Mom Minute- Lindsey Ray

1. Anger erupts when... Someone or something finds a personal right I have yet to yield to God.

Philippians 2:1-8- "Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion,  then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,  not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross!"

2.  Patience comes by... Accepting a difficult situation without giving God a deadline to remove it.

Romans 5: 3-5 "Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;  perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."

3.  Self-control is... Instant obedience to the initial promptings of God's spirit.  Escape doesn't mean peace, rather yielding, accepting, and obeying bring peace.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18- "Rejoice always,  pray continually,  give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."

Self-Control: Sara McConahy

Self-Control
-Defined: Making a choice to curb your desires.The self-restraint that produces Christlikeness.  Disciplined.
-Opposite of self-control = Dissipation (1 Peter 4:3-7): To scatter, waste, flail.
-For who? Every believer in increasing measure as we grow in Christ.
-Why? Enables the believer to be conformed into the mind of Christ.  Place of protection for us, a defense against sin.

*At your tables, share what areas you think we as women typically lack self-control?  What about you? What circumstances test your self-control the most?
BRAINSTORM: Emotions, spending money (to beautify ourselves, our homes, etc...), time management, food (over/under eating), speech.

How can I grown in the fruit of self-control? Titus 2:11-14
Indicatives (the truths):
-Past redemption: He bought us back.
-Present purity and possession: We recieved His righteousness, we belong to God.
-Future hope: Nothing can ever take me from Him!  Because of what we have, we need to be stewards, how are we striving to please Him?

Imperatives (what we should DO because of these truths):
-Say No!: For a greater yes!  We should be fueled by all He is and all He's done for us.
-Live self-controlled lives: To honor, reflect, and draw near to Him.
-Be eager to do good:  BECAUSE we love Him, not to earn right standing.

*Key: More Jesus, more Gospel in our lives produces more fruit (self-control).  It flows from our union with Him.

*At your table share some things you do, or have seen others do, to help in the area of self-control.

1 Peter 5- Be alert.
1 Peter 1- Prepare your minds for action.

*Who we are precedes what we do.  Bask in who He is and who you are in Him!

How can I teach my children self-control?
-Who's the boss?  When you teach your kids to submit to your authority, you are preparing them to come under God's authority.  Make a family rules list, consequences teach them to have self-control.  Always point them to the Gospel and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
-Set up child for success and model it.  Motivated by Jesus!
IDEAS:
-makes sure everyone is getting enough rest (if possible) and healthy food.
-make a budget.
-pray before discipline
-address problems before they escalate
-pray for forgiveness together
-accountability (husband/friends)
-speak quietly to evoke calm speech
-hug before correction

My Stained Recliner

Whoever invented micro fiber furniture, boasting its stain resistance, obviously didn’t do any thorough research with a family of small children.  Let’s just say, our rocking recliner is now more of a magnet for messes than it is a repellent of them. But to be fair, we’ve probably allowed far too many snacks to be eaten in it, so I digress.  While I often cringe when I think of all I’ve cleaned off of this recliner, including multiple types of bodily excretions, this worn out, stain ridden chair has some lessons for me.

This past week, my youngest came down with a tummy bug.  She’s already a bit on the needy/snuggly side as it is, so when she’s sick, all she wants is to be in our arms.  And when she looks to me with the droopy eyes of fever, asking me to hold her, of course I swoop her up.  I’m happy to report that she’s feeling all better now, but my lower back is still feeling all the holding of the past few days.  And that’s where the stained recliner comes in.  As I was sitting there, rocking my sweet girl, trying to take the edge off her misery with my love, I couldn’t help but look around at all the messes that were not being tidied, going down the mental check list of all the tasks that needed doing that I just couldn’t do.  And then the whisper came, that this chair, this rocking, this girl is the  best task I can be accomplishing in any given day.  Certainly, there is a time and place for cleaning and creating a place of peace for our families, working together on those tasks.  But sometimes the greatest way we can create peace for the souls we love in our homes is to just sit still.  When Autumn was sick, when she needed me to just sit and comfort and stroke her forehead, something I do in snipets all the time, it made me think about how much my kids would love it if I did this more.  And this compulsion to keep working and doing and accomplishing, I’m learning something about my heart in it.  I think, if I’m really honest, I’m often doing those things to impress others, not with the simple motive of blessing my family.  Thoughts riddled with insecurity, equating my worth with the job I’m doing as the cleaner/organizer of our home, creep into my mind throughout the day.  But what if molding and filling hearts is more important than laundry and crumbs and papers in disarray?  What if cleanliness is really not next to Godliness as the saying goes?  I think my times of just sitting with my children, who long for those special times with me, reminds me that seasons are short, and children are little only for awhile.  But how do we really live for an audience of one?  How do we stop, in self-focus, always worrying about what others think of us?

