I'm so thankful for my treasured friends. Those friends whose trust has been built, times have been traveled and overcome, joys shared, tears shed, laughter belted and babies born...
Mothers whose path has been Called by God... traveled to honor Him. Wives, mothers, sisters...
I am so thankful for those friendships. Those role models in my life. The ones who encourage me, inspire me, show me a new way, and keep me drawn to Christ.
261. Sisterhood
262. Trusting Vulnerability
263. Being Genuine
264. Laughter over silly things
265. Memories
266. Motherhood
267. Inspiring Moments
268. Sharing Trials
269. Loving words
270. Faithfulness
271. Daughterhood of the King
272. Learning to be Wives
273. Sharing Joys of Marriage (and challenges)
274. Learning Lessons together
275. Traveling Life Together
One Thousand Gifts-Treasured Friends
Marriage Free Printable
Enjoy this free printable subway art on Marriage. I think it's rather cute and fun. Just one color this time.
Treasures in Heaven
From At The Well:
There are dirty little plastic dishes in my sink.
There are piles of half-folded laundry in my living room, and crumbs in my carpet, and broken crayons under my table.
There are stuffed animals, and mismatched socks, and little girl barrettes, and board books under my bed.
Some people’s baker’s racks are neatly adorned with hand-painted tea cups. Mine is piled high with children’s pencil drawings and water color creations on construction paper.
My office is filled with books I’ve been meaning to read and books I’ve been meaning to sell and papers I need to file and papers I need to throw away.
It’s after bedtime, but my washing machine is still busily agitating, in hopes that I might have clean diapers in the morning.
At least the wooden train set made it into it’s box–no one likes that kind of middle-of-the-night surprise on the bottom of their bare foot.
Yes. My house is filled with stuff. Messes. Clutter. Dare I say, chaos. Some days, I get the best of it. Most days, it gets the best of me.
I’ve been thinking a lot about stuff lately…wondering just how easy it would be for us to condense all our earthly possessions into a small U-Haul trailer if the LORD told us to go somewhere else…and I’ve realized what a powerful grip stuff still has on me.
I think about how much time I spend cleaning stuff, rearranging stuff, tripping over stuff, looking for lost stuff, and buying more stuff. How much time my husband spends working to pay for stuff.
And yet, if the world were really to come to an end, and Jesus were to return tonight, there are really only five things around here that matter much…
…five” things” that I can take with me…
…my husband, and my four precious children.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:19-21
Christ may not return tonight, but He is coming.
“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.”
2 Peter 3:10
There is a far-worse middle-of-the-night surprise than stepping on wooden train pieces…
Am I living my life, each day, as though it were the very last day I had to teach my children to know, love, serve, and follow Him?
Am I?
Are you?
Free Printable Subway Art
Inspired by Author and President of Lamplighter Productions, Mark Hamby, a great quote to remember about raising our kids. I plan to post this on the wall in an 8x10 frame just outside our school room as you pass into the living room/kitchen. It is a great reminder of what Christ does for us as we ought to also model for our children.
**revised note...this is not meant to leave out harming oneself or others, it just didn't look or sounds as nice on the subway art! :)
Quiet Thoughts
Rising again from a busy week, which seems to set the soul under something heavy, I'm grasping for some sanctuary, sanity, rest for the soul. The rush of going and coming from days past has put my heart at a heavy pace in which I fear I might not recover.
Slowly the rising comes...the sleep in my eyes falls away peeling a sort of "new" breath into my lungs...
The day is filled with sunshine, laughter, errands (again with the going and coming), and the feeding of the littles...
Their wet dripping bodies, sleek in the sun, and slender small radiate a joy as their daddy sweat to build the pool they've been asking for.
He build dreams, labors love, hours long, in the sun with not much accolade except that of thrilled and squealing children.
God is good...
Peace like a river flows...
His Grace and Mercies are new each day...
Small are His gifts to us as we watch them grow...
These words sum up this lazy, yet busy, Saturday afternoon:
