REALLY Loving our Children

     The house resembled the aftermath of an earthquake, the loud voices of children reverberated off the walls and "dad" was due home any minute and would be looking for his supper!  I was not experiencing the emotions of being a loving mommy in that moment . . . but fortunately there's a lot more to love than feelings.

     There is love in its godly, active form -- LOVING, when it's found as a verb.

     We scattered to put quick semblance of order to the messes that seemed to litter every room, I worked to patiently lower the noise level and pull together a chicken stir-fry.  By the end of that day, when young ones were asleep and older ones had their feet resting with a book in hand, life felt a little more hope-filled again.  I was feeling more loving again.

     But what a dangerous thing it is to parent out of our emotions.

     Dr. Dobson had it right years ago, when he said, "Love is a decision."  We daily have to choose to love -- it's our calling as moms to model it to our children and to shower it on our families, as well.

     I came across a poem in a book I was reading last week; although there was no credit to who the author was, evidently it was a rendition of I Corinthians 13.  Listen to what it says . . .

     If I live in a house of spotless beauty with everything in its place,
     but have not love ~ I am a housekeeper, not a homemaker.
     If I have time for waxing, polishing and decorative achievements,
     but have not love ~ my children learn cleanliness, not godliness.
     Love leaves the dust in search of a child's laugh.
     Love smiles at the tiny fingerprints on a newly cleaned window.
     Love wipes away the tears before it wipes up the spilled milk.
     Love picks up the child before it picks up the toys.
     Love is present through trials.
     Love reprimands, reproves and is responsive.
     As a mother there is much I must teach my child,
     but the greatest of all is . . . LOVE.


     That poem is now printed and set upon my fridge, lest I forget my God-given call and reorder the values and priorities that He has for my life as a wife and mom.  May you, too, find a way to be reminded that we each are given the opportunity DAILY to choose love as a verb!

"Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others

than for self.  Love...puts 

up with anything, trusts God

always...keeps going to the end."

I Corinthians 13:4&7

Restoring

God is always in the process of restoring...if we could see into the spiritual realm, I think we would be amazed at all that He is doing in and around us.  But sometimes we can feel very discouraged for where we are at in life...often it is because we look back on mistakes we have made or the time we feel we have wasted and wish we had done things differently.  But do you know that those feelings can allow for God to move in one of my many favourite ways?  In His miraculous way - He can restore all of these things.  Oh, but I don't know what you have done?  I don't have to, I know what He can do.

In the book of Joel, God gives a wonderful promise, chapter 2 verse 25 says, "I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten..."  What a beautiful picture!  When you look at your life, do you see places that feel like they have been devoured?  Times in your past that feel robbed of what could have been or what should have been?  That is okay - God is our restorer.  He can take those times, events and moments in our lives and restore them.  All it requires is our willingness to give them to God and leave them with Him. 

What does this look like?  It can have many different processes, but one of them is as simple as quiet time with God, telling Him about the times in your past that you feel have lacked His best.  Surrendering (which means giving over) those things to Him and asking Him to restore what the "locusts" have eaten.  One promise I have seen carried out in my own life and the lives of so many Christians around me, is that He makes beauty from ashes.  In the moments of pain or sorrow, we cannot possible see what He will be able to do - but He can see it all!  Just as a master craftsman can come into a rundown home and make something new and lovely, so much more so can God take the places in our life that are rundown and broken and create a masterpiece. 

Trust the Lord to do as He promises in Isaiah 61, "To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.  They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor."  What promises - He takes away all of the ashes, mourning, despair and in place give us beauty, gladness, a garment of praise and allows us to display His splendor!  God is the true restorer and master craftsman - allow Him to move in new, deeper ways to restore what the locusts have taken from you!  He has something beautiful planned, my friend!