Soul Searching Sunday – Happiness

Soul Searching Sunday

Welcome to my new weekly Sunday session. I am wanting to have space on this blog to contemplate and reflect on the deeper aspects of life. To me, a person’s soul is very important. It is the core of who we are. Sunday is a day of the week that I set aside to nourish my soul. It really is a day for soul searching. It is a day I examine how I’m handling life, how I can get better at what I’m doing well and how to improve in the areas that I have failed, because fail I do. Regularly.

Sundays are the perfect day for doing an inventory on what I have to be grateful for and it’s a day that I will most often spend with family and friends. Enjoying one another and becoming better together.

Because I am a Christian, often God, Jesus, The Holy Spirit and the Bible feature in my soul searching. I find my faith keeps me centred and my reliance on a higher power keeps me humble and inspired to keep improving and living my life with passion and purpose. I want to share some of this revelation during a regular Sunday blog post. I know many of my readers may not be Christians, and I hope that this is still a section that you will be able to read and get something out of. Spirituality is expressed in many ways, I hope my soul searching can aid your own soul searching, in whichever way you connect with your soul and spirit.

I thought it would be fitting to start this inaugural Soul Searching Sunday post talking about Happiness. I think being in touch with your soul is a happiness creator. That’s not to say it’s easy and full of laughter all the time. There is a joy that is present when you are being real with yourself and examining the issues and tackling the problems that will make you a better person or help you to maximise your effectiveness in this life.

SUNDAY
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When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about the future.
Ecclesiastes 7:14

 It is so easy to be happy during the good times in life. Sometimes we can feel guilty for feeling good. Maybe I should be taking life more seriously? I find it reassuring that God wants us to be happy. In fact he explicitly says to be happy. He also recognises that there are going to be bad times. Life cannot be filled with only happy moments. If we have a belief that God is still in control, he is still in charge during the bad times, it can bring reassurance. Happiness is wonderful, bad times have purpose. We don’t know why as we walk through those difficult days.

I think back to the days I struggled with infertility. The crippling disappointment when I would have a period signalling yet another month without a child. The intense pain when I would hear another person I knew was pregnant and I still wasn’t. The hoping, the wondering, the pain and the grief. I was not to know in the future I was going to be fortunate enough to have five children. How much easier those would have been if I had discovered my future. Yet because I did walk that road, when I have increased the intensity of happiness while watching my children grow before my eyes and listen to their ever so cute conversations and cuddle them in my arms. I know how abundantly blessed I am, and I never take this opportunity I have been given to be a mother for granted. It helps me get through the hard days like the rainy day with triplets I described earlier this week.

It’s amazing as I reflect back on my life that the getting through the hard times have made me a happier person in the long run. I have a depth to me that I would not have without those hard times. I have a greater perspective. Depth of character and perspective built into me during the hard times of life really does increase my happiness during the good times.

 

Has there been times in your life where you have walked through the bad but have made you a happier person later?

 

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Soul Searching Sunday – Happiness

Soul Searching Sunday

Welcome to my new weekly Sunday session. I am wanting to have space on this blog to contemplate and reflect on the deeper aspects of life. To me, a person’s soul is very important. It is the core of who we are. Sunday is a day of the week that I set aside to nourish my soul. It really is a day for soul searching. It is a day I examine how I’m handling life, how I can get better at what I’m doing well and how to improve in the areas that I have failed, because fail I do. Regularly.

Sundays are the perfect day for doing an inventory on what I have to be grateful for and it’s a day that I will most often spend with family and friends. Enjoying one another and becoming better together.

Because I am a Christian, often God, Jesus, The Holy Spirit and the Bible feature in my soul searching. I find my faith keeps me centred and my reliance on a higher power keeps me humble and inspired to keep improving and living my life with passion and purpose. I want to share some of this revelation during a regular Sunday blog post. I know many of my readers may not be Christians, and I hope that this is still a section that you will be able to read and get something out of. Spirituality is expressed in many ways, I hope my soul searching can aid your own soul searching, in whichever way you connect with your soul and spirit.

I thought it would be fitting to start this inaugural Soul Searching Sunday post talking about Happiness. I think being in touch with your soul is a happiness creator. That’s not to say it’s easy and full of laughter all the time. There is a joy that is present when you are being real with yourself and examining the issues and tackling the problems that will make you a better person or help you to maximise your effectiveness in this life.

SUNDAY
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When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about the future.
Ecclesiastes 7:14

 It is so easy to be happy during the good times in life. Sometimes we can feel guilty for feeling good. Maybe I should be taking life more seriously? I find it reassuring that God wants us to be happy. In fact he explicitly says to be happy. He also recognises that there are going to be bad times. Life cannot be filled with only happy moments. If we have a belief that God is still in control, he is still in charge during the bad times, it can bring reassurance. Happiness is wonderful, bad times have purpose. We don’t know why as we walk through those difficult days.

I think back to the days I struggled with infertility. The crippling disappointment when I would have a period signalling yet another month without a child. The intense pain when I would hear another person I knew was pregnant and I still wasn’t. The hoping, the wondering, the pain and the grief. I was not to know in the future I was going to be fortunate enough to have five children. How much easier those would have been if I had discovered my future. Yet because I did walk that road, when I have increased the intensity of happiness while watching my children grow before my eyes and listen to their ever so cute conversations and cuddle them in my arms. I know how abundantly blessed I am, and I never take this opportunity I have been given to be a mother for granted. It helps me get through the hard days like the rainy day with triplets I described earlier this week.

It’s amazing as I reflect back on my life that the getting through the hard times have made me a happier person in the long run. I have a depth to me that I would not have without those hard times. I have a greater perspective. Depth of character and perspective built into me during the hard times of life really does increase my happiness during the good times.

 

Has there been times in your life where you have walked through the bad but have made you a happier person later?

 

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Lessons I Learned From My Ironing Lady

My ironing lady recently told me that she would need to reduce the hours she spends on our copious ironing pile. It was a sad moment, but I fully understood. After all, she has been ironing for us for over two years, and I have never paid her a dime.

The fact is, she’s more than just my ironing lady. She’s actually my pastor’s wife.

In Christian circles, there’s often pre-conceived notions of how a Pastor’s wife should look like and act. Being a volunteer ironing lady is not normally an expectation of the duties of a pastor’s wife. In fact, I would hazard a guess that there are Pastor’s wives have volunteers that do their ironing for them rather than the other way around. Which is fine, and I’m sure they are blessed by such service, and so they should be. But generally, Pastor’s wives do ‘important’ jobs like run the women’s ministry or kids program or are on stage on Sunday morning. Which are also great roles for Pastor’s wives – if that co-incides with their gifting.

The wife of our pastor, is not the type to enjoy being in the spotlight. And quite frankly, if she were forced to do this, she really would not be very good at it, because that is not what she was created to do. Which is why we are very blessed that her husband, (our senior pastor) and consequently our church are not the types to accept stereotypes. Within our community people are not forced into ill-fitting boxes, but rather encouraged to shine in the area that God has gifted them, according to their God-given character and personality. Within our church family, we hear teaching illustrating the Kingdom of God as an upside down scenario.  This upside down kingdom starts with central ingredient of our faith. Jesus. A king, set to earth from heaven. Born in a shed full of animals, to a teenage girl from a small country town. God, walking about as a man, in the most humble conditions, so that he can serve the people of the world in the best way possible.

Our upside down church is made up of people who feed the poor, reach out to the lonely, minister to the needy. Our little church is well known for fostering unity within the various churches and denominations within the city and voicing the message of forgiveness, healing and unity  throughout the nations. At first glance our church may seem insignifcant. Our church doesn’t have a fancy building, just an old warehouse once used for manufacturing. We don’t have an enormous congregation and there isn’t a cast of superstars lined up the front every Sunday morning. But within those walls, you will find Jesus there and you will find people loving others like Jesus loved, unconditionally and without expectation of rewards.

