“Wait, Mom! I want to give!”

Recently, my mom sent each of the kids some spending money for Christmas.  We were out doing some last minute shopping on Saturday, and Jonathan brought his wallet with him hoping to find some little treasure.   There were several things he was eyeing up, but in the end he decided to wait to buy something.  The next morning we went to church.  During the offering, Jonathan reached into his back pocket and excitedly said “Wait, Mom!  I want to give!”  I watched in awe as our youngest little boy cheerfully gave all he had.  When I asked him about it later, he said he gave because God’s been giving us stuff lately and he felt like that’s what he was supposed to do.  Jonathan is wise beyond his years.  The really cool thing about this story is that  shortly after the service was over, some friends approached us with a Christmas gift — they blessed us with $200 to buy Christmas presents for our children!  God is amazing!  And, Jonathan learned about reaping and sowing that day.  He gave all he had.  And, God blessed him beyond measure for his faithfulness and willingness to give.

Merry Christmas a capella style!

The name of the group is Straight No Chaser our of Indiana University.  I saw this on someone’s blog — so cool!  Dean directed an all male a capella group in college, so this brings back a lot of memories!  Enjoy!!

Oh, Christmas Tree… Oh, Christmas Tree!

We were blessed with a FREE Christmas tree this year!  It’s not your typical tree farm kind of tree — this is a natural white pine from the woods of Pennsylvania that a lady cut down from her father’s property.  In fact, she cut down several trees and decided to share them with people in the community who needed a tree but maybe didn’t have a lot of money to spend on a tree.  It’s not exactly a *whole* tree… it’s missing the back part… but if you look at it from the front, it’s lovely!  It’s taught us a lot about thankfulness and being content.  At first, we joked about “where’s the rest of it” and Dean did have to prop it up with some 2 by 4 ’s in the Christmas tree stand because it’s so thin.  But it’s got character!  And, it’s kind of grown us!  We took it home in Charlie Brown fashion and fixed it up with some homemade ornaments and popcorn strands and little white lights.  It is definitely a conversational piece!  The story behind it is simple — as we celebrate the birth of Jesus and remember the simplicity of the manger, it causes us to stop and think about what’s truly important.  So, thank you God for our little tree!  And, thanks for sending your son Jesus.  What a gift!

Encouraging and teaching our children…

Every morning I read a devotional by Elisabeth Elliot.  It encourages me, convicts me, inspires me!  This morning, she challenges me as a homeschooling mom.  Even if you don’t homeschool, this is good stuff!  Enjoy –

 

Author: Elisabeth Elliot Source: Keep A Quiet Heart Scripture: Shop for Elisabeth Elliot Resources …with All Your Mind How can parents encourage intellectual pursuits with their children?A friend who has four boys, the oldest of whom is eight, prints a different hymn and several Scripture verses each week and posts them on a large, stiff cardboard in the breakfast nook. The whole family learns the hymn and verses. She has a chart showing each child’s chores. This may not sound very intellectual, but the orderly doing of household chores forms habits of an orderly life, and orderly lives and orderly minds go together. This same mother bought a microphone and small public address system. She has each child stand up at one end of the living room while the others sit in a row like an audience and listen to him recite a verse, a hymn, a poem, or make a short speech. This teaches poise, articulation, the art of speaking up, standing still, keeping the hands relaxed, etc. The same thing could probably be accomplished with a pretend microphone–an ice cream dipper, for example.Teach your children to memorize! Their ability to quickly pick up anything you repeat often enough is nearly miraculous. One week when I was with my grandchildren for four days, the seven-year-old and the five-year-old learned to repeat the Greek alphabet almost perfectly in that time. I didn’t make a federal case out of it, but merely repeated it now and then at odd moments. The five-year-old was quickest to learn it, probably because she thought it was fun while her brother thought it was kind of crazy. Ask questions at the table which will make children think. For example, God answers prayer–does that mean that God always gives us exactly what we ask for? Help the child to find the answers in Bible stories. Read aloud to children. My father did this for us as long as we lived at home. He would bring a book to the table and read a paragraph, or share something in the evening as we all sat in the living room reading our own books. Buy a microscope or a magnifying glass. Study a housefly’s leg or the dust from a moth’s wing, etc. Have a globe on which they can find any country they hear named in the news or in conversation. Teach them to see illustrations of abstract truth in concrete objects. This is how Jesus taught–by the use of parables. James Boswell, biographer, tells how when Samuel Johnson was still a child in petticoats, his mother put a prayer book into his hands, pointed out the collect for the day, and said, “Sam, you must get this by heart.” She went upstairs, leaving him to study it. By the time she had reached the second floor, she heard him following her. “What’s the matter?” she said. “I can say it,” he replied, and repeated it distinctly, though he could not have read it more than twice. Was he a genius at that age? Perhaps. But I think it more likely that his intellectual powers owed much to his parents’ expectations and patient instruction. Expect little and you’ll surely get it.

