Joyful Mama

Power of the Spirit: A New Bible Study on the Book of Acts

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Fri, 09 Feb 2018 00:32:00 +0000

Hey there joyful mamas! It has been a while since I have popped my head up here on the blog, but not from lack of writing. I am happy today to be able to share HelloMornings' newest Bible study, to which I was honored to contribute.

Power of the Spirit is the first of a three part series entitled Jesus, Light of Nations that will ultimately take us all the way through the Book of Acts.

From the introduction by Ali Shaw:

In this series, we’ll take a journey through the Book of Acts and look carefully at both the actions of Christ’s apostles and of God’s powerful Holy Spirit. We’ll examine God’s plan to spread His message beyond the borders of the Judean province, shining His glorious light into surrounding nations and carrying the story of Jesus to the Gentiles. We’ll discover that God’s salvation knows no bounds; the Gospel message is for everyone!

This particular book in the Jesus, Light of Nations series focuses on the birth of the Christian Church and the power of the Spirit in the hearts and lives of the early Believers. Have you ever wondered what might have happened if the early followers hadn’t been obedient to God’s command to be witnesses? If the Gospel message of salvation hadn’t spread past Jerusalem, you and I might not be Believers today. The apostles’ obedience confirms the importance of submitting to God’s authority and the benefits of doing so. “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” (1 Timothy 6:6)

The Book of Acts shows us a mighty God who worked in miraculous ways to advance His Gospel and demonstrates the important fruit that comes with obedience; yet, it teaches us more. This book, which covers a 30-year span, traces the beginnings of the Christian church. It gives church doctrine, shows us doctrine in practice, lays the foundation for missions work, and shows us the patterns of church life. The sacrificial love of our Savior, the sharing of His Gospel, and living out belief in His resurrection are the themes of Acts. Through God’s empowering, we can live obediently and share Jesus like the apostles did.

Acts is such a neat book to study—it is so unique in the Bible. If you are an adventure lover, this is the book for you! There is drama, suspense, and plot twists galore. Acts would make a great TV series! 😄

But Acts isn't just a historical record of the early Church. It also contains inspiration and wisdom that you and I can apply to our lives today. The Jesus, Light of Nations series will help you work your way through Acts in three 6-week studies, starting with Power of the Spirit.

You can do this study on your own, but if you'd like accountability, a group to discuss the study with, or just wish to grow in your habit of reading the Bible daily, consider joining a HelloMornings group. The next six week session starts on Monday, February 12.

I am delighted to have some digital copies to give away! Add your name to the Rafflecopter below for a chance to get yours (click on the email or Facebook button to begin). You can get up to 4 entries by doing various social media-y things. 😊 The giveaway ends at 11:59pm PST on Friday February 9. Winners will be notified on February 10.

UPDATE: Congratulations to Tammy, Linda, and Katie!

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When Children Doubt

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Sat, 25 Feb 2017 22:38:00 +0000

We mamas want it all for our children.

We want them to be healthy, we want them to be productive members of society, we want them to be content. But more than anything, Christian mothers want their children to know the Lord and walk with Him.

Knowing Jesus means that if they are sick, or incapacitated, or struggling (the opposites of all those "wants" I listed) they can still live joy-filled lives for Him. They will look forward to eternity with Him.

So when children walk through seasons of doubt or questioning, many parents panic. I have watched families tighten rules until they strangle, out of fear for their children's salvation.

Obviously we need to set boundaries for our children. But the impetus for those boundaries should be love, not fear.

This week I talked about doubt in children in our monthly "Let the Children Come" series at Do Not Depart:

"I don’t want my children to have faith because I tell them to. I want them to live a life in relationship with the God of Creation. Relationships take time. When children are small, they take whatever we say at face value. But as they get older they need to come to a personal understanding and experience of God.... It is normal to have questions and doubts when you are growing in faith."

Read more about When Children Doubt in my post at DoNotDepart.com...

Cultivating Hearts: Planting What Lasts

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Sun, 19 Feb 2017 23:20:00 +0000

I was disoriented.

The house in which I had birthed our second child was barely visible.

We had moved away fifteen years earlier and, on a whim while in the area, I decided to drive by to see what it looked like. I don’t know what I was expecting - probably the house frozen in my memory.

But as I turned the last corner I lost my bearings.

My view of the house was completely obstructed by two giant trees. I stopped the car and stared. Those gigantic trees had not been there when we moved. But they were exactly where two little trees had been.

One spring, not long after we purchased our first house, my husband and I planted four little trees in the front yard, along with a tiny persimmon tree in the side yard. They were the first trees we had ever planted.

We didn't know what we were doing, so I purchased a book (at a bookstore - no one bought things online in 1995!) and from that book we learned how to plant and care for trees.

The yard had been completely empty. Like most new builds in Texas, the builder had scraped the ground in the front, and the only green was some lumpy sod and a line of small bushes under the windows. So we added five tiny trees.

A year or so later, when our first baby was brand new, one of those little trees started leaning, as if it was so tired it wanted to lay its leafy head on the car in our driveway (I might have been projecting a little.) A green-thumbed friend came by to meet the baby, and as he was leaving, he gently touched the tree and told me I needed to stake it as soon as possible. A bit of wind might snap it in two.

Super-pixelated photo of my little guy and some scrawny trees

So I staked that sapling, and I kept watering it. It stayed supported for years (above you can see the "baby" riding a tricycle a few years later, and it is still getting help.) I was pretty sure I was terrible at raising trees. Really really terrible.

Years passed and the trees grew, but very slowly. Honestly, they embarrassed me. Right there in our front yard, a testimony to my lack of arboreal skills.

See that bendy tree back there? At this point it's 4 or 5 years old.

When our little guy was almost two years old I got pregnant again. At 13 weeks we lost our wee one in a dramatic miscarriage and hemorrhage that landed me in the emergency room. I was crushed.

It hurt so much that our baby was gone; I needed something tangible that would remind me of him, something to honor him. We went to the plant nursery and our two year old chose a tree for us to plant - a White Texas Redbud that would bloom at that time every year.

We planted the redbud in the back yard, and buried our baby at the foot of the tree. His tree grew strong, bloomed faithfully each year, and blessed my broken mama heart.

White TX Redbud image courtesy of Chalet Nursery

Our little side-yard persimmon tree also grew, and we even ate one or two persimmons from it as it slowly matured. Maybe I could do this tree thing after all?

But those front yard trees were still pathetic. Yes, they grew, but I was not happy with the rate.

In 2003, now with two kids in tow, we sold our house with its scrawny trees. I hoped the next owners would be better at gardening.

Our house the day we left in 2003.

At our new homestead I planted a lot of trees. A LOT.

Not one survived. I am not exaggerating.

No matter how hard I tried, no matter where I planted them, and no matter how much I amended the soil, watered them, and carefully checked them, every single one died. They were eaten by goats or mowed over or blown down or just plain never leafed out.

It was confirmation - raising trees was not my gift.

__________

As I crept along our old street in 2016, I stared in awe at the trees.

Our old house in 2016.

This is time passing.

This is love and care coming to maturity.

This is something lasting.

And as I think about my tending and my care for my children, I see how often I jump to the conclusion that I am failing. That I have already failed. That it is done - what is now is forever, and these trials won’t pass.

Just like the trees on our homestead, there are times I have failed. Really and truly. Something has changed that can’t be fixed.

But sometimes what seems weak and spindly and ready to be snapped in half is just laying down roots. Sometimes grace is at work deep down, sap is flowing through the veins, and life is pushing through. Living Water is giving nourishment, and branches are reaching for the sky.