I don’t doubt that we will always struggle with this in a world that likes to keep us busy, that tells us that moving and doing is the only work worth doing.  But we find some great encouragement straight from God in His Word that fights the world’s prescription.  Let us not forget that when we are still, to just be with and focus on the ones we love, we are following the example of our God, who longs for us to crawl up in His lap, to hear His Words, and to just be.  I’ll leave you with these verses that encourage my heart to enjoy moments of Sabbath in my days.

Luke 10:38-42 “As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”   “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

This passage always reminds me that none of the other work I have on my to do list is as important as sitting at Jesus’s feet.

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

This verse reminds me that just as Jesus is my place of rest, I need to be a place of rest for my children, not the busy, frantic, “just a minute” mom that I can be.

Psalm 46:10 “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” 

This verse reminds me to rest in God’s sovereignty.  Could it be that my stillness bring Him more glory than my busyness?

Matthew 22:36-40  “Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

And this passage, one we’ve all heard many times, is a good reminder of God’s priority for our time.  Giving Him the best of ourselves, and giving our best to others (children/family/friends).

None of these passages us tell us to be lazy, but rather to rest with purpose.  There are many scriptures that warn against laziness, working is good, don't get me wrong.  I think where we often get it wrong is when we see times of rest and being still as a hindrance to what we see as more important, the doing we have idolized.  Rest serves as a recharging for the work God has given us, it's needed fuel we often neglect.

Meditate with me on these verses today as we ask God how He might be leading us to slow down for the sake of what’s most important.

Pre-School Idea Sharing

1.  Although Genevieve is young for actual preschool (She will be two in March), this may be helpful for any moms of toddlers:  we have chosen to do our own little curriculum at home once a week.  It has been really fun because it takes what we are already doing (games/crafts/snacks/songs, etc.) and gives them some structure.  We will do one chapter at a time and pick and choose activities out of there...each activity revolves a certain concept or subject matter, and everything we do revolves around that one topic.  We have used the book "The Comprehensive Toddler Curriculum (for 18-36 months)" by Kay Albrecht and it has been awesome.  Barnes and Noble has it.  It has been fun and a great, beneficial activity for the long winter months.  It's nice, too, because it's free and on our own, so if we feel like taking a week off, we do. ;)
-Natalie

Another suggestion on where to buy The Comprehensive Toddler Curriculum (for 18-36 months)" by Kay Albrecht here. Free shipping.

http://www.betterworldbooks.com/9780876592144-id-9780876592144.aspx

2.  We have generally tried to do at least one craft and one game each day (like play-doh, stringing beads, perler beads, water color books where the ink is printed on, coloring, stamping, murals and shapes with foam paper, tan-grams, finger-painting with pudding, puzzle time, etc.) until our kids are three.  

Once our kids are three, we have found wonderful Christian preschool programs (2 mornings a week for threes, and three mornings for 4-5 year olds).  It's stretched our budget at times, but I have loved the opportunity for our kids to learn preschool stuff with a Christian focus and kids that aren't necessarily from church.  My goal is to permeate my children's world view with the idea that there are Christians everywhere, not just our friends, so they see it as normal to be Christian and talk about Jesus wherever we go.  It's also a way to be out in the world, but model not being caught up in it.  

Our kids were at a Baptist church program in Juneau, and are at Resurrection Fellowship here.  While I don't subscribe to some of the points of their worship or theology, I've found that their staff LOVE JESUS and are passionate about teaching them that Jesus loves them, and that's the environment I want my kids to see and have an opportunity in which to participate and learn.  Especially learning that God created the world, their little bodies, the rules for life, and is worthy of worship and reverence.  He IS the foundation of knowledge.  

This CAN be done at home, no questions.  I've specifically scheduled my time with kids in a preschool program to volunteer in my older children's classrooms, have one-on-one time with my younger ones, meet with other moms, or grocery shop so I'm available at home and not needing to tote kids around for as many errands.  

