Some of my thoughts lately on being a WAHM. . . .

This was something I wrote to a friend of mine today, and just felt led to share it here too.  (Keep in mind that I am so thankful and very blessed to have my job.  Sharing my feelings here about my struggle in keeping my plates in the air as a working mom shouldn't be taken to mean that I take my job for granted and don't cherish the opportunity I have to be a teacher, especially from home.  Just wanted to clarify that just in case. . . .)

You have been in my thoughts and prayers so much over the last few weeks - I have checked in to see how you were doing. . . and have been blessed to pray for you and lift you up, not even knowing the struggles you have been facing.

 I am in a similar situation and can relate to your feelings since I work from home with three young kids, 12 and under. I cherish the time with them SO MUCH every day (even the late nights and early mornings); I even did my best to homeschool them faithfully the last two years to invest as much of myself into them as possible and try to make up for lost time when I have been "distracted" from giving them my best.

 It is with sadness (and regret on my end) that my husband and I have felt the LORD leading us to put them back into a small charter school for a season starting this Fall. My heart feels like it is being ripped out having to do this to "make more time for my job" since all I have ever wanted to do is be a mom, homemaker, and homeschool my kids FT. It's hard to let go of our dreams, isn't it?

 We do have a peace about putting them into school - - - but I feel the sands of time passing by so quickly and want to hold them even tighter. I have had to take a step back and realize that I am possibly also trying to hold myself to a standard that may not be God's standard for me, at least right now. Someday I pray that I don't have to work, but until then I daily place my desires on the altar and continue to live my life as a sacrifice to please my God, even in this "small" attitude adjustment.

 It's so easy to read about others and how they are mothering/homemaking/homeschooling and feel so inferior. As hard as it has been for me to accept, I cannot be a FT homeschooling mom/homemaker and work a job from home without something having to give right now.

 I have been praying and finding peace in the fact that God does call us into different roles for a season (like Marcia above mentioned). We can't change the fact that we both work. . . but we can approach whatever season we find ourselves in with joy, peace, and contentment. That is so much easier said than done. . . and I can't change my feelings about it without a lot of prayer and trust in God's care for my children/family. I do this through God's strength and the peace in knowing that He loves and cares for me.

 I pray that God will multiply those teachable moments in my children's lives to make up for the times when I am not there - and want to be. He knows my heart and He is able to do above and beyond anything we can ask or think! He even knows how to care for them more than I do! What peace floods my soul when I think of that.

 May you and your family be blessed! (Sending more prayers to you:-)

 Gina

I am up to the challenge!

Read more here:  http://womenlivingwell-courtney.blogspot.com/search/label/Marriage%20Challenge

A Great Quote from Peter Marshall

In 1950, the great Scottish American preacher Peter Marshall stood before the United States Senate and he explained it this way:




The modern challenge to motherhood is the eternal challenge — that of being a godly woman. The very phrase sounds strange in our ears. We never hear it now. We hear about every other kind of women — beautiful women, smart women, sophisticated women, career woman, talented women, divorced women, but so seldom do we hear of a godly woman — or of a godly man either, for that matter.


I believe women come nearer fulfilling their God-given function in the home than anywhere else. It is a much nobler thing to be a good wife than to be Miss America. It is a greater achievement to establish a Christian home than it is to produce a second-rate novel filled with filth. It is a far, far better thing in the realm of morals to be old-fashioned than to be ultramodern. The world has enough women who know how to hold their cocktails, who have lost all their illusions and their faith. The world has enough women who know how to be smart.


It needs women who are willing to be simple. The world has enough women who know how to be brilliant. It needs some who will be brave. The world has enough women who are popular. It needs more who are pure. We need women, and men, too, who would rather be morally right than socially correct.


Another helpful link in staying focused:

http://homesanctuary.typepad.com/rachelanne/2007/10/the-secret-to-s.html

New year and a new me!

I have been very quiet as of late, in more ways than one.  I have been recuperating from surgery and doing my best to seek God's will in every area of my life with the times that I have been quiet before Him. 

He has been prompting me to work on my physical and spiritual sides of my life.  He has also brought some resources in to my path within the last few days that He has prompted me to use as direction:


Join me in the six month health Challenge!  Click on the link to read of ways to improve your physical health!

I am going to try and read through the Bible in 90 days!  Click on the link to work on your inner man/woman too!

Both of these articles have such encouragement and seem to have these goals broken down into achievable steps for me at this stage of life.

May you be blessed!

For my child, awating me in heaven. . . .

In my dreams, you are alive and well
Precious child, precious child
In my mind, I see you clear as a bell
Precious child, precious child
In my soul, there is a hole
That can never be filled
But in my heart, there is hope
‘Cause you are with me still

In my heart, you live on
Always there never gone
Precious child, you left too soon
Tho’ it may be true that we’re apart
You will live forever… in my heart

In my plans, I was the first to leave
Precious child, precious child
But in this world, I was left here to grieve
Precious child, my precious child

In my soul, there is a hole
That can never be filled
But in my heart there is hope
And you are with me still

In my heart you live on
Always there, never gone
Precious child, you left too soon,
Tho’ it may be true that we’re apart
You will live forever… in my heart

God knows I want to hold you,
See you, touch you
And maybe there’s a heaven
And someday I will again
Please know you are not forgotten until then

In my heart you live on
Always there never gone
Precious child, you left too soon
Tho’ it may be true that we’re apart
You will live forever… in my heart

Lyrics to a song found here:
http://www.karentaylorgood.com/free_mp3_downloads.html

Pulling back and reevaluating my online presence. . . albeit how small it is! :-)

I have really felt the LORD challenging me lately to consider how I am spending my time, especially as it pertains to me in my online time spent reading/reading blogs and catching up with friends and family on Facebook. I am trying to do all of this in addition to my FT work (online), FT homeschooling (PT books/PT online), and email time and responsibilties (online). My computer(s) are on and running almost all day and evening because of my work, and that makes it easy to be hopping from place to place as a distraction from working when I need to take a "break" like most people get in the outside working world.