My first baby is now twenty. He is a man. He is a strong tree, strong enough even to support his old mama sometimes.

__________

Tending your saplings is long and sometimes tedious work. Growth can’t always be seen as it is happening. But mama, you are planting something lasting.

Cultivate the soil of your child’s heart patiently. Douse your child with prayer. Don’t give up; a beautiful tree will emerge and one day you will shake your head with wonder.

We All Need a New Beginning

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Fri, 10 Feb 2017 08:14:00 +0000

I love the dark early morning.

The windows are black, the house is still. There is something almost sacred about those quiet pre-dawn hours.

I make a hot drink and snuggle on the couch with my favorite blanket, devotionals, and my Bible. My kitten crawls onto my lap and snuggles in. I am in my happy place.

The dark windows slowly turn to gray. The sunrise is coming. I can’t see it directly from my favorite spot on the couch because the window faces west. But steadily a rainbow grows on the western horizon, signaling the coming day. Three hundred and sixty degree sunrises and sunsets are features of the rural Texas landscape that never grow old.

From my window I see the field behind our yard, with mama cows and their new babies. The field slopes down to a pond, from which rises a gentle morning mist. On the other side of the pond, another hill rises to crest with a line of trees, forming the horizon. The shifting colors of the horizontal dawn rainbow brighten steadily.

A new beginning. Darkness turning to light. Making rainbows of hope along the way.

____________

I have had seasons of struggling with anxiety. The anxiety is worst in the very middle of the night.

In these hard seasons the clock almost always reads 2:00am when my eyes shoot open. My heart pounds. My mind floods with worries. There is a full-on battle happening in my body.

I know there are spiritual aspects when anxiety hits; there are physiological aspects as well. I fight the battle with prayer, with Scripture, with herbal tea, with protein.

"Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5b

And in the morning? When my eyes squint open again and the light streams in my windows, there is a palpable shift towards hope. Every single morning is a new start.

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23

____________

God’s Word is full of new starts, story after story of second chances and new beginnings. How we need those stories!

My favorite online ministry, HelloMornings, is starting a new session next week, and this time the Bible study is all about new beginnings! I had the privilege of writing the third week, which focuses on David.

Oh that David, what a guy, right? Man after God’s own heart. Great- (times a bunch) grandfather to Jesus. Adulterer and murderer. Yeah. David’s story is for all of us who have steered wrong along the way.

And that would be all of us.

David, Noah, Abraham, Peter, Paul… they all needed new beginnings just like you and me.

____________

Will you join thousands of women around the globe as they seek to grow in being intentional about starting their day with God? You will be so blessed. You can join a group here, but hurry because registration closes soon!

This session I am so excited to share that for the first time the HelloMornings Bible study workbooks are available in print! You can order a physical copy through Amazon. Or you can get a digital download (with an audio option) here.

You can also enter my flash giveaway - yep, I have some digital copies (plus audio if you'd like) to give away! Yay! You can enter through the Rafflecopter widget below.

The flash part is because this is a speedy giveaway - don’t put it off, it is only open TODAY, closing at 11:59pm PST on Friday February 10.

I will announce the winners first thing on Saturday so that you have time to get your download before the session starts. If I can’t connect with a winner on Saturday I will select a replacement winner on Sunday. Big thanks to the HelloMornings team (I'm especially looking at you Kat Lee!) for making this giveaway possible.

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For the Mama Who Is Scared for Our Country

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Wed, 09 Nov 2016 01:34:00 +0000

There sure are a lot of worried mamas out there.

So many mamas fretting for their children. Mamas fearing what the current election will bring and how it will change their babies' world.

There is worrying on all sides of the fence. Red and blue and independent mamas are crying real tears - dreading “what ifs.”

We wait to hear election results and my Facebook feed is filled with you, dear mamas. Mamas having panic attacks. Mamas cuddling kittens and eating ice cream to distract themselves. Mamas unfriending each other and being angry about people unfriending each other.

I want to hug all of you. I want to say, “Yes, things will be hard. That is how the future is. It always brings some pain, no matter who our leaders are. But it brings joy too. So much joy, sweet mamas. Look at those worried faces looking up at you."

Because really tonight I am thinking most about the children. All of your beautiful God-given gifts. They see you worrying. They hear the discussions around the dinner table. When you are scared, they are scared too.

If you are walking with Jesus, you know Who is really in charge. You know that no crazy politics can dethrone Him.

He has you on His mind, and He has eternity as your plan. He loves those little people in your house far more than you ever can.

So for those babies, wipe your tears and bake cookies. Read stories and sing songs. Find the beautiful things. Look for them, even if it takes a while. I promise they are there.

I took my baby to vote today. His very first vote in a Federal election. I really didn’t envision it this way when he made these seven-year-old election reform suggestions. But here we are.

He has a say in his country. He may not like his choices, and I may not like mine, but I am thankful we have the privilege of having a part to play.

It was a gray dripping day. The flowers in the front yard were still lovely. The kitten was still curious. The world was still beautiful.

If you are passionate about politics and want to get involved to make a difference, please please do. We need you.

And if all you feel right now is overwhelmed, just love the people right in front of you. The biggest most beautiful change you can make in the world is to really love the people right in front of you.

So on this election night, as we await the news of who will be the next President of the United States, I come back to what I remind myself of over and over:

Choose love.

Find beauty.

You will change the world.

Stand Firm - The Importance of Sound Theology

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 25 Oct 2016 22:52:00 +0000

Theology is for university types, right?

Old white men in their ivory towers, wearing cardigans, smoking pipes, and using terms no one understands.

Nah, you know I don't believe that.

Simply put, theology is "the study of the nature of God and religious belief." If you read your Bible, you are immersing yourself in theology.

But sometimes, especially when you are a new believer, even things in the Bible can seem confusing. Certainly all the voices clamoring for your attention on the Internet (including mine) can make things confusing!

How do we deal with this? How do we know what is right?

Good theology is the fruit of study and of reliable sources. It is worth your time to really pay attention to your theology and make sure that what you believe aligns with the Word of God.

At Do Not Depart this month our theme is "Why Sound Theology Matters for Every Woman." The writing team has taken turns addressing different reasons why it makes a difference for you to think through what you believe.

Today I am writing about how good theology helps you to stand firm. Here is a glimpse...

When I was a young believer, I was both passionately committed, and continuously confused.

I wanted more than anything to follow Jesus and walk in His ways, but I had almost no Bible knowledge. I would hear someone talk on Christian radio, or see a sermon on TV, and not know whether what they were saying was true. I’d have conversations with people of varying Christian backgrounds, and their positions would contradict. Who was right?

Then I would go grocery shopping at the health food store, and see New Age books, and talk with non-Christians, and some of the things they said made sense to me. What was going on?!

Read the rest of my post on standing firm at Do Not Depart. Stand firm sisters!

When You Are Worn Out, This is the Habit to Focus On

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Fri, 07 Oct 2016 03:40:00 +0000

Are you worn out, sister?

Are the kids too needy, the days over scheduled and the house trashed?

You need a little Jesus, don'tcha? Nah - a lot of Jesus.

How are your quiet times going? Not going so much? Yeah, I get it.

It is a constant battle isn't it? To be in the world but not of it, to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus... it's a daily struggle.

When my kids were young, and I knew I was going to homeschool, I became enamored of the writings of nineteenth century educator Charlotte Mason. I loved her gentle approach to teaching young children. But I was most impressed (and convicted) by her writings on habit.

