Thursday, April 29, 2010

Focus, Focus, Focus

I don’t know about you, but there are moments in my day (and days in my week!) where I just feel frazzled, out of control, and clearly scatter-brained! (Can I get an amen?) What’s a gal to do to regain her focus? What’s a mom to do in order to help her kids regain their focus?

I read a brilliant book called Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home by Richard Foster. Actually I’ve read it several times now and each time I am drawn by his conversation on the simple complexity of prayer.

One of my favorite suggestions he makes is to select a “breath prayer” for yourself that you offer up many times a day. Something that is on your heart that can be said in one breath, so to speak. How often do I intend to pray “if only I had more time”. This gives me the ability to pray without ceasing on one matter that will greatly impact my day, and allow me to focus my heart and attentions. (Oh, I wish you would go and read the book. I’m making this sound an awful lot like a chore…he is much more inviting about this…)


Please read the rest of my article for Heart Of The Matter here.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

Have I posted this one before? I should have. Can't believe it has taken me so long...If only I knew the message this song presents when I was in high school... or university....or...

I am so inexpressibly grateful that it isn't up to me to become beautiful enough or holy enough or kind enough or just enough or anything enough. It is the righteousness of Christ draped over me, wrapped around me, saturating me that allows me to stand in front of the Lord, clean and acceptable and beautiful. I don't need to try any harder. You make me beautiful. You make me stand in awe. You are beautiful, Lord. That's all that matters.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Wow-ful Women Wednesday

No words. Except this is my heart's cry today. This is the soaring, proclaiming, exalting, uplifting, God-glorifying message I want my life to display. Yes, I will praise the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

"What's a Motto for You?"

When my hubby and I were first dating,and then when I had brainwashed and hypnotized him into thinking he couldn't live without me (bwahahahaha), we sat down and spent a lot of time writing up a Family Mission and Vision Statment. What an exercise! If you ever think you know what you want your life or your family or your marriage to look like, and if you think your spouse wants the same, you should definitely be ready for your eyes to be opened by a truly fun, and exceptionally useful, exercise such as this.

I remember one of the things we had on our list "wants" for our marriage and our home was peace and a lack of anger. Great idea. What does that look like? Where does that come from? Well, we searched out the scriptures to find what the Word said about anger, and boy, did I ever learn I had a LOT to work through from my own angry, angst-ridden past before I could truly live in peace with anyone. Very eye-opening...and humbling.

Recently, I've been looking at Romans (you just gotta love Romans) and I have found several passages that would make for wonderful starting points for a family motto. Chris and I have been revisiting our goals and our vision for the family and these passages sure set a beautiful tone. Read these, and try and convince me this isn't what you want for your marriage, your family, your workplace, your ministry, your relationships, your church.


Romans 14:19 "So then, let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding."

(my new favourite) Romans 15:5-6 "May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Jesus Christ, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."


Now both of those have SO much to dig deeper in to, and more to define and grasp that you could really study that for a long, long time. But just imagine what your home, what my home, might look like if one of these was the new motto, or the new focus and mind set.

What scriptures do you look to for purpose and focus? Do you have a key verse, or a life verse, that drives you?

Monday, April 5, 2010

Easter Monday

I think I may just spend some time today thinking about these lyrics:

(I must say I love this singalong version. Having the whole body of believers confessing with their mouths that Jesus is the Risen Lord is just pretty stunning to me.)



True Love -- Phil Wickham

Come close listen to the story
About a love more faithful than the morning
The Father gave His only Son just to save us

The earth was shaking in the dark
All creation felt the Father's Broken Heart
Tears were filling Heaven's Eyes
The day that True Love died, the day that True Love died
When blood and water hit the ground
Walls we couldn't move came crashing down
We were free and made alive
The day that True Love died, The day that True Love died

Search your heart you know you can't deny it
Come on, lose your life just so you can find it
The Father gave His only Son just to save us

The Earth was shaking in the dark
All creation felt The Fathers broken heart
Tears were filling Heaven's Eyes
The day that True Love died, the day that True Love died


When blood and water hit the ground
Walls we couldn't move came crashing down
We were free and made alive
The day that True Love died, The day that True Love died

Now, Jesus is alive

Jesus is alive
Jesus is alive
Jesus is alive
Jesus is alive
Oh, He is alive
He rose again

When blood and water hit the ground
Walls we couldn't move came crashing down
We were free and made alive
The day that True Love died, The day that True Love died

Come close listen to the story

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Heard at My House

Setting: tucking the 3 year old into bed, in the room she shares with 2 older sisters.

On the floor is assorted "big sister stuff", like books etc. There is also a basket of clean laundry that I have not helped the 3 year old put away.


Enter sweet little 3 year old girl (who, adorably, can't quite say her 'r' sounds):

"Seriously. Are you kidding me? This room is a disaster!"


(mental note to self: Mom may need to keep some thoughts and commentaries in her head and find a bit kinder vocabulary.)