I Just Want to Say . . . .

Jesus,

Thank you. Thank you for the blessings that I can touch with my hands – My kids’ dirty hands and strong shoulders, my car that runs. Thank for the blessings that I can hear with my ears – my husbands’ voice reading the Holy Word to our family, the glad voices singing at our church. Thank you for the blessings that I can see – my mother and father now called Nana and Poppa with their streaks of silver hair, laughing and playing with their grandkids. I thank you for the blessings that I can smell – the sweaty 6^th graders after they come into my classroom from playing outside, the dirty socks in my laundry basket, reminding me of all the extra clothes we are blessed to have. I thank you for the blessings I can taste – the spaghetti from a jar, the homemade beans and cornbread, the cold cereal and sandwiches, even the quick fast food grabbed on the go – all provided by You. Everything I have, I have because of You, my Savior, my Lord, my Provider, my King . . . . . and I just want to say, “Thank you.”

"Thriving in the Madness"

I have a confession to make. My life is not perfect. In fact, sometimes it is downright chaotic. In fact, I’m just going to come clean on a few things right here and right now. Here goes.

1.)  I left the house this morning with dirty dishes in the kitchen sink.

2.)  I’m not very good at keeping my laundry done.

3.)  I never fold socks.

I even have pictures to illustrate these shocking admissions.

Exhibit A

 

Yikes. Dirty dishes left in the sink all day? Don’t show my mother.

Exhibit B

 

Here is a picture of my overflowing laundry basket. To be completely honest, there is more dirty laundry behind the closet door in this picture, but I didn’t want to burn your retinas with the horror.

Exhibit C

 

These are my family’s socks, and guess what? They are never folded. I mean, never. My whole family knows, if you want socks, you go and find a matching pair in the basket.

I did not take a picture of my husband’s bathroom sink. There are limits to this madness. I mean, whyinthenameofallthatisholy can that man not learn to put the cap on his toothpaste and wipe his sink out?

Anyway

Why am I “coming clean” about all of this? Well, my husband has been preaching a series at our church this month entitled, “March Madness,” and I’ve been thinking a lot about how to not just survive the madness of life, but to actually thrive in it, and I’ve come to a few realizations.

Realization 1 – We all have “madness.”

I am well aware that the things I am calling Madness in my life are very, very minor. There are people at this moment who are dealing with Madness that I can’t even comprehend. There are people who are battling illness, watching their precious children battle illness, searching for a job, in the middle of a divorce; Christians are being persecuted for their faith – This is all Madness. I have learned that we all have Madness. There may be people who hide their madness better. There may be people whose Madness is not visible, but we all have our own chaos that we are dealing with.  You are not the only person who is struggling with Madness right now – I promise.

Realization 2 – We thrive in the madness by knowing the difference between the temporary and the eternal.

It gives me great peace of mind when I remember that all of this Madness – whether it is big Madness or small Madness – is just temporary. I have an eternal home in Heaven waiting for me, because I have made Jesus Christ the Lord of my life, so why should I let anything earthly get me down?

Remember, the only thing you can take to Heaven with you is OTHER PEOPLE. So, what that means to me, is that I am going to make every effort to express my love to my family and work on my relationships with them tonight, and I am going to try to get the dishes done, but if it doesn’t happen, oh well. The most important job I have is making sure I know Jesus and my children know Jesus. Their homework, meals, baths, laundry, and sports are all temporary. I must remind myself of this often.

In the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter if my kids miss their bath tonight, but it DOES matter if I neglect praying with them tonight.  

When this temporary, earthly life makes no sense, offers no stability or peace, or is just stinking frustrating, remind yourself of this powerful scripture -

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 – Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

In all of the Madness of life, remember, that Jesus is Lord and that true peace is only found when you focus your life on Him.

Have an awesome day!

Martha

 

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

I certainly don’t consider myself a gourmet chef, but I think it is fun to share some of the “old-standbys” from our family. Occasionally I will share recipes on my blog that would really give you a “taste” of what it’s like around our house. (ha, ha, pun intended)

Here’s a recipe I started making almost fifteen years ago when I found myself desperate to make a fast “breakfast-y” dish for a “Payday Breakfast” at work, or a treat for a Sunday School class, or something for a brunch party. I love this recipe because I usually have all of the ingredients in my kitchen, and I don’t have to go to the store, and it is super yummy! It’s great served with coffee, juice, or milk, and some awesome fresh cut fruit or melon. Sometimes I even make it at home, and it is “Fouts Kid-Approved!”

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 egg

½ cup milk

1 ½  cups flour

¾ cup sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

Mix all above ingredients together. Pour mixture into a greased 9x9 pan.

Topping:

¼ cup brown sugar

1 tblsp. flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tblsp. melted butter

Sprinkle topping over batter.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes. 

25 Things to do with Your Son Before He Turns 13

Just look at him – He’s officially taller than I am. His feet have been bigger than mine for years. He weighs more than I do. He has football and basketball practice before and after school. He has pep rallies. He has homework. Suddenly, his dad is much more interesting than I am. He has to shower daily and use deodorant. He has to wash his face so he doesn’t get zits. His dad’s phrases are constantly coming out of his mouth. Sportscenter is his favorite show. He doesn’t watch cartoons anymore; he doesn’t color anymore; he doesn’t play with toys anymore.

And right now as I’m writing this, I’m a mess.

I’m emotional about my son growing up too fast at the moment, but I must admit, I do love who he is growing up to be. I’m proud of him. I love his sweet spirit, his kind heart, how he tries so hard at school and at sports, how he is respectful of adults. Don’t get me wrong. He definitely has his faults that we need to work on. He still aggravates his brothers and fights with them on a daily basis. But, I know that God is shaping him into the man that He wants my son to be.

As I’m becoming more and more aware of how fast time is passing, I keep thinking of things that I can’t do anymore with my son, or things that I wish I would have done more of with my son, or things that I did with my son that I am so glad I did.

So, to moms of boys, here’s a list of 25 things to make sure you do a lot of with your son before he turns 13:

1.       Kiss him

2.       Hug him

3.       Pray for him every day

4.       Let him hear your praying for him

5.       Cuddle with him on the couch

6.       Teach him Bible stories

7.       Get in the floor and play with him

8.       Dress up and play pretend

9.       Make lots and lots of videos of him

10.   Take lots of pictures

11.   Turn on fun music and dance with him

12.   Take him to the zoo and enjoy his reaction to the animals

13.   Let him get dirty

14.   Let him try new things

15.   Introduce him to new foods

16.   Teach him to clean

17.   Encourage him to sing with you

18.   Sit next to him and color

19.   Listen to his stories

20.   Save the notes he writes to you

21.   Save some of his artwork from school – (I know this is a sentimental list, but there is no way you can save ALL of that crap.)

22.   Let him help you decorate the Christmas tree

23.   Make time for him to get to know his cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents

24.   Hold him in your lap and read to him

25.   Make sure he knows that he is loved



Four Lessons I’ve Learned as an Adult with Braces on My Teeth

Last February I was complaining about my crooked teeth and flabby belly. My normally laid-back, kind husband uncharacteristically said, “I’m so sick of you griping about the same things you’ve been griping about for eighteen years. If you’re so annoyed by those things, then change them!”

His words struck a chord. I think they made a huge impression on me, because he rarely talks to me like that. He usually says things like, “Aw honey, you look great.” Also, I realized that he was right. I had been griping about these same two things our whole marriage, and they weren’t going to change until I did something about them.

It took me a while to figure out how to fix the flabby belly. After a few months I discovered how I needed to eat and exercise to get in shape. My flabby belly isn’t totally gone yet, but it’s slowly leaving!

As for the crooked teeth, I made an appointment with my dentist for the next day, and about a month later I had a set of shiny new braces on my teeth that my dentist said I would need to wear for at least eighteen months.

I am a thirty-eight year old woman with braces on my teeth.

I have currently had these lovely metal brackets on my teeth for nine months. I knew that this experience would change the appearance of my teeth, but I had no idea that this experience would affect me in deeper ways as well. I have learned so much from wearing these braces. So far, there are four lessons I’ve learned as an adult with braces on my teeth:

1 1.)  It Doesn’t Matter What Other People Say – Here are some things people have said to me since I’ve had braces – “You know you ruined your looks with those things on your teeth.” (I’m not kidding, someone really said that to me.) “Why would you get braces? At your age?” I have had a lot of people say this to me. “I can’t believe you did that. Why would you spend money on that?” As if it’s any of their business. I have learned to flash my braces in a big smile at someone who says something like this to me and walk away. It’s liberating to not care what people say.