Mason's contention was that when we train our children to have good habits a huge part of our parenting and educating battle is already won. But her words made me look at myself, and ooo boy I did not like what I saw.

I am not going to pretend that fifteen years later I have all the good habits and have ditched the bad. Goodness, back then some of the bad habits I fight now didn't even exist (I'm looking at you iPhone and Facebook.)

Still, the habit of rising and starting the day in God's Word will always be a blessing. I am not completely faithful in it, and when I slip I feel it. I am a much nicer and more patient person when my brain has been seasoned with Truth.

If you want to develop the habit of starting the day with Jesus, I highly recommend the HelloMornings ministry. When you join a HelloMornings group you will have the accountability of like-minded women who are also wanting to grow with Jesus by meeting with Him daily.

I am so blessed, y'all. I had the privilege of collaborating on the Bible study for this upcoming session too. Six years ago, when I first participated in HelloMornings, I never would have dreamed that I would have the joy of being a part of writing the studies. Isn't God delightful?

Because God's Word is living and active, you do not need to have gone through part 1 of But We See Jesus to be able to do this study. Just jump in now.

And (woohoo!) I have copies to give away! You can enter on Twitter, or on Facebook. Or both! I will be drawing names on Saturday morning.

If you want to give HelloMornings a try, head over now and join - a new session is starting on Monday October 10, 2016! You may just find it changes your life!

How a Mama Can Do Scary Things Anyway

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Sun, 04 Sep 2016 04:07:00 +0000

I have fear on my mind a lot these days. Seems like there are oodles of things taking me out of my comfort zone.

For starters, we are thinking about moving. The realities of packing up and downsizing a family and a farm, plus finding a suitable home in a fairly high-priced market have virtually paralyzed me. How can I get it all done? How will we ever find the right house? Is this really the best thing for our family? It’s an annoying subconscious soundtrack.

Then there are the movies. No, not watching movies. Being in movies. Gah! Abbie is our resident actress, and has been on the stage since she was six. Now we are trying to find ways for her to begin to explore film acting, and have fallen into several situations where we were able to be extras in movies. Yes, me too.

*cue heart palpitations and sweaty palms*

Camera on a track for panning shots

And today, Abbie and I attended a self defense class at our awesome local jiujitsu studio. Good grief, talk about being out of my comfort zone. I clearly need to get my act together with exercise because I do not want to stay in a place where the anticipation of being thrown to the floor (a well padded floor at that) had me in tears at home this morning. Be still my beating, terrified heart.

A blurry iPhone picture of us flipping each other

Yep, I have been pretty steadily out of my comfort zone for the past two weeks. Do you ever find yourself there?

I am pretty much a hobbit. I would far rather stay at home and have my friends over for an endless parade of teas and pastries than do scary things. I’ll admit I am a bit of a Baggins-ish hobbit because I do enjoy traveling adventures (ask me about my 4000 mile road trips with my kids). But I am still a homebody on a regular day. Risk-taking is not in my DNA.

Still, I have learned that letting fear rule my decision making almost always results in regret. And I have also learned that forcing myself to do the scary things almost always results in joy.

It’s like a tidy equation:

decision making + fear = regret
scary things + courage = joy

Does that even make sense? I don’t know, it isn’t especially logical, but it accurately reflects my experience.

I am so glad I readjusted my plans, got off my hiney, and got the kids out the door to the film sets. We made memories that will last a lifetime. What would I have done if I had stayed home? Sat on the couch surfing Facebook? Cleaned something for the one millionth time? Bleh.

The self-defense class showed me some useful things:

It is not as scary as I think to fall on a rubber mat (yes it does hurt a bit).
I have more natural aggression than I realized.
All the stuff I learn goes right out of my head when I am put on the spot (that was valuable but uncomfortable to experience).
I need and actually want to practice this stuff.

There is something exhilarating about facing the things you are afraid of and conquering them!

So how does a mama make herself do scary things? My scary things might be different from your scary things, but I’ll bet we have the same motivator to push through our issues: our kids.

My children make me brave. Bravery isn’t about not being afraid. Bravery is being afraid and doing the thing anyway.

All of the scary events of the past few weeks were important for my children’s sake. My love for them helped push me out of my comfort zone and ultimately into the joy zone (thanks to that simple equation: scary things + courage = joy)

This is just another way that love leads to joy. Even if you don’t have kids, I’ll bet there is someone in your life you love who can inspire you to do scary things.

And while at first pass this may sound kitschy and cliche, if you are a Christian, your love for Jesus is probably the greatest motivator of all.

There are terrifying things I have done only because I love Jesus. Writing Bible studies, leading women’s groups, asking a stranger if I can pray for them, wearing a head covering, reading the Bible out loud at our church service, oh goodness, so many things for this introvert.

I am really just a trembling little girl in a grown-up body. But love can super-size me. It pushes me and pushes me until I am right out of my hobbit hole and quivering on the edge of some new and uncomfortable experience, ready to slog through fear to reach the joy on the other side.

Do you have a scary thing facing you right now? Whom will you love and bless by walking right into it? I would be my privilege to pray for you, for abounding love and for the courage to go forward. Leave me a comment or send me an email (patti @ joyfulmama dot com).

Let’s add courage-because-love to our scary things, and reap the joy!

Praying for Those Entangled in Persecution

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Sun, 28 Aug 2016 04:38:00 +0000

It is a given that Christians will face persecution. Scripture is clear:

“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” 2 Timothy 3:12

While I have been treated differently at times because I am a Christian, it has never been a cause of real suffering. Yet around the world, there are huge numbers of Christians suffering profoundly because of their faith in Jesus Christ.

This week I wrote about persecution at Do Not Depart:

"According to the non-profit organization Open Doors, 2015 was the worst year in modern history for Christian persecution: 'More than 7,100 Christians were killed for faith-related reasons, and 2,400 churches were destroyed or damaged.'

Our brothers and sister in Christ are suffering. As painful as it is to recognize this reality, our hearts are connected to theirs as members of the body of Christ. It is our privilege to pray for them.

And not only are we called to pray for fellow believers, we are also instructed to pray for those who persecute."

In the post I share:

the story of Taher, a persecutor who came to Christ
what the Bible says about persecution
a simple prayer for those entangled in persecution

Read the whole post here: Praying for the Persecuted and for Those Who Persecute

When Your Plans to Read the Bible Fall Through

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Wed, 17 Aug 2016 02:24:00 +0000

Have you ever read the whole bible in a year? Or tried to?

You know what they say about the best laid plans...

The Plan

In January 2015 I decided that I would read the Bible in a year. It is easy to miss the richness buried in infrequently read books (Obadiah anyone?), and reading right through the Bible is a fantastic way to get the whole picture.

So in addition to various Bible studies I was working through, I planned to listen daily to an audio Bible plan that would take me straight through from Genesis to Revelation.

The Reality

But life isn’t always “straight through," and guess what? I didn’t read the Bible in a year. In fact, I am still working my way through now, twenty months later.

I am going to read through the Bible in two years. :-)

Failure?

I could focus on the fact that I did not read the whole Bible in a year. Better yet, I can celebrate that I am reading the Bible! Yay! Hey, I could even cheer because I am going extra fast on a read-the-Bible-in-three years plan. ;-)

Here's the thing: this is not the first time I will read the whole Bible, and it won't be the last. I will be reading this book until the day I meet my Lord face to face. And the enemy of my soul would love to discourage me from reading it by whispering: You failed. You got behind. What's the point?