Which leads me back to my ironing pile.

After I became pregnant with the triplets and around the time I was starting to slow down and have to take things easy so that the babies would cook for as long as possible, Betty, our pastor’s wife, came and had a chat to my mother and asked what she could do to help.

Soon after, she started coming around to my house once a week and doing housework. That’s right, the wife of the senior pastor of my church was cleaning my toilet. This beautiful lady who is over 60 was making my children’s beds – bunk beds no less! As time marched by, the ironing pile started getting her attention more and more, and before long this is what she would do when she came over on a Wednesday. (Just as a side note, I will still blessed by another older lady in our church who used to come and do my housework on a Monday morning for the first few months after the triplets were born. Love the body of God in action!)

Late last year Betty let me know that she wouldn’t be able to help me as much. Of course I was totally fine with that. I have often been worried that I was using up her precious time when there were other tasks that she might better use her time doing. Her response to me when I once said this to her was, “Caitlin, you don’t need to worry about me. It’s an honour and a privilege to do this for you.” Who considers ironing an honour and privilege, I ask you? Somebody who understands the upside down nature of God’s kingdom. That’s who.

So, from one of the most unassuming women on the planet, (but I have learned that this makes her one of the greatest) I have learned not just about humility, but also a host of lessons that seem simple, but are actually helping me to become more Godly and a better wife, mother and woman.

Punctuality

Over time, without anything being said, I noticed that Betty developed a pattern of turning up at our place at 8:30 in the morning and leaving by 3 in the afternoon. One day she arrived with her own iron. My iron at the time had been dropped once and leaked water a bit. Betty had solved the problem by wrapping old hankies around the handle as she ironed. On that particular day she had not been able to find her hankies before leaving, so she arrived with her own iron to use instead because she didn’t want to be late. It made me marvel. I am regularly late to things. To give such an importance to a volunteer event with no prescribed time, is not something I would have considered doing. Occassionally Betty has had other things on the time that she normally comes to our house. She always lets me know in advance and most of the time she will come over, get my baskets of ironing and take them away then bring them back wrinkle free and hanging on hangers. I’m still working on not being late to things, but the image of Betty, always punctual and how much I have grown to appreciate her reliability, keeps driving me to improve in this area.

Graciousness

I have shared before the trials of raising a strong willed child. Sometimes I’ve felt self conscious as I’ve had to deal with these battles around Betty. Betty and Ian have raised five wonderful children, all adults now, serving God and excelling in their vocations.  I asked her once where she thought I could improve  in my mothering. She replied that she thought I was doing a great job. Which was encouraging, but I know also, that there are areas I can get better at. So on another occasion I asked what she think most helped in the molding and shaping of her children’s lives, she answered praying for them each night made a big difference. I already prayed for my kids at night, but it has given me renewed vigour to continue doing this!

When you have someone in your house, especially in the centre of the home, (we set the ironing board up in the living room), you know that there is no hiding exactly how your household operates. Betty has been able to see both mine and my children’s strengths and weaknesses. Never once have I felt even a sliver of judgement from her.  You cannot know how much of a comfort this is. I also know that she would never tell others of my own struggles. I know that I am messy, and can be bad tempered and forgetful and indecisive. Through Betty’s quiet presence and acceptance it makes me feel that I can rise above it, little bit by little bit. I can listen to the Holy Spirit’s guiding voice to conquer my vices without feeling the pressure of disapproval from somebody else. It also makes me want to be more gracious and accepting of others. Be

cause I have had a fresh revelation of the power that comes in offering somebody unconditional love and acceptance.

Sacrifice

To give up a day a week, to do someone’s ironing – what a sacrifice! And that’s not all Betty does. She cooks for others, especially for a girls camp that happens regularly for girls that have not necessarily had great opportunities in life. Betty will give up her weekend to cook for this event, as well as time planning and preparing for it. She also helps look after her grandchildren throughout the week and regularly has guests in their house.