Hopping from place to place and checking in with email and Facebook for instance make me feel connected to adults as I work at home FT and homeschool my kids at home FT. I am starting to see how much of a distraction it is becoming to me though. I am not seeing how I am best using my time with such a lack of structure as I start something and then hop online to check in, finish something for work, help a child with a school issue, clean the breakfast dishes, etc. I am trying to do too many things at the same time. I am a great multitasker and list maker, so things get accomplished every day. . . but I am not sure if I am fully engaged in what I do when I am doing it. That is making me feel disjointed for some reason and I am desiring to make things more streamlined and organized, even though I like having my "freedom" in that area. It's awesome being able to work from home and homeschool - - but what a challenge for me in time management!

I have also been feeling that God is telling me to pull back and not have so many irons in the fire and so much information floating aroung the 'net that I am responsible for keeping safe and/or monitored. I prayed about it and He told me to make all of my blogs private, other than this one and my (other neglected) cooking blog! I have also been feeling a check in my spirit with sharing too many pictures on FB/other places as I have made more connections there too. In some ways I feel like I am drawing a hedge of protection around my family. It seems extreme, but God wouldn't let me rest until I made some changes last night. (I am not implying or even suggesting that everyone do this, but for some reason, God is having me do this for my family, and like everything, seek the Lord for what to do for you and your family. He knows best.)

This is another shocking thing that I have found myself doing lately, at God's leading. I have felt His Spirit showing me that I am looking at other blogs for inspiration and ideas, and after reading them, I am clicking away with a feeling of condemnation or inadequacy at what I am not doing "right" rather than taking the "meat" of what I am reading, letting the words I have read inspire me, but then spitting out the bones of what will not work for me, so to speak. I have spent more time reading them than reading the Word of God and looking to it as my yardstick for my marriage, mothering, homemaking and homeschooling lately. I desire to change that!

Now there is nothing wrong with reading blogs, looking for ideas and inspiration online, and sharing in fellowship with other women. I am a WAH/SAH mom and need adult interaction, badly! BUT, everything I read and see on other blogs that work for other women and their families will not work for me. I am following the LORD as they follow the LORD, and our walks both glorify God, but we each have different steps that we take in our personal walks with God. All of us are unique and called into different areas of ministry (while still being home and family centered), and as long as we seek to serve and glorify the LORD in all that we do, He will lead and guide us into His perfect will for our lives. The fact that I can't dedicate myself 100% to FT homemaking and homeschooling because I also work at home FT does not make me less than God's chosen one to live this (crazy, blessed, tiring, amazing) life that He has chosen for me.

There I said it, and that wasn't easy!

I am making a renewed committment to pray and read the Word first rather than log on to the 'net in the mornings. I am always trying to take advantage of time to complete some of my work tasks ASAP, but I am feeling like my time could be more of a blessing to myself and others spent doing something else first, like spending time with God and more quality time with my kids before we start school.

Since this is a day of sharing what is on my heart, I have recently also come to the realization that my photography business is not meant to make me famous, admired, or bring me money enough to quit my "day" job, although that would be nice, in some ways anyway. God blessed me with a camera (that is broken right now:-() to be a blessing to others. I have always felt that way from day one, even with others thinking that doing photography as a ministry is so strange! Why don't I advertise and promote myself? The LORD knows my heart and will open the doors and give us the means to fix my camera when the time is right. I can praise God even in the midst of having a broken camera! AMEN!

I am not sure how many people read my blog, but I thought that I would share some of these things that are on my heart. I hope to continue reading blogs that are encouraging to me as I have time and blogging as I have time, perhaps once a week. I also need to work with my web-developer to tweak some things on my photography website to reflect my change in perspective. . . .

I love you and may the LORD bless you today, and always.

The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord protect you and give you His peace.

Amen!

A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

I haven't had much time for blogging or reading blogs (or email for that matter) this summer. Time passes so quickly and it goes by faster the older I get, it seems.

My heart has been encouraged and inspired (convicted really) by reading Mrs. June's blog, A Wise Woman Builds Her Home. Her blog always strikes a chord with me in my walk with God.

She is doing a series on Motherhood May these posts touch your heart and inspire you to become the woman/wife/mother God wants you to be.

I am making a public confession here to say that I am not seeking the Scriptures as much as I have been reading books and listening to "experts" to give me help and tips raising my kids. I have been praying for HELP in the middle of a crisis, rather than preparing the way by earnest prayer and intercession for my children.

As silly as it sounds, each of my kids has me scratching my head and wondering what to do about different things right now. Isn't that how God keeps us hungry for HIS wisdom?

LORD - I make a renewed commitment to YOU to seek YOUR wisdom in all things, especially with my children. I seek to glorify you in every word I speak, every decision I make, and every action I model for these three precious souls.

May I love their father as you would have me. May I respect and honor him as the head of our home, and, when they look at me, may they see your model of a Christian wife and mother. May my daughters be able to see Biblical Womanhood in action that will someday provide the encouragement and model they will need to live their lives. May my son see me as one worthy of being called a Lady and may I teach him how to live his life as one who is a mightly warrior of the LORD.

May my life make them hungry for you and desire to give their hearts to you early and forever. What an awesome blessing and responsibility I have to love and teach these sweet, precious ones about You. May your wisdom, peace, and joy rule in my heart and guide my footsteps as I seek to serve You by serving my family.

May you find me faithful. . . .