Sister, any bit of the Word you can get into your heart and mind today will be expanded mightily in your life by the God of all creation Who loves you beyond reason. Any little bit.

Like this:

That right there is half a verse. Half! Believe me, if you spend a little time meditating on that half verse while you fold the laundry, I guarantee God will fill your heart.

That is the point.

Whose Expectations?

Don’t hold yourself to an impossible standard. If you fail to meet expectations, take a moment to ask whose expectations they are? Yours? Someone else’s? God’s?

Yes, there are times when we are being wayward or rebellious. If you have fallen behind in your reading or studies for this reason, it will be a great blessing to you if the Lord convicts your heart!

But so often (especially for we first-born, type-A sorts) the demands we labor under are put on us by ourselves. Not by God.

Are you in a season of mothering small children? Probably not the time to plan to spend an hour reading your Bible every day. But you can read a passage. You can listen to the Bible app while you do the dishes. You can do something.

You don’t have to do everything.

There are seasons for the reading the bible in a year. This may not be the season.

Your Love Letter!

The Bible is a love letter from the Father. You and I have the astonishing privilege of living in a time when we can pick up a Bible at any time and read. Every word is for strengthening, blessing, and growing us.

You can choose to hold yourself to hard-to-attain standards. Or you can choose to be held.

Drink from the well of His Word in sips or gulps... no matter how much you consume at a time, you will be nourished.

A People Pursued {A Bible Study Giveaway From HelloMornings}

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Thu, 11 Aug 2016 01:35:00 +0000

One of the amazing blessings of being still and listening for God's will is that you get to do some really cool things - things you might not have seen coming.

A few months ago, when I was still in the throes of I-just-can't-blog-because-I-am-barely-surviving mode, my dear friend Ali asked me to pray about contributing to a HelloMornings Bible study.

Ali and I are close real-life friends (we met at our daughters' homeschool theater class) and she knows all the mess that has been my life. We also write together at DoNotDepart.com. I had continued writing there, but it was just by the skin of my teeth. So she knew that the answer might be no. Honestly, my first thought was, "Impossible."

But I prayed.

God showed me exactly when I would have time to write, and got me more and more excited about digging into Hebrews. So I said yes, with great anticipation. The fruit of that was But We See Jesus, a study of the first half of Hebrews, written with five other women. God's fruit is the best fruit, isn't it?

When Ali told me that the next HelloMornings study would be on Hosea and invited me to write again, I was intrigued.

Hosea the prophet can sound at first pass like an Israelite Debbie Downer, let me tell ya! He was the very last prophet to the northern kingdom of Israel before they were taken into captivity, so it is not surprising that his words come across as a last-ditch effort to a doomed people. They kind of were.

But when you take the time to dig into the book of Hosea, it is amazing how love and hope shine through. There is so much Jesus in Hosea!

Intrigued? I hope you are, because HelloMornings has just released A People Pursued, their new study on Hosea, and as one of the authors I have the privilege of giving away a copy to one of you!

And this is super cool: not only will you get the reading plan, commentary, Bible study questions and worksheet, you'll also get a full audio of the entire study! If time is short you can just turn on the audio and listen while exercising, driving to work, folding laundry - wherever it fits into your day.

HelloMornings is one of my favorite ministries. It is a great help for growing in being intentional about spending time with God, planning your day, and exercising. The next session starts on August 15. Check it out!

I just have to come back to this: sometimes when you stop and ask God, He ends up leading you somewhere you wouldn't have planned. Writing Bible studies this summer was not on my calendar. I had pretty much decided I had failed Him. And all the while He was waiting for me to let Him keep my calendar.

This giveaway has ended now. Congratulations Tammy!!

Now on to the giveaway! *cowbells ring and confetti falls*

~~Just enter through the cool Rafflecopter widget below. I will contact the winner first thing on Sunday morning so you have time to download the study before the session begins. Yay for giveaways!~~

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This giveaway ends on Saturday August 13 at 11:59pm CST. Huge thanks to Kat Lee and HelloMornings for making it possible!

Still Not Perfect, But Oh So Loved

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 22:25:00 +0000

I have spent my whole life trying to be good.

When I was a little girl I would lie in the dark each night and tell God all the things I had done that I thought I shouldn't have, then I would ask Him to make me a better person the next day.

Each night I would ask the same thing. Make me better. Make me better. Please.

It wasn’t until I was an adult and actually read the bible that I began to grasp the problem. Sin. It was there and always would be.

I spent a season in my twenties wrestling with God about the verse “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48)

It seemed downright mean. On the one hand I knew I couldn’t be perfect because of sin, but on the other I was being told I should be? It didn’t make sense, it frustrated me, and honestly, made me a little angry. So I argued with God.

I have never felt squashed when I have wrestled with God. I feel no condemnation, and don’t feel dismissed, even though I imagine my questions and strugglings are ridiculously small.

I know in my core that God gave me my intellect to be used. After all, He says "Come now, and let us reason together” (Isaiah 1:18a). I can’t say I'll ever fully understand Matthew 5:48, but I believe God has helped me to grasp some of it.

Jesus is perfect, and when I am hidden in Him, I am covered by His perfection. My spiritual self, my eternal self, is abiding and hidden in Christ.

But my earthly self, the girl stuck on soil, needs to know what to do. God's perfection is what I try to walk toward in my daily life (I won't get there)… and really, what that means is that I am walking toward Jesus, toward being more like Him.

It’s always all about Jesus, isn’t it?

Funny how we can know something but our actions don’t show it. I knew that spiritually I was hidden in Christ. But every day I was sweating and striving. I was exhausted from striving.

Yep, I know all about grace, but clearly I have a very hard time accepting it.

I am forty seven years old now. I am no longer the nine year old who lay in bed asking God: Please make me better.

Now I am asking Him: Please make me more like You. Open my eyes to the need. Help me to bless someone. Forgive me for being selfish.

And I still struggle with trying to live the Christian life in my own strength. I still fall asleep determined to do better the next day. Because let’s be honest: to walk the dying-to-self road can be painful and hard and sometimes just plain lonely.

I have experienced the trouble with trying to soldier through, head down and focused. When the slightest twist in the road comes, I get completely off course. Fists clenched, determined to walk the path I think I should as a loving daughter of her Heavenly Father, I suddenly find that in my haste and determination I am slogging through a muddy ditch because I was so set on my direction, I didn’t see the road veer off.

Ugh. Here we go again.

I am slowly accepting my desperate need for God’s grace, not just in theory, but in practice. No amount of determination will change the fact that I still have the heart of a little girl. I need to be able to rest in my Father’s lap and be held by His arms. Not for any reason other than that laps are where little girls belong.

We have had a hard few years in our family. And most of the things I wanted to do for God, the plans I had for how I was going to use the gifts He has given me… most of those things have not gotten done. So on top of the pain I was working through because of those hard years, I felt a heavy burden of guilt. I felt like I had failed the One Who never fails me.

He is such a good, good Father. When I took the time to stop scurrying, to be still and ask Him to show me what He wanted from me, He poured out nothing but love and grace over me - even though I had not done all those things I was so sure I had to do to please Him. I didn’t finish any of the books I had started writing, I didn’t blog here or on our other blog, all I did was survive, and try my best to love the people right in front of me each moment.

What I want more than anything is to please Him. Like a little girl helping her Daddy paint a wall and getting paint all over the floor, I want to do the things that make Him proud of me, yet I mess up. Over and over I can’t paint that wall perfectly.

Here God, let me help You with that...

