine that the only details she cared about were that she was giving birth someplace safe and warm.  And that her baby, God's son, was healthy.  The little details paled in comparison.  Because only one detail mattered.

THE DETAIL!

God's own son, Jesus, was born!

And the wise men and shepherds- bet they didn't ask a thing.  I would imagine all they could do was bow at His side and worship Him.

Shouldn't we?

Blessings,

Follow Him!- 52 weeks of Family Scripture Memorization

What kind of parent are you?

Gracious in your words and actions?
Merciful?
Patient?
Kind and loving?

Does it just depend on the day?

I would like to say that I am a great mom.  Always gracious and merciful and patient and loving.  But if I said that I would not be completely honest.

Because sadly, I am not.

I would like to be. I long to be.  And on some days I may come close.  But often stress gets the best of me.  Busyness takes up my time.  Anger creeps in.  I fail.

And then I do and say things that I wish I had not done and said.

But, God... well, He is not me.  And He never fails!

While I strive daily to do better and show my children what graciousness, patience, mercy, and love look like, in my human weakness I will never be perfect and sometimes I will fail.  

So instead of saying "follow me," I am trying to teach them-

Follow Him!  Jesus.  The one that is perfect.  

As we get closer to the Christmas season and turn our eyes to Jesus, let us remind our children that by following Him we can learn what graciousness, mercy, patience and love really look like.

And then let's take the time to show those things to those around us.

Blessings,

*For the rest of the year we will be focusing on scripture from the Christmas Story!  We hope you will join us!

Happy Easter- 52 Weeks of Family Scripture Memorization

I love Easter.  

When I was a child, it was a fun holiday. We got new dresses and pretty corsages to wear.  We celebrated with family we did not get to see very often.  We ate special meals of ham and deviled eggs and mashed potatoes.  And we had egg hunts and got Easter baskets. BIG Easter baskets.

Then I grew up.  And let go of of some of those things. And started new traditions for my own kids.

But most importantly, somewhere along my journey I realized just why Easter was so important.  It is not about the eggs, baskets, and food.  (I know, shocking, huh?!)

It is about Jesus.  And that He rose from the dead.

Rose!

Wow.  That takes my breathe away just to type.

He did not remain in a grave but rose.

How is that for some GOOD NEWS?

Happy Easter, friends!  Enjoy celebrating the Good News!

Blessings,

Time to Let Go and Move on!

We are renting a rather large-for-us house right now.  Not what we had planned nor where we had planned, but it fell into our hands at just the right time and because of fear, we jumped.  Into a much too large-for-us house.  In many ways it has been a blessing, don't get me wrong, but in MANY more ways - a burden.

People have said to me, "Oh, you will miss all of this space when you move."
Maybe.  Maybe not.
I hope not.

My hope is that I will crave simplicity more than I crave space.  And for sure more than I crave stuff!  Because no matter what kind of space you have, you WILL fill it up.  We have.

I want to crave people more than stuff ya'll!  My prayer- Lord, let this be enough.

Piles here.  A stack there.  A box in that closet.  A hodgepodge in that drawer.  Is it just me?  Can you close your eyes and see it?  Does it weigh you down, heart, mind and soul?  It does me.

STUFF.
EVERYWHERE
Some needed, a lot- not!
And I want to know where it all came from.

OH!  Me!

OK, maybe not all me, but a lot me!
And I really am not that big of a spender.  We are on a budget after all.  So I just spend what's in each category.  'cause it's there.  But with our No-Spend January rule (final update to come at the end of the month) I am seeing how I could save even more money by limiting the spending in some of our categories or even getting rid of a few.  Gasp , I know!

Forget do I want it!  Do I NEED IT?


As I take carloads of STUFF to the local Goodwill Store, it literally makes me sick to think of all the money attached to those things that I am so readily giving away.

Stuffed animals x $10.00= $$$
Doo-dads x $5.00= $$$
Clothes x $30.00= $$$
Books x $6.00= $$$


And that's conservative, my friends.


"Wow, how did you fit all this stuff into a smaller house?"  I don't know, but we did.  At it was OK.  Things just expand to fill a space, remember?  But I am tired of filling those spaces.  I long for a small space with only the people and things I love and use surrounding me.  Emphasis on the people.

So we are in downsize mode.
Really.

When we move this summer I want to see the bare minimum going with us.  No extra stuff.  No clutter.  Just the people and things that I love.  When each thing comes out of a box on the other side of the move I want to know exactly why I have it and where it is going.  That's it.

