Being the Best Mom

Archive for October, 2009

The LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken…
The LORD has spoken.
Isaiah 21:17, 22:25

That’s pretty much what it came down to. Much of what Isaiah had to say was unpleasant and unpopular – Who wants to hear prophecies about judgment and destruction??? – but he spoke what the LORD told him to say. Period.
There really was no sense in arguing or complaining about it.
God spoke.
And so it was.

And so it is today.
May each of us listen to and obey God’s Word today. And always.

Have a joy-filled weekend. See you back here Monday!

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1. Happy Friday, everyone! I have to start off with sharing what my son brought home the other day…

There’s no room for the squeamish in this house.

2. I also have to tell you that my…

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1. Happy Friday, everyone! I have to start off with sharing what my son brought home the other day…

There’s no room for the squeamish in this house, I promise you.

2. I also have to tell…

Visit my website at www.mycup2yours.com for full content, links, and more…
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OK, so Tuesday I told you that today I was going to expand on the idea that God’s purposes are perfect. Have you been waiting with baited breath???

You don’t have to answer that question. *grin*

The point is, sometimes I have been praying for something and God has not answered in the way I wanted, nor in the time I wanted. But when all was said and done, I have understood that God’s purposes are greater than my desires. In fact, most recently I have learned His purposes are greater than my pain.

I mentioned last week that I have been experiencing some back pain. To be honest, at times it has been debilitating.
I have been concerned about how I was going to get things done. I have been in tears, wondering why God didn’t just touch me and bring healing. I have begged Him to take the pain away and let me function like I am accustomed to doing. I have asked God to examine me and show me if there is some unconfessed sin He is trying to bring to my attention.

I have been all over the map.

And do you know where I have landed?

Right here. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:8-9)
God has shown me so much through this pain.
When I was afraid I wasn’t going to be able to speak for a MOPS group because of the pain, God showed me that He is big enough to bring relief right when I needed it.
When I had to stay home from church and missed teaching my Sunday school class and another event for which I had signed up to help, God showed me He is big enough to carry on these events without me.
God used the pain to slow me down and led me to moments of sweet fellowship with Him. He has used it to show me His love and faithfulness. God has humbled me through the pain and required me to accept help from other people.
And through it all, He keeps reminding me – His grace is sufficient for me.

Do I still wish He would touch me and take away the pain?

I sure do!

In fact, I would love to be pain-free by the time this post hits cyberspace. But God has shown me, and continues to convince me that His purposes are greater than my pain. And that is why I can say, Sometimes it hurts so good.

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I wrote this post last week, and thought I ought to update it to say that my back and I are getting along quite well now.
I can stand up straight.
I can walk.
Something still isn’t quite “right” and I am still being careful, but I can honestly say – if my back never improved from where it is right now, I’d be OK with that.

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“Let brotherly love continue” …that is my prayer!  As I witness my children eagerly give of themselves for one another,  I whisper a prayer of thanks to the Giver of all good things!  For this is another marking of His hand in our lives. 

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Welcome to Talkin’ About Thursdays! Today we’re talking about Fall get-togethers…

<center><a href=”http://www.mycup2yours.com/”><img…

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I’ve got great kids. I love them so much!

I know the same is true of you. I know because I’ve had some of your children in my Sunday school class. I’ve experienced their charming personalities and I’ve seen your tender love for them when you drop them off for, and pick them up from class.

Indeed, we have great kids.

But sometimes I feel weary in parenting.

You, too? To read the rest, click here.

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I don’t know if it’s the season, or the change in the weather, or what, but we’ve had the most gorgeous sunsets by our house lately. I just had to share this one, looking out from our front…

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I hope you’ve been enjoying this series on prayer for What’s on Your Mind ’09? as much as I have. Again, I want to say thanks to Shane, both for hosting WOYM ’09 and for choosing this topic.
I so enjoyed reading your comments last week about why you pray, and I hope we can continue the conversation today. Only today I have a slightly different question.

Why do you keep praying?

* If you’re in the middle of a struggle and you’re asking God to free you from it, but nothing seems to be happening, why do you keep praying?
* If the circumstances around you are confusing, and you’re unsure about what you should do so you ask God, but no answer appears to be coming, why do you keep praying?
* If God is all-knowing and all-loving and He’s supposed to be able to handle your situation, but the petition you’ve been bringing before Him – for years, even – remains just a petition, why do you keep praying?

I don’t know about you, but I have often been praying about something and grown tired of waiting on God to answer. It has seemed as though He had other things to which He needed to attend, and hadn’t been able to pay attention to my prayers yet. At least I’ve assumed that must be the explanation, because in my estimation – if God realized how urgent my request was, He surely would have taken care of it sooner!
I would wonder when He was going to get around to my needs.
And sometimes I would feel like giving up.
I would think, Well, my concern must not matter.

But God has taught me a wonderful thing while I’ve waited for Him to “get around” to my prayers. It is that thing which gives me reason to keep on praying.
And what is that “thing”?

God’s ways are higher than my ways.

While I’ve spent time waiting I have learned that God’s will is perfect. And sometimes that means He answers my prayers in a way I didn’t ask Him to. But when I have hind-sight I can see that His answer was so much better than that for which I was asking.
During my waits I have learned that God’s timing is perfect. So sometimes He answers my prayers according to a totally different schedule than the one I had in mind. But in retrospect, I have been able to see why His time-table was better than the one I was proposing.
And as I have waited I have also learned that God’s purposes are perfect. More on this point Thursday.

I have become confident of the fact that God’s ways are higher than mine. Everything about Him is perfect, and I can trust Him.
Even when I don’t understand…
Even when I don’t like it…
Even when I’m tired of waiting…
Even then, God is up to something good. So I keep praying. I keep hoping. I keep trusting.

How about you???

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