And He bends down and strokes my hair, sees my heart and says “I love the wall. I love that you want to help. I love you."

My tender Father.

It is time to add one more thing to my night whispers: Please help me to accept Your grace, Abba.

God Shows His Love for Us...

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 21:58:00 +0000

God gives gifts in different measure. One of the gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12 is the gift of faith. It sure seems like we all need faith, right? But He gives an extra measure of faith to some of His children.

For those who have not been given that special helping of faith, doubt is occasionally, and sometimes often, a source of challenge. It is not like we can reach out our hands and touch God's face. We don't hear him audibly.

Yes, I know, His hand is everywhere, and He speaks to us through His Word. But when things are hard, we waver.

I think that lack of concreteness, combined with an endless stream of challenges this side of heaven, is what causes so many people to wonder if God cares about them.

Have you ever wondered, "Does God really love me? After all I have done?"

The answer, of course is yes. You and I can know this is true by what He has done for us. For broken, stumbling, still-making-mistakes you and me.

What has He done for us? Read more about God's Ultimate Demonstration of Love in my post today at Do Not Depart....

God is Big Enough

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 03 Feb 2015 20:52:00 +0000

My head is down. How can it not be? I am walking through brambles and every single step threatens my upright position. To fall would mean not only gashes but further entanglement. I keep my eyes on my feet.

There is no way out of this thorny brush except by going forward. Diligently I wrench each foot up, pulling free of the mess and setting it down ahead, only to be caught again as I wrestle the other foot up and out.

The thorns dig into my ankles. The scratches itch and burn. When I look closely I see trickles of blood running into my socks.

Sometimes I stop. I stand still and just breathe. A single wet line trickles from my hair into the corner of my eye. The sweat burns. I wonder if my eyes are tearing from the pain or if I am crying. I am so exhausted I don’t know any more.

I look ahead. Nothing but the same. More and more brambles. No path. Impossible. Hope trembles. My resolve wavers and I think it might be time to just sit down in the thorns and give up.

~~~

Sometimes into a life comes a big obstacle. And sometimes a full set.

Some obstacles are of our own making. Some are thrust upon us.

It doesn't really matter where they come from. What matters is what you do with them. What you do about them.

~~~

Last week I spent a few hours with a far-away friend I rarely see. You know how it is when you are in the presence of someone who just understands? Someone who loves the Lord like you do and is steadily abandoning her ideas of how life should be, to relax deeper and deeper into His will?

My friend gets it. She has counted the cost. She understands that when you give your life over to His plan, it is not going to look how you expected. It does not mean life will get easy. It may even mean that suffering and sacrifice fall immediately on your head.

But she has lived the joy, has eaten the fruit of a life lived poured out. She has counted the cost and found it worthwhile.

My friend has much joy in her life. And she also has an impossible situation. A deeply difficult and painful situation, over which she has little control.

On January 1 she picked up a bracelet and put it on her wrist. It says “God is Big Enough.” She is believing that and praying that over her impossible situation, every single day of 2015.

When she shared this with me last week, the happy chatter and distraction of children prevented me from responding fully. Not that I could have, as I felt like my soul was gasping for breath.

God is big enough.

Even for my brambles.

~~~

My calculations say that we are sinking, sinking - drowning in a joblessness that is going to suck the very life from us.

But truth says God is big enough to provide.

My eyes see people constantly misunderstanding, seemingly determined to believe the worst of each other, the worst of me, no matter what I do or say.

But truth says God is big enough to restore.

My ears hear whispers of self-accusation: “If only you had…” If only you were more….” “You shouldn't…"

But truth says God is big enough for my failings.

My body is filled with pain, with solutions for each pain causing greater pain elsewhere.

But truth says God is big enough to heal.

~~~

Why is suffering so intricately woven into the journey of faith? Great men and women of the ages have asked this and debated the answer. I don’t know. I just know that the result can go two ways.

I can suffer and harden.

Or I can suffer and be laid bare.

Because of Jesus, and only because of Him, suffering and being laid bare is where I journey. The pain strips me of myself. Drops me to my knees. I fall before Him, on Him.