It has made me determined to do what I can for other people. I know Betty’s example will always remain in my mind, and will influence the way I respond to others around me when my own children are grown and I may have a little more time on my hands. There are few genuinely selfless people in this world. Betty really is one of them.

I am so thankful that I have got to know my pastor’s wife so much better in recent years. She has been such a blessing to me and my family. My children love her dearly and have just matter of factly, as children do, consider her a part of their lives. It probably helps that she has been holding them and talking to them for as long as four of them can remember. (Trent wasn’t even two when she started helping around the house.) Jayden has been particularly been perplexed in recent days to see me at the ironing board. I normally iron when he’s asleep, but it was getting out of control for awhile there, so I was doing it while the triplets were awake. My husband has also informed me that I do not iron not nearly as well as Betty. Which really is no problem because now we have gone back to our former arrangement where he irons his own clothes. Betty rang up the other day. She is an avid tennis fan and player and had been watching it on TV feeling guilty that she wasn’t doing anything. (Industrious, that’s another word you can use to define Betty.) She asked if I had an ironing pile she could take. I indeed did. A backlog from Christmas I hadn’t been able to clear. I don’t think I’ve ever been more thankful for the sport of tennis.

So Betty, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. I’m sorry for the embarrassment I’m sure you’ll feel when you see I’ve written this, but I’m not sorry for letting everyone know how wonderful you are and give a perfect example of a Christian woman working in God’s upside down kingdom according to your giftings. Thank you also to Ian, our senior pastor who as often is the case, is the total opposite to Betty. He certainly is not a behind the scenes man, but an out the front, strong talkative leader. Nevertheless, he resembles Betty in his servant heart, which makes the best leaders of all, after all. I’m thankful that he releases his wife, and multitudes of others within our church, city and nations to use our own personal giftings and find our purpose and passion and contribute to the Kingdom of God on this earth while we are awaiting the time we will dwell in our Heavenly home.

What do you think? Is it fair that Pastor’s wives have pre-conceived notions on how they should act? Can you share an example of how you have seen someone perfectly illustrating God’s upside down Kingdom?

Because it’s Tuesday, I’m linking up with Essentially Jess

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A Mother's Insecurities When Parenting a Challenging Child

Parenting is the most challenging thing I have done in my life. I knew it would be difficult and demanding, but I seriously had no idea how much heartache and anguish can accompany it. Of course there is also exceedingly joyful moments also, and always, ALWAYS my heart is overflowing with gratitude and a deep, deep unconditional love. Which is probably why the hard times are so difficult.

And we have been having hard times lately. Hard, hard times. Times where I have frequently been a blubbering mess. Times where I can’t sleep for fear that my child will not learn the important life lessons I am trying to teach. Because I know that if he does not learn these lessons, it will inhibit his ability to get the most out of life.

You may or may not have noticed that I have been a bit slow at blogging in the last few months. I want to blog more. I’m constantly composing blogs in my head. I’m always taking photos for the blog, and yet they so often get filed away and never used. The truth is that blogging is second place to motherhood and parenting is just sapping all the energy out of me. I have wanted to share this on the blog, because I believe that sharing our challenges is empowering for ourselves, and for others, particularly those who need to know there are others out there struggling with similar issues.

Yet, I haven’t. It’s just such a raw issue for me. This parenting business. Parenting my strong willed children. It is a phrase I have heard since childhood, my parents read James Dobson’s The Strong Willed Child. Yet, until you are a parent and have the responsibility of raising one (or more) of these strong willed children, it never hits you. The weight of the responsibility and the knowledge that you cannot make that child do anything. You can only present the best possible alternatives and scenarios and pray like mad that the child chooses the correct road, and when they don’t, you can only stand by, continue to love them, administer appropriate consequences and hope they learn from their mistakes. Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don’t.