When Jesus calls us to do something big for HIS glory, I am pretty sure He will not be calling me and my stuff.  And if He takes us to Heaven tomorrow, I can guarantee this stuff is not going with us.

I am pretty sure Jesus does not care that much about my stuff.
I don't want to either.

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where theives break in and steal.  But store up for yourseleves tresures in Heaven...for where your tresaue is, there your heart will be also.  Matthew 6:19-21

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Coming next week-  Guest post from my oldest about her College Transition and Kid's Toy Storage-Step 1 in Decluttering!

See ya back on Friday for a Fun Friday Book Giveaway!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

EVERYWHERE you turn!

Yes, I do have a slight obsession with Christmas trees.  Do not tell my husband!  OK, he knows, but please do not mention it or ask how him many we have, as it tends to get him started on a speech about his crazy obsessed wife.
It all started with this...

Actually, it was a lot smaller one (now our Angel tree, but I digress) and stayed up year round with a few Americana ornaments on it.  I loved it.  We lived in Colorado at the time and it just felt homey to me.  Then a few loving friends started to feed my fetish and we HAD to get a bigger tree.  I mean, no one wants a crowded tree, right!  And for the record, I do not leave it up all year anymore, though I may have been tempted once, or twice.

The Nutcrackers started in my dancing days.  My mom gave me a new one each year I danced in the ballet.  I have fed my own fetish since then, thank you very much

Then there is this one..

My cross tree.  It actually started out smaller too (see a trend here?), but because friends love me they have helped me cover a bigger tree.  Not blaming them; just saying!  I love this one too!  Makes me smile every time I pass it.  It reminds us of the Savior for whom this whole season is about!

"For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord!" Luke 2:11  NEVER FORGET why we have a reason to celebrate!

Then came this one...

Our angel tree.  I just had a lot of angels, friends, and they needed somewhere to go.  So I put them on the once-Americana tree.  See, re-purposing at its best!

Then there is (stay with me), the kid's tree.

 This is where we put all those homemade ornaments- think glitter, sequins and lots of glue and all the Disney and Sesame Street ornaments that have been given to the kids.  They eventually will take some of those with them as they leave the house, but let's not talk about that now, please.

After years of spending a ton of money on fresh trees, my wonderful hubby bought me the tree of my dreams for Christmas a few years ago.  hmmm. Maybe he thought that would stop me from buying more.  Anyway...

Here is a picture of it from last year.  We have not put it up this year yet because I REFUSE to do so until our oldest gets home from college in 4 days!  4 DAYS YA'LL!!!

There may or may not be a small tree on the front porch and there is one in my oldest's room, but that is it!  Really!  For this year!  Next year I am thinking a forest of a few trees together could be really cool.  Don't 'ya think so?

Then there are the nativities.  Well, next year I will show you those.  ;)

And just so you do not think we are all about decorations and stuff let me tell you a few little other tidbits!  We love the Advent season as a time to be quiet, reflect on God's love and to remember that He came to earth as a baby to save us all.  Every year that time looks a little different for us, but this year we have begun a new book called Jotham's Journey.  So far- LOVE IT!  There are a few in the series and I know you can rotate through them for several years.  Even our olders love read-alouds by candlelight at Christmas.

And as far as gifts...
I am an only child, so I grew up with a lot of presents everywhere.  My mom and step father spoiled me, in a good way, and I have wonderful memories of Christmas with them.  That being said, we have FOUR kiddos, not one, and knew we needed to scale back.  So in the past few years we have cut presents down.  We try  to stick with:

Something to WEAR, WATCH, WANT AND WISH!

 Now granted, sometimes the wear or watch (also read) is sometimes a few things wrapped together, but we want the children to understand that it is not all about the gifts.  The "wish" is often their special gift.  In addition to that concept, we have asked Grandparents to keep things small and contribute money to our vacation fund.  The years that has worked we have given them photobooks with pictures of our fun as a thank you.  Our goal is to create memories, not collect things!

Things!  Oh, don't get me started because that is a whole new series I hope to attack in January!  Jesus did not die on a cross so we could have things!  He did so so we could have life and have it abundantly.

So while I assemble and decorate my many trees, may I never forget that true joy is not in the pretty things that please our eyes, but in the ONE that holds our hearts!  JESUS!

This post is part of a Sharing Christmas blog hop that will go live Saturday the 15th.  Come back and enjoy all the links to wonderful Christmas posts by my CREW buddies!

We are also linked up to The Modest Mom website today!  Check out her 12 Days of Christmas sale and giveaways!