He is big enough to hold me up.

~~~

All the brambles of the earth shrivel before the thorny cross on my Savior’s brow.

Sometimes He seems to take up holy pruning shears and just snips those wretched vines from my ankles. Makes a path straight out of the forest into the sunshine. He is a God of miracles.

Other times He patiently holds my hand as I do the hard work of walking up and out. The slow hard work. He is a God Who is present and gives strength.

I have no idea how He will make a way out of this mess of messes. But I know He is big enough.

God is big enough.

Persevering in Prayer: The Example of Monica of Hippo

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Thu, 08 Jan 2015 17:48:00 +0000

by Ary Scheffer, 1846

Have you ever prayed for someone for a long time? A really really long time?

Do you ever wonder if those prayers make a whit of difference?

John is pretty clear:

This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him. - 1 John 5:14-15

Scripture affirms that God hears and answers when we pray in His will. But wow, sometimes the answers are sooo long in coming. I find discouragement setting in. It can be hard to persevere.

Then I think of Monica of Hippo.

Monica was the poster child for praying without ceasing. Her heart burned for her husband and children to know God, and despite their paganism, their adultery, their tempers... she never gave up.

And the fruit of Monica's perseverance in prayer and quiet life of faith? You might be surprised just who it was she was praying for.

Read more about Monica of Hippo in my post at Do Not Depart.

When the Path is Steep, You Are Not Alone

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 14:33:00 +0000

In the economy of my life, words are the currency.

I am fascinated by language, find greatest internal clarity when I write, and am bolstered by encouraging words from others.

Yet it is my eyes that direct my words.

The eye is the lamp of the body. - Matthew 6:22

I am such a visual person that I can not think clearly when there is clutter around me (and if you know me well you now understand why I never think clearly!) My prayer life is filled with images.

I take visual snapshots - I still remember the first time I did this, a tender moment with my two dearest friends from college when I was about 20 years old. We lay on a futon on the floor talking about deep and precious things, and their gentle faces and tousled hair all mixed together was so beautiful I yearned to freeze the image forever. So I took a picture with my mind. I can see it still.

When I write, I am often simply describing what I see. Ideas have form and color and light in my mind. Analogies and allegories are commonplace. I don’t make this happen. It happens to me.

So perhaps you will understand when I tell you that the past four months, maybe longer, yes longer, I have been on an arduous trek through a most difficult mountain range. I have crossed parched deserts, dragging my feet in deep sand. Climbed and climbed and climbed steep summits. I have come out unexpectedly into glorious meadows filled with the most beautiful wildflowers, and been served by angels. I have rested by deep and clear lakes. My feet have been tangled in dark thorny weeds, and I have fallen and bled again and again.

I have been on a journey and I am bone weary.

In non-allegorical life? Financial stress, uncertainty, new businesses, deep relational challenges, a gloriously beautiful trip to China with my father, unidentified health problems, failure, success, failure and failure again.

There are days when I feel like I am staring into the face of the lion that wants to devour me. Because I am. When life gets rough, when things become uncertain, don’t we begin to wonder? To doubt a little?… Did I have this all wrong? If I had done it all the world's way, would things be different?

Those are the waverings the enemy watches for. The opportunity he hopes to exploit.

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. - 1 Peter 5:8

Hurts and fears and missteps pile up, and without solid ground to stand on, even the most faithful find it hard to stand firm. How wary we sons and daughters must be of stepping onto shifting sands! Only the Rock of our salvation gives true footing.

My soul, wait in silence for God only,

For my hope is from Him.

He only is my rock and my salvation,

My stronghold; I shall not be shaken.

- Psalm 62:5-6

We all come to crossroads in our lives. Indeed, most of us encounter such intersections more than once as we walk the path we have been given. Which way do I go? Do I go the way that seems easy, the wide road that everyone would tell me to follow? Or do I take this hard dirt path that my heart and His Word say to walk?

I always pray to take the Lord's way, but sometimes it is so painful. The way of service and love is the way of hard work. Not just hard work with my hands, but the hard work of allowing God to transform my heart and mind.

It is not in our nature to give and give. It is not in our nature to put others before ourselves. When people argue against Christianity I wonder if they understand what Jesus said and how He lived. Who would suggest that the best way to chart the course of your life is by giving everything up for others? This is not an idea formed in a human mind. Jesus’ way is completely upside down from the way we think the world should run. The first shall be last? It defies human logic!

This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." - Jeremiah 6:16a

This year my family has chosen to walk differently. To take a leap into the unknown in many ways and try something that we know God has been calling us to. I wouldn’t change a thing. God’s plans are always the best plans. But they don’t always look the way we expect. Our leap did not produce glorious financial results, but it has borne the eternal fruit of deepened love and family ties upon which no price can be set. We have made difficult sacrifices in the name of relationships. We have faced painful challenges and done all we could to walk uprightly. We have wept. It has been a season of much feeling.

As we have struggled, we have not been alone. We have been blessed with tangible assistance, real help with real needs. And the hands that have helped meet our physical needs have also been hands that have folded in prayer for us, hands that have lifted ours when we could not lift our own. (Exodus 17:11-12)

Gratitude is a paltry word to describe the swell of emotions just writing this brings.

Two verse snippets have been my companions:

Hope does not disappoint
- Romans 5:5a

Love never fails
- 1 Corinthians 13:8a

There have been times when it has only been the dogged choice to hold onto and believe those verses that has kept me from drowning.

Sometimes it seems like hope is being disappointed and love is failing.

But it is all about perspective. When I train the microscope of my attention on a string of seeming losses and failures, there is nothing allowed in the picture but despair. Yet when I set the microscope down, take a deep breath, and stand back... stand way way back… I begin to allow an eternal perspective to gently filter into view.

I see people who are growing, sin that is being dealt with, something lasting and beautiful that is being built.

The road is exhausting. The ups and the downs seem like they want to kill me some days. I long for the security of my warm soft bed… a place sometimes I would prefer to stay all day.

This is real life.

And Jesus is right in the middle of my real life. Because of His grace I can say, “I have failed” and not feel condemned. Because of His forgiveness, I can say to those I have wronged, “Please forgive me” and I will be freed from the burden of guilt.

I am still walking this hard road. It has real impact on my daily life and on my health and on my work. I am a writer who is struggling to write, and that is not a fun place for a writer to be. But because I am walking this road with the lover of my soul, I will survive the agonies and the exhilarations. And astonishingly, He will use them both to make me more like Himself. What an impossibly loving Lord He is.

For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.” - Isaiah 41:13

The road will level out, I know it will. It always does. And in these steep parts when I stumble, His strong hand holds me firm. I am still gasping for breath some days and my muscles tremble from the effort, but I am not alone.

Is your journey steep today? Hold tight to His holy hand. Take heart. There is purpose in your pain. And who knows? This might be just around the next bend...

He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
- Psalm 23:2-3a

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This song from Christa Wells kept playing in my head as I wrote this post...

ON THE MOUNTAIN
I’ve been climbing my whole life
and I’m only at the bottom of the mountain,
at the bottom of the mountain
Rising up from my feet
in the daylight
rising up into the clouds and out of my sight
is the height of that mountain

Well my hands cannot reach it
and my mind can’t comprehend it
but my soul is gonna get there one day
No, my hands cannot reach it
and my mind can’t comprehend it
but my soul is gonna get there one day

Lord, these shoes are gonna need some help
so we can make it to the top of the mountain
to the top of your mountain
Many feet have gone before us
with a habit of faith and courage
they’ll meet us at the road’s end

Well my hands cannot reach it
and my mind can’t comprehend it
but my soul is gonna get there one day
No, my hands cannot reach it
and my mind can’t comprehend it
but my soul is gonna get there one day

Yes, yes I think I will
Oh Yes I know we will
Yes yes I know we will
Oh yeah, I know we will

I’ve been climbing my whole life
and I’m only at the bottom of the mountain
at the bottom of the mountain
All along this road
when it feels so
far to the top, you say, just hold on to the mountain

Well my hands cannot reach it
and my mind can’t comprehend it
but my soul is gonna get there one day
No, my hands cannot reach it
and my mind can’t comprehend it
but my soul is gonna get there one day
Well my soul (oh, my soul) is gonna get there one day

(press play below to hear the song)

To a Young Writer: Why You Should Write Even When You Are Afraid

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Mon, 18 Aug 2014 23:18:00 +0000

Recently a young writer friend of mine shared on social media how the pressure to write was building inside of her. Building and brewing... she knew something was going to pop out…not yet, but soon.

Words, waiting and pressing.

I understand. Some days it feels as if my chest will explode if I don't sit down and make words happen with my hands. Talking doesn’t release the pressure. Only writing. And half the time I don't even know what words will come. But come they will.