Presbyopia

A few years ago, I was told I have a condition called Presbyopia (prez-bee-oh-pee-uh).  I looked it up on wikopedia, and it says that presbyopia comes from the Greek word “presbys” which means “old person!”  Can you believe that?!  I’m old at age 44!  I had no idea!  :-0  The actual definition is:  “farsightedness due to ciliary muscle weakness and loss of elasticity in the crystalline lens.”  In other words, I need bifocals.  So, I’ve been happily wearing my bifocals for about 2 1/2 years now, and guess what?  I’m starting to pull my book a little farther away to read the words again!  I’ve known for about two months that I need an eye appointment and recently mentioned it to Dean.  But presbyopia isn’t considered a medical condition and isn’t covered under our insurance.  So, I’ve been waiting it out.  The only person I’ve mentioned it to is Dean.  Well, out of the blue last week I got a call from a lady at our church who said “By chance, does anyone in your family need an eye exam?!”  She told me about this program at a local store that offers *free* eye exams and glasses!  So, I went yesterday and God blessed me with a brand new pair of eyeglasses — totally free!!  I can see again!!!

God knows our every need — big or small.  I am reminded of the verse in Philippians 4:19 which says “And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus!”  Is there something you need?  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God!”  Philippians 4:6

 Sometime soon, I’ll try to post a photo of me in my new glasses!  Thank you, God!

Annie Moses Band

Oh, I didn’t intend for so much time to go by before I posted again!  I have so much to say, but not enough time to write it all down!  Well, I’m hoping to be able to post a few things this weekend.  But, in the meantime…. today we had the pleasure of seeing this band play at a local Christian school — WOW!!!  And, they are from Nashville, too!!  The children and I thoroughly enjoyed it, and we hope you do, too!  Check out their website for more awesome music — www.anniemosesband.com

The Mom Song!

Have you seen this yet?! This is one talented lady! She’s a Christian singer and comedienne. Her name is Anita Renfroe.

Spilled Milk

Last night I had the privilege of attending the Joyce Meyer Ministries conference with my family at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA. I’ve been listening to Joyce since I got saved in 1992, and I attended her annual Women’s Conference with a friend in 2006. For those of you who are unfamiliar with her ministry, Joyce is a 60-something Christian author and speaker whose radio and television ministry reaches 3 billion people around the globe! Her ministry fully funds orphanages in many third-world countries where they feed, clothe and educate orphaned children. They’ve dug over 200 fresh-water wells in remote villages, providing clean drinking water for thousands of people. The ministry is debt-free, and 80% of every dollar donated goes toward helping others. There is no charge to attend one of her conferences.

One of the things I like about Joyce is that she is REAL! She often uses examples from her own life (often humorous) on how to deal with every day situations and become more Christ-like. Her examples are always backed with Scripture. Last night she spoke about the necessity of putting on the shoes of the Gospel of peace (Ephesians 6) — seeking peace, even pursuing it (1 Peter 3:10-11)! She said that living a life of peace is a decision where you say “I have decided that I WILL have peace in my life, and I’m not going to let anyone steal my joy!” She encouraged people to stop getting upset about things they can’t do anything about! Good advice, especially for this mother of 8 where there are a thousand things I could get upset about in a 24-hour period! Joyce brought up her classic example of “spilled milk!” She related how one day one of her kids spilled their milk, which seemed like a daily occurence. She was underneath the table wiping it up, getting kicked in the head and ranting and raving about the spilled milk. And God spoke to her, “Joyce, you can rant and rave all you want, but the milk will never run back up the table leg and jump back into that cup!” Hmmmmm! I think every mother (and father) can relate to that example! Maybe you don’t get irritated at spilled milk, but what about muddy shoes on the just-washed kitchen floor? Lights left on? The back door that always seems ajar? Toothpaste in the sink? The toilet seat up? Joyce later remarked, “We spend time trying to control our circumstances when we should be controlling ourselves!” Ouch! She said “You gotta put on peace! Do it on purpose!” Are you a peaceful person? Today I am going to try harder to “live at peace with everyone” as far as it depends on me (Romans 12:18)!

Today’s an amazing day!

Why is it so amazing?  Well, I can breathe for one thing!  I have been battling bronchitis all week and my lungs just feel a whole lot better today — Praise God!  Another thing, we’re able to pay the mortgage today.  Thank you, Lord!!  Thanks, God, for teaching me to be content in all my circumstances.  It’s been a hard few months.  Dean is working for a local builder and loves his job — except that they haven’t been selling too many new homes lately with the housing slump.  That’s not good, but it has forced Dean to look at what he’s doing and where he’s going.  This wasn’t ever supposed to be a permanent career.  He left the IT industry to (a) be home with family and (b) pursue something with his music.  How did we get so far away from the second part of that goal?  Well, life happens!  We needed to pay bills, and so his part-time sales job turned into a full-time career.  Recently, we’ve taken a step back and asked the Lord for direction. God is faithful to answer prayer! As we’ve been praying, and have asked family and friends to pray, Dean is feeling led to enter full-time ministry as a worship leader! God hasn’t answered the “where” part of that question yet, but we have a real peace that Dean is on the right path! And, God is opening doors! We don’t know where we’ll wind up, but it’s exciting!! So, I’m just feeling very thankful today. I’m hoping you’re having an amazing day, too. Every day is an amazing day — and tomorrow will be even more amazing!!! Check out Joshua 3:5 — “Joshua told the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.’”