The first time I just couldn’t face the blog because I was just feeling to emotionally exhausted was back in July. I was looking at Google Analytics today and could see a slight decline in readership since then. I don’t apologise for the lack of blog entries. My commitment should rightly always be to my family before my blog. However, seeing those statistics made me finally write this entry. Because sometimes, if I just had more self discipline, I truly could reach past my exhaustion and still write. Because writing, even when it is initially a chore, actually does re-fuel me. But most importantly, while the emotions are raw, it is often, not always, but often, the time when it can make the most impact. So, thank you readers for your patience, and I’d just like to say, please continue to be patient with me, and in return, I will try harder to not spend so much time trawling facebook haphazardly and flicking through Pinterest pinning things I rarely actually do, and I will pull out my inner reserves and write more – for both our sakes.

To be specific, let me show you where most of my heartache is.

This precious child. One of my greatest joys in life can also makes me heart ache the most.This little guy is an incredible human being. He is animated, talkative, caring and an all around cool little bloke. But he has a terrible temper. He throws things when he is mad. He breaks things in defiance. He hates to be corrected and sometimes I will start talking and he will go blindly running up the driveway in his (successful) refusal to listen. When he does remain for a confrontation, he can be nasty and will say things specifically to hurt you. (And he does that successfully too.)

We had been having a lot of temper outbursts from him back in July. After his birthday party he had a complete melt-down. It involved lots of yelling, crying, he broke a present by throwing it at the roof, (quite a feat when the ceiling is about 5m) and at one point he threw his presents in the bin. Which he instantly regretted because he was doing it for show, but I then took them and put them away in my cupboard, which then escalated his temper to a whole new level.

That night, after he went to bed, (and maybe a few times before), I cried and cried. I was a complete basket case. I was ultra tired from staying up late to make his birthday party a special occasion. And afterwards it all seemed so futile.

I am a mixture of emotions of late.  I am feeling vunerable. I feel like I am the one making the mistakes just as much as he is. I am very aware of my flaws (such as my own temper) and am terrified that the mistakes I make as I parent are going to be costly to my son’s life. My husband keeps reminding me that, Jonty has been created as an autonomous being. He has been created to make his own decisions about his life. We encourage him to make the wise decisions, but when we have done our job as loving parents, we are not responsible for his decisions in the end. They are his to make and his to claim ownership of. Yet, there is always that seed of doubt, because as parents it is necessary for us to guide our child, to teach and train them. I don’t want my lacks to result in him not heading in the right direction. Because after all, the world is full of people who have been injured by bad parenting.

I feel judged. Which is ridiculous, because when I stop and think about all my friends, my true friends would never do this. And they are the opinions I care about most. Yet, there is always doubt, that people are watching me and thinking, “If she only did this, this and this, she wouldn’t be having those problems.” Because, let’s be truthful, there are some people who are thinking this. Or I look at other families, with children who are not as strong willed as mine. I know that they have their own set of challenges, but I feel insecure that those parents do not know that I have tried many of the strategies that have worked for them, yet for my children, the response was minimal. I want to launch into self defence. I want them to know parenting is not a formula. And sometimes I do. But it is unnecessary. I do not need to defend myself. And I do not need to concern myself with their thought processes. Because God knows, I’m trying my best.

Most of all I am scared. I’ve often explained to my friends that I am scared because the stakes are high. And they are. With most other areas in my life, if I identify there is a problem, I will work hard to rectify the situation. I will change my behaviour, I will become more dedicated and persistant, I will conquer the problem. It’s not like that in parenting. You can identify an issue and work on it, but at the end of the day, it is a heart response I am after from all my children. And the thing is, despite my best efforts, I cannot be the one to make that heart response. I can’t make anything happen. That lies with my children. I can do nothing more than be the best wife and mother I can be and pray, pray, pray. Which is quite possibly the most important thing I do as a Mum.

I know that not everyone who reads this is a Christian. I respect that we all have free will to choose our belief systems. My faith is so woven