Many writers I know battle fear daily. Perhaps it is because so many writers are deeply sensitive souls. Often shy and quiet in person, these wanderers and wonderers have internal rivers that run deep.

The vulnerability of putting thoughts and feelings on the page can be overwhelming. The thought of being truly known can paralyze.

So when another friend responded that everything this young woman writes on her blog now will be “lame" in 10 years, my writer’s heart stage-whispered, “Tread softly!”

Our mutual friend is an artist too. A musician. So what he probably did not realize is that this is a deep-seated fear for most writers. That what we write is stupid, that what we think doesn't make sense and isn't important.

Fear is a death knell to a well of beauty and inspiration.

And I wonder. What if Tolkien had succumbed to this fear? What if Shakespeare decided people wouldn't understand his jokes? What if Dickens worried that his stories were too dark and that exposing the true underbelly of the industrial age would get him in trouble? What if Paul had said, “Enough is enough. I'm being persecuted, people are trying to kill me on every side! Writing letters just incriminates me more!"

What if writers didn't write?

And what if musicians didn’t make music?

If Beethoven gave up because he couldn't hear? If John Newton gave into thinking people would criticize him for being vulnerable about his faith journey in Amazing Grace? If all those Christian worship songwriters whose work we enjoy every Sunday threw their hands up in the air and said, “This is just too hard. And maybe I’ve got it wrong somewhere. Forget it.”

We all have incredible worth in the eyes of our God. We have each been created to do something beautiful in the world in His name. Yet none of us is perfect. And none will be this side of heaven.

So our work must be imperfect. Do I look back ten years to my very first blog entry (yes, coming up on a decade in one week) and cringe? Maybe a little. But I also see a snapshot. I see a snapshot of a woman on whom God was working. I remember the things He was doing in my life because I recorded them. And I am reminded of the person I was and how He has grown me.

Will I cringe reading this very post in ten years? Possibly. I have written far more important things (and pray I will continue to) that will probably make me cringe more.

And in the end?

The why.

Why write? Why make music?

For me it is because I was made to do it. The Creator chose this thing for me, I didn’t choose it. In fact I have downright rejected it at times. It is scary and uncomfortable and frankly a whole lot of work. Little recognition, a lot less pay. And did I mention uncomfortable?

If we are His, then we must be who He made us to be. We must write, we must make music, we must saw wood, or bake bread or teach. If we don’t then we are missing the glorious joy of being right in the middle of His will. Who knows what He has in mind to do with the gifts He has given us? We have to just walk in it.

And along the way we absolutely will stumble. We'll say wrong things. We may even hurt those we love.

Yet how do muscles strengthen without hard work and pain? How does the seamstress make perfect stitches without starting with sloppy ones? How does a drummer learn a new beat without missing it a jillion times and trying again and again?

If we keep our eyes fixed, fixed on the Lover of our souls, if we humble ourselves and give Him everything we have today, He will be glorified. The sacrifice of vulnerable words is not missed by the one Who Himself is the Word.

My sweet young friend, yes, maybe (but not certainly) what you write today will seem “lame" to you in ten years. Write it anyway. Twenty years ago you yourself were essentially lame. Today you walk expertly. Then you were mute. Today you are a fluent English speaker. We all begin as infants in all that we do. And we grow.

Grow gloriously in what He made you to do.

The True Balm for a Festering Heart-Splinter

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Mon, 19 May 2014 12:00:00 +0000

photo credit

It was not what I wanted to be dealing with at 10:30 pm - a splinter embedded completely beneath the skin of my palm. The area around the splinter was swollen and red and hurt like crazy as I steadily peeled back thin layers of skin with tweezers. Deep breath in, short burst out, as I ripped away.

It could have been easier. I had gotten the splinter that morning, while helping friends on their final frantic packing day as they prepared to sell their home. I don't even remember how I got it. But what I sure didn't have was tweezers. Or time.

I had picked at it a bit with my fingers, succeeding only in making it worse by severing the splinter. And after I left our friends' house, my evening was spent feeding children and transporting them to activities. No time for silly splinters. It wasn't until I was getting ready for bed that I had the time and supplies to deal with my now pulsing hand.

That tiny black sliver was tenacious. It was so small, yet hurt so much. My skin had done the healthy thing - closed up a wound. Unfortunately it had closed the splinter right in.

And I thought about how sin is like that. How a tiny black sliver in the heart can cause so much pain and infection. And how sin unattended to gets closed right in.

If I had taken the time, found a way to get the splinter out as soon as it entered, it would have hurt some, yes. But not as much as it did now.

The damage to my skin was real. Instead of a small hole needing cleaning and maybe some ointment, I had a raw swollen palm that needed careful attention. Needed home surgery and lots of babying.

Ah, how often do we let in the heart splinters and don't bother to take them out? The longer they stay, the deeper in they work themselves. And the more they infect.

I have splinters alright. I am forever turning this holey heart over to Jesus for home surgery. My splinters are perfectionism, fear, laziness... oh and so much more. In His presence His balm cleans out those wounds and I am free!

Yet somehow, somehow, I let those splinters back in. Sometimes I think I might just catch myself shoving them back in.

I wonder... every day, if I go to Jesus and ask Him to heal my wounds, not waiting until they show up pulsing again, not waiting for the stinky behavior that belies the rotting... if I start the day acknowledging my inclination to self-injury, will the splinters come out fast and easy and my heart be healthy?

My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
- Psalm 73:26

The sweet balm of His love, His tender mercy, it is my hope. And it is truth that the wounds He accepted, the horrible things that pierced His flesh, are why I can be healed. He took the biggest splinters already.

What Scriptures Should Your Children Memorize?

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Wed, 19 Mar 2014 14:48:00 +0000

As I've written about here in the past, scripture memorization is an important part of the faith life of our family. The way that has looked has changed over the years... recently our younger kids joined an Awana club and they are flying through new verses! Like everything in a family, flexibility and change are part of the package, but we keep our core priorities.

Laying the foundation of Scripture memorization when your children are young will help them develop a habit that will bless them for their whole lives. There are many ways to creatively encourage children to memorize scripture, even programs that they can join. But really the only “program” necessary is a willing parent with a bible.

Once you have decide that you want to develop this habit in your children, how do you choose which scripture to teach? read more

I've pulled together a few resources to help parents select verses for kids to memorize (and grown ups too!) and listed them at Do Not Depart. Click here to read the whole post "Choosing Scripture for Children to Memorize."

Writing a Book = Open Heart Surgery {gulp}

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 04:14:00 +0000

I am writing a book.

I have dreamed of writing books. I have dreamed of having written books.

I have imagined that I could write a book that could capture all the beauty that my heart yearns to express.

But I have not actually written a book.

I am writing a book.

Writing a book is... revealing.

The one thing that all finished books have in common? They are finished. Completed. The author kept going and going and going and <pant pant> going... then one day found closure and moved on from a dreamily perfect ideal to release it to the winds of the world.

Writing a book has revealed to me that all the going takes a very long time. And that finishing is not for the faint of heart.

It has shown me that I have even more left to learn than I thought. About writing... about my topic... about myself.

It has cast a spotlight on my fears... there are times when I think about this book and I feel like the whole world is a blinding beam silhouetting all my deepest anxieties... all the tender parts of me exposed to the heartless throngs.

Oh there are so many reasons not to write this book. The lack of a long string of letters after my name (credentials!); the bookshelves that need organizing; the baby goats to watch; the possibility that maybe just maybe I am not smart enough or talented enough to pull it off; the cookies to bake; the laundry that needs folding; the wrenching pain in my soul when I realize that what I am writing about is the hardest thing in the world to live but I must try in my every waking moment to live it; the deep knowledge that I do in fact fail to live it every waking moment...

... but...

I am writing a book.

I am relying on God's grace. I say this with all my heart: if this book is ever finished and published... if you ever see a copy of it that is not an email from me of some word document of a chapter (ha!)... yes, if there ever is an actual book... this is why:

For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves
- 2 Corinthians 4:5-7

Not me. If this crazy thing ever comes to completion... no, when this crazy, gloriously beautiful journey comes to completion, it will be because of Him. I am not fit for the task. I am out of my comfort zone. Way way way out of my comfort zone.

And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
- 2 Corinthians 12:10

Yes, I'm relying on His grace as I slowly stitch words together. Lord, be glorified!

{Author friends: it would bless me greatly to learn your favorite tip for keeping head down as you soldier onward with your writing projects. Would you tell me in the comments? I have learned so much from other writers! My burning question right now... is it just me and my pace or does writing a book really take forrrrrreeeeevvvvver?}