1 2.)  Don’t Take Yourself So Seriously – When your smile looks like a seventh grader’s, when you are wearing colored rubber bands on your teeth, when you discover you’ve had bits of food stuck in your teeth all day, it’s a great reminder not to take yourself so seriously. Sometimes as a grown-up you can start to forget that you are a CHILD of God. HE is our Father. He is in control. These braces have made me remember what it’s like to be a kid and to recognize that I have no reason to worry, because my Father God has it all under control!

1 3.)  It’s Never Too Late – To those people who’ve said, “Why would you get braces at your age?” I say, I got braces because I’m not dead yet. I want to make myself better in the time I have. There are so many things I still want to do. I refuse to die before I die!

1 4.)  A Little Change Makes a Big Difference – When you change one thing and prove to yourself that you can make a change, it is addictive. You convince yourself that more change and improvement is possible.

Of course these little silly braces are quite unimportant in the light of eternity. Our bodies are temporary. One of these days we will shed these bodies altogether, but I think we can learn something even from something as insignificant as braces. Do you need to make a change? Then do it! Think you can’t? 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away, and new things have come!” This year, I encourage you to seek lasting change in Jesus. It’s never too late to become who you want to be! 

“Make a Declaration for Your Family!”

Summer before last  I saw all of these pictures on Pinterest of wall art people had made for their homes with these great sayings on them. You know the ones I’m talking about – most of them have sweet and clever phrases or scriptures or have family names or important dates painted on rough looking wood planks. Well, after seeing all of those super cute signs, I thought that maybe this was a craft I could actually make.

You see, I’m honestly not much of a crafter. Most of my crafts are definitely not “Pinterest-worthy.” My glue dries lumpy, my handwriting usually slopes upward; I can’t cut a straight line to save my life; I’m too cheap to buy proper supplies. Regardless, I still try to make things occasionally, especially in the summertime. As a teacher, summer is my time that I enjoy dabbling in crafts, redecorating my home, and doing all sorts of fun things with my three boys. I just love summer.

Anyway, my husband had just made a new fence for our family Golden Retriever, Bear, and he had lots of wood planks left over. I thought those planks would be perfect for one of those signs for our home. Then, I had to think about what I should write. I knew I wanted to write a scripture, but which one? I had a hard time choosing. I thought about where the sign would be placed in my home. I had the perfect wall for it, on a wall in my kitchen that I would look at every time I did dishes, and my husband and boys and I would see every time we were in the kitchen; the boys would pass it every time they would go up or down the stairs to their bedrooms, so we would all see it a lot. It would be a huge part of our lives.

I even prayed about it. I felt a strong direction from the Lord that I should use this wooden sign to make a “DECLARATION.”  It would be like our family’s slogan or motto or vision statement.

                This is how it turned out –

According to Deuteronomy 6:9, we followers of God should write His commandments on the “doorframes of our houses and on our gates.”  I love how the ancient wisdom from God’s word still offers up-to-date practical help for raising kids! This simple sign has done something profound in my children. I hear them read it aloud often. They are speaking God’s Word and a Prophesy over our family every time they do that! I love it! 

     

It’s almost Christmas! I love this time of year, and I’ve been thinking about Mary, the mother of Jesus, for the past couple of days more than I’ve ever thought about her for some reason. One thing that keeps going over and over in my mind is this – Mary is a human delivering the King of Kings to the world – isn’t that exactly what we are all supposed to be?

We all have Mary built up in our minds as an untouchable, pristine, porcelain figurine of a person, but, of course, she was a normal, teenage girl. Have you ever thought that, as Christians, we are to be like Mary? Mary delivered Jesus to the world. Isn’t that one of our primary purposes as believers? To deliver Jesus to the world?

It’s my prayer that I can respond to the call to deliver Jesus the same way that Mary did. Mary responded by -

1.)             Saying “yes.” How many times am I guilty of saying “no” or “later” or “maybe when circumstances are better, when I’m not so busy I’ll tell them about you Jesus.” But not Mary. She just agreed.

2.)           Not being controlled by her fear. Obviously she was afraid, but she didn’t allow her fear to control her.

3.)           Receiving encouragement from a godly friend. The encouragement from Elizabeth was so valuable to Mary. Oh, how we so benefit from the encouragement from our godly friends!

4.)            She knew that she would have temporary pain, ridicule, persecution, discomfort, but she also knew the eternal rewards would far outweigh any temporary pain she would endure.

Lord, I pray that my words, actions, and attitudes would deliver JESUS to the people in my world!

Have a Merry Christmas! 

Love, 

Martha