RCS (Resurrection Christian School) Preschool is in north Loveland, right off I-25.  It opens for public enrollment on February 12 at 8:00 a.m.  (I'd be there by 7:45 to get in line, it will fill up within minutes.)  Their program is gospel centered, includes chapel, dance or gymnastics monthly, a great art program, two performances a year, and is academically strong.  612-0632 for Cathi to schedule a tour.  Mornings are 8:30-11:30 (with drive-through pickup and 45 minutes of "lunch bunch" available for $2 more) or 12:15-3:15.

Other great Christian preschools I've looked into and liked are: Christian Core Academy!!! (Our schedule doesn't allow), Harmony School, and Redeemer Lutheran.

3.  We have used Sylvans preschool curriculum that can be found at Barnes and noble I usually buy the book that contains letters (upper and lower) colors and shapes, as well as numbers/ counting it costs about 25$ and takes anywhere from 10-20 min depending on how much time you want to invest. Also we recently picked up Hooked on Phonics level I at the library and I have absolutely loved it! Next year we will probably do CCA's (Christian Core Academy) preschool for James. I think it will be a great experience!

Ladies!

4.  Because my husband and I are both a part of CSU and graduating this spring, our son who was 3 wanted to do school.  Though a little pricey, we have started him with the preschool program from A Beka academy.  He loves it and my 2 year old is doing it along with him.  They learn how to write, sounds, numbers, colors, months, days, etc.  They have games and such.  Because it is more expensive for everything, it comes with a teachers manual so you make sure you are doing it rights, or it can be done via video, we laminated all the games and pieces so that we can reuse it all for my daughter or any future kids we have.  We don't push him to do a lot, usually he wants to do about an hour a day, his choice.  We went with A Beka because it is one my husband had when he was growing up with, it is very flexible even how you teach with it, computer, you, groups, video and such.  I hope you find this helpful.

As a side note, I have enjoyed being a part of REAL Moms this fall.  Unfortunately I have an internship this semester that requires me to be there during this time :(  If I canget out of it a couple of times I will try. I have been blessed by the program.

Thanks You,

Melissa

5.  If you would like a to try a fun, free option (albeit a bit more work); we could start up Kingdom Kids again.  

Kingdom Kids is a co-op preschool that meets a MVC and is run by mothers.  We did not have it this last semester, because there just wasn't enough interest.  But if we got a good group of ladies (and their preschoolers) together I would be more than happy to help start it up again.

How it works: There is a class and a nursery for younger siblings.  Each mother rotates through the various positions of Teacher, Teacher's Helper, Nursery worker 1, Nursery worker 2, and days off.  Last year we found having 7 mothers was about ideal.  This way you prepared and taught 2 lessons (3-4 days), helped 3-4 days, was in the nursery for about 6 days and had about 6-8 days off a semester.

When: Obviously, the when is completely at the discretion of those who are involved.  We typically met from 9-11:30am on Tuesdays and Thursdays, taking Real Moms Tuesdays off.  We also took a field trip each semester.

All the curriculum (Our Father's World) and teaching tools are already assembled and waiting to be used.  Occasionally, the mother's split the cost of a new box of crayons or construction paper.

If anyone is in need of more info about this or is interested in Kingdom Kids please shoot me a line.  i loved it.  Serving with friends, teaching the kids, it was a blast!

Colleen Reynolds
co@jonandco.com
970-412-3509

6.  Christian Core Academy Pre-K

CCA offers Pre-K for children ages 4/5 from 8am-noon on Tuesday/Thursdays. CCA has small class sizes

allowing 8 spots for Pre-K (and 10 spots for all other grades), however, if enough interest were to arise a

Monday/Wednesday class may become available. Cost is $180/month (with August being ½ price) and

a $180 registration free due upon completion of an enrolment packet. This will secure a spot for the

2013-14 school year and help purchase consumables throughout the year.

CCA Pre-K offers a Core Knowledge curriculum which incorporates What Your Preschooler Needs To

Know Core Knowledge material, My Fathers World Kindergarten material, Saxon Math Kindergarten

material and Spalding Phonograms (focusing on the first 26 phonograms).

Most importantly, Jesus is the foundation of all learning at CCA. In Pre-K this looks like daily devotions,

prayer time (based on specific prayer requests/praises), reading through The Jesus Storybook Bible and

memorizing Bible Sayings each week based on the My Father’s World weekly units. Besides gaining a

love for learning, much of Pre-K is learning how to co-exist with others and gain an understanding of

structure and basic social/behavior skills in a group/classroom setting. The small class size allows for

these important matters to be addressed through discussions of Jesus and His love for us, to practice

reconciling with our peers who have been offended, and reaching not only the mind but the heart of

each child.

If you or someone you know would like more information or an enrollment packet for CCA’s

Pre-K program, please contact Cherese Macy at (970)682-4750 or through CCA’s website at

christiancoreacademy.org.

20 Pie Crusts!

Hey guys,

  I found this recipe for how to make 20 pie crusts for your freezer, I made them about 2-3 months ago and they have been a huge time/ money saver! I thought with Thanksgiving around the corner and all of those yummy pies, this would be a good time to send it out.

The Recipe:

3 lb can Crisco vegetable shortening (I use Butter-Flavored Crisco)

5 lb all-purpose flour 

3 cups ice water

2 Tbsp. salt

Mix in a very large bowl or pan (I use my Bosch with the dough hook).

Blend flour, salt, and Crisco together (by hand if necessary).

Add ice water and mix all together just until blended.

Form into patties weighing approx. 7.6 oz. each (if you have a scale and want to get 20 out of the recipe). 

Makes about 18 to 20.

Here is the link for step by step instructions,

http://www.nuttnhoney.net/KimsKitchen/20FreezerPieCrusts.html

Also just a tip but if you are going to use the Crisco, SAMs club is the place to buy it as it costs about 3$ making each pie crust cost about .20 cents. If you are not a fan of shortening I feel pretty certain you can just sub out room temperature butter. Although this will make it considerably more expensive. Hope you enjoy!

Joani

We Remain Weak: Women's Retreat Reflections

It’s been awhile, I know.  Sometimes living life takes precedence over writing about it, I guess that’s the best way I can think of to explain it.  But I'm planning on updating this blog with notes from each meeting over the next few months, so stay tuned!  It's been a  season of quiet for me, but that doesn’t mean my thoughts haven’t been brewing or that God hasn’t been working.  In fact, I think it has been in times of quiet that He speaks the most to my heart. I was able to get away for our church’s annual women’s retreat last weekend and wow did God meet me!  There is something so special about times to slow down and draw near to God and other women, a chance to rest our souls at His feet and fellowship with focus over several days as opposed to the snippets we get in “real life”.  And if there had been no profound message to hear from a speaker, God would have used the mountains and the time away alone to refresh my spirit and speak volumes to my heart… but the message WAS profound, thank you Sara, for being a vessel for His words, and I just have to share what God spoke to my heart.

Our pastor’s wife, Sara McConahy, shared on a passage from 2 Corinthians, 4:5 – 5:21 to be exact.  I’m going to go ahead and quote the whole passage here to make it easy for you.  I encourage you to take a minute and pray right now before you read this, asking God to soften your heart to HIS message to you through the Word…

2 Corinthians 4:5–5:21 (NLT) – “You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.
 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.
We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.
Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies.  So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you.
But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.” We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.
That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.  For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

New Bodies
For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life.  God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.
So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. For we live by believing and not by seeing. Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.  So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.

We Are God’s Ambassadors
Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too. Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us, so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart. If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit.  Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.  He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.
So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!  This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”  For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.”

This passage has SO much in it.  I won’t regurgitate my whole weekend of notes for you, but I will share the main points God challenged my heart with.  I think many of us have read this passage, or portions of it, multiple times before.  But I love how God reveals new wisdom to us through the same scriptures, time and time again.  His Word never gets old or ineffective, amen?!  It is living and active!  Sara titled the weekend, “True Treasure in Common Clay”.  One of my favorite scriptures from this passage is 4:7 (NIV)- “ But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”  I have rejoiced in this truth so many times in my life, that I am weak to reveal His strength, that God put His light and power in this weak, cracked pot on purpose so that it would be obvious that it’s HIM who’s doing a mighty work in me, not me being great by putting in enough effort.  But God pulled back a new layer for me last weekend.  Sara said something that the Holy Spirit burned into my heart and I haven’t forgotten it since.  She said, “we REMAIN weak, HE is forever strong”.  At first hearing, I think that statement can make us uncomfortable.  “Wait a minute,” we think, “isn’t He making me stronger, better in this whole sanctification (growing more into His likeness as we move towards heaven) process?”  She gave us these two equations to explain the point:

1. God’s power + my weakness= my power
2. God’s power + my weakness= God’s power

Sara pointed out that many of us see Jesus as an energy drink, which would be the first equation.  “just gotta drink a little more Jesus and I’ll be stronger for my tasks, better, less weak”.  But do you hear the self focus in that statement?  We have this agenda, these areas that we want to be stronger in, and so we’re asking God to fill us up for OUR purposes.  Scripture tells us something different, it’s not about us!  These cracked pots (that’s us who have been redeemed and reconciled to a Holy God ONLY by his grace, which comes through Jesus alone) will stay cracked, will remain weak, so that HIS strength, HIS power can be revealed.  We will not ever arrive in this life, and any growth and increased strength we have will not ever be because we’ve become less weak, it will only be because we’ve drawn nearer to the God who fills us, fixing our eyes on Him, abiding in Him, allowing His light to shine ever brighter through those cracks.

Friends, this was big for me.  Sometimes I find myself so frustrated and confused about why I’m still struggling with certain things, why I’m not seeing the growth I long to see, why I’m still so weak.  Can any of you relate?  But when we ask ourselves why we want to be stronger, I think we have to get really honest about why.  Could it be our reputation with others?  Our desire to do better for those we love in our own effort?  Maybe it’s a desire for proof that we really are new creations?  But here’s the promise, we ARE new creations, “the old has gone, the new has come!”  We have been forgiven, reconciled to God, adopted into His Kingdom, it is finished if we have put our faith in Christ!  And this, not because of anything righteous in us.  God’s power, HIS strength, has been put inside of us for HIS glory and our blessing.  We remain weak because He wants us to depend on Him, He wants the world to see the power of the Gospel , man’s need for Him, in our lives and know the changes they see, the joy in all circumstances, it’s not because we’re extra cool and strong and great, but because HE is.  And when we stumble and struggle and suffer, we cling to Him, fixing our gaze on the only one who can carry us through this life, so that others will see their need too.

What does this mean for us?  Does it mean we stop moving forward, stop putting forth effort? No, because if we did, we’d be ignoring the call to “live” for Him, to “walk” by faith, to “abide” in Him. These are action words. But it’s WHAT we’re living for and WHERE we’re walking (or running) to, WHOSE strength it is that we need to look at.

John 15:4-5 says, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.””
 
This  passage makes it clear that fruit doesn’t come from our effort, but from abiding in Him.  And it’s always evident that, apart from the Vine, a branch can’t produce any fruit. The questions I think we have to ask ourselves are,

1. Where does strength come from?  My efforts to do better or more dependence on Him in my weakness?
2. Whose strength is it?  Does more growth equal less weakness, or do we remain weak by design so His strength can be revealed?
3. For what purpose do I want to be strong, my own agenda or His purposes?
4. Can I really be content, “rejoice” in my weakness, because “His power is made perfect” in my weakness?

Father, thank you, with flat-on-my-face gratitude, for saving me by your amazing love and grace!  There is nothing in me that is worthy of your love, but You gave it anyway, at a price I can’t fathom.  Thank you for putting your glorious light in this cracked pot, this weak clay vessel.  As I remain weak, I cling, ever tighter, to your strength!  I offer my life to you Father, be glorified as you display Your strength in my weakness.  Make me more like you Father, not for me, but for You!  Amen

Abiding in Christ- Amy Hendrickson

What does "Abide" mean?
     -sit, dwell, establish, lodge, remain, stay with, last, be one with.

From the Word:

John 15:4- "Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me."

John 15:7- "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you."

John 15:6- "If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned."

John 15:10- "If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love."

John 15:9- "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love."

1 John 2:24- "As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father."

1 John 3:17- "If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?"

2 John 1:9- "Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son."

Practical:

Abiding in Christ is how we stay with Him, remain with Him, live with Him, stay as one with Him.  It is intimacy with our Maker and Savior that produces the fruits of the Spirit in our lives.  These are a few practical ideas on how to abide in Him.

-music, chatachisms to music, open Bible on the counter with the habit of regularly chewing on scripture, sandwiching our day with prayer (first thing, maybe every time you do dishes or fold laundry, little reminder triggers, and before you go to bed.

*Bring your kids into it!  They will know what it is to abide when they see you do it and when they get to practice it.

Devotionals:

"When Motherhood Feels Too Hard"- Kelly Crawford
"Morning and Evening"- Charles Spurgeon
"My Utmost For His Highest"- Oswald Chambers