photo credit

Do You Feel Just Ordinary?

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 25 Feb 2014 20:10:00 +0000

Do you ever feel too ordinary to be used by God? Too busy cleaning up messes and bandaging knees to be important in the kingdom?

The alarm rings. You get out of bed, like every day, and stumble to the kitchen. Your hair is lopsided as you start water for tea, rustle around in the fridge for a bite to eat. You were tired last night and left crumbs, so you grab a cloth to wipe down the counter while the water boils. As you reach for the sink faucet, your bare foot kicks the pile you swept after dinner but forgot to sweep into the dustpan. You mentally add things to your to-do list for the day.

By the time you settle with your bible to snatch a moment with God, you feel the weight of the ordinary bending you down.

You and I are steeped in the ordinary aren’t we? Swimming in the mundane details of daily life. Yet when I crack my bible open, the extraordinary… the supernatural… flies off the page and into my heart. Do you feel it too?

To read the rest of my post today at Do Not Depart, click here...

YOU choose - get the good in your head

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Fri, 03 Jan 2014 21:43:00 +0000

Do you ever feel like your brain belongs to someone else?

You know what is right and what you want, yet you keep thinking about the opposite?

Like... you know you want to feel well and not eat things that make you sick, but you just think and think and think about eating sugar.

Or you know that your friend really loves you but you can't stop thinking about the thing she said that hurt your feelings.

How about this - you tell all the other moms you know not be so hard on themselves about how hard it is to keep up with the house, but deep inside you are sure you are a horrible human being because YOU can't keep up?

It's ridiculous.

All that stinkin' thinkin' gets you nothing and nowhere, but it sure delights the enemy of your soul.

As a stinkin' thinker myself, I'm not exactly in a position to preach, except for I'm going to preach, sisters!

Look, what a way to distract, right? I mean, you could be thinking about an absolutely gorgeous plate of life-sustaining food, but you're distracted by that sugar. You are feeling sorry for yourself because you can't/shouldn't/whatever and are completely ignoring the fact that GOOD GRIEF you are opulently wealthy and can eat just about anything you want and it can all be good for you! What a gift!

Be thankful.

Or that friend? The one who loves you and oops isn't perfect? Did you ever say anything that came out differently from how you meant it? Or maybe you meant it and were just being thoughtless?

Forgive.

And your house... oh your house. Ugh. Houses are just, just... endless. An endless experiment proving entropy.

When you are lying on your deathbed, will you be saying, "If only I had spent more time cleaning my house!"? I think not.

Let it go.

Can we be more intentional about our thinking? How about this (the girlie version of Philippians 4:8)...

SISTERS!

Whatever is
true
honorable
right
pure
lovely
of good repute
excellent
worthy of praise

dwell
on
these
things.

Dwell, sisters.

Live there. Live in the true. Live in the lovely.

Live there in your mind. Find the beauty, choose the pure, look toward what is right and good.

You choose it, girlfriend, only you. You want power? You and only you have power over what you think about.

If you feel like you can't control the thoughts? Get your head right into the good book. Crack that bible. Read. Read quiet, read loud, just read. Get the good in your head.

Get your thoughts off yourself. Get them onto God.

Seek His face.

Trust me, when you are looking in the face of Jesus all that other mess? Fades away.

Focus. Use the power you have to choose where your thought life goes. Go to the light, friends.

Refining Identity {a book review}

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 26 Nov 2013 21:19:00 +0000

The way you think about yourself affects every aspect of your life. Your view of yourself and your view of the world are intimately entwined. And at the very core of both is what you believe about God.

When I am talking with women about various struggles in their lives, I often notice a basic problem - lack of understanding of who God is, and who they are in Christ. If you haven't spent time in God's Word, your view of God will necessarily be shaped by your life experiences and your own personality. It is essential to dig into scripture to know God's truth about Himself, and about you.

"Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." - John 17:17

This is so important for all believers. So when I met Courtney Cohen at the Declare Conference, and heard about her new book Refining Identity, I knew I would want to read and review it for you all. Courtney welcomed my enthusiasm and graciously sent me an advance copy.

The title is based on the analogy of God as Refiner. Throughout the book you will find references to the process smelters use to refine gold to purify it, just as God purifies us.

Refining Identity begins with a scriptural study of who God is. Courtney leads you through the bible, seeking His nature and character. There is space for you to jot notes as you look up each scripture and discover for yourself what it says. Courtney adds her own observations and personal stories.

Then Refining Identity takes you through a process of addressing challenges and weaknesses you may have as you relinquish your identity to the refiner of your soul. This is followed by a beautiful embracing of the renewal that comes as the Lord builds you up as He created you to be. All throughout this journey you will be in scripture, seeking God's truth in His Word.

Near the end is an important chapter on spiritual warfare. Committed believers can expect to experience this challenge, and it is critical to be scripturally equipped to understand and deal with it.

And of course the precious completion of the refining process is when we are like shiny golden mirrors, reflecting His love. Not one of us will be perfectly refined until we are face to face with God, but the power of Jesus Christ in our lives shines even in our weakness and failings.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

We all find ourselves at some point asking the question "Who am I?" For a Christian, the answer is a combination of how God sees you through the lens of Christ, and the specific gifts He has given to you. As Courtney puts it:

"I am who I AM says I am."

Each of us was put on earth to glorify God and love others. But we often get caught up in distractions and become confused about our identities. Because of this we feel trapped and are unable to love with the freedom and joy that we have been given.

Only Jesus can set us free, only in Him can we be fully who we were created to be. If you are feeling trapped, if you are not really sure who you are, I encourage you to consider reading Refining Identity, and commit to the process of working through the scriptures Courtney has lovingly laid out. Meet your Refiner in His Word!

You can hear a little bit of Courtney's heart for this book in the above video.

Also, take a moment to stop by Courtney's facebook page today (November 26, 2013) for some special giveaways in honor of today's launch. You may even win a free copy for yourself!

disclosure: affiliate links are included in this post

We Interrupt This Blog...

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Thu, 31 Oct 2013 16:50:00 +0000

Sometimes God blindsides you.

Sometimes He has plans so big that you could never have conceived of what He was about to do.

God ambushed me last week.

I have been surprisingly worn out by the intensity and emotion of a day and a half of God's hijacking. I have not written anything here, or on our other blog Blossoms and Posies. I have been mostly quiet on social media.

I feel quiet inside. Small and awed.

I had plans. Plans of 31 days of writing about teaching kids to serve. I still have those plans. But those 31 days will not tidily fit within October.

Abbie and I had plans for a wonderful little ebook with beautiful Christmas projects for kids. We had plans to finish it in October. It may or may not be done in November.

God had plans to show me, and others, how big He is... how much He loves. How nothing is impossible for Him.

His plans are always better.

I have really enjoyed writing the Teaching Kids to Serve series. I will resume, possible even tomorrow.

But for today I will leave you with a post I wrote a year and a half ago. Another time when my plans did not work out.

We struggle to reconcile reality with our ideas. We can't implement them all and we wonder, are we trying hard enough? Are we committed to these wild dreams? Sometimes it really is us. We get discouraged, beaten down. Sometimes we give up.

But sometimes it isn't us. It is life. Sometimes it isn't in the master plan, or more accurately, the Master's Plan.

You can read the whole post here --> When the Plans Don't Work Out.

Now I am off to make cookies for my children. At least that's the plan. :)

Volunteer at Your Local Pregnancy Resource Center {teaching kids to serve}

noreply@blogger.com (Patti) — Tue, 22 Oct 2013 20:22:00 +0000

Day 18 of Teaching Kids to Serve

Many pregnancy resource centers welcome children's help. While obviously there are sensitive areas and adult topics that are addressed at such a center, there are plenty of ways for children to become involved.

If the center has a donation area, children may be able to help sort and fold donated baby clothes and blankets. If there are certain items that are in low supply, they can start a campaign to collect those items.

Fundraising is always important. One year my younger children helped me bake items for a bake sale fundraiser for our local center. We packaged them up prettily, then helped at the sale table. My daughter especially enjoyed holding a sign and waving at passing cars to let them know about our baked goods. Kids can also help at a garage sale fundraiser - there is always plenty of folding and sorting to do!

You alone will know how best to explain the center's purpose to your child, and how much detail to go into. For my very young children I simply told them that the center is to help women who are going to have a baby or who have recently had a baby. I explained that for various reasons sometimes people don't have the money or support they need to provide everything for their baby, and it is our privilege to help! We are a baby loving family, so that is incentive enough for my kids!

Your family may even find itself developing a relationship with a young family being helped through your work at the center. This can be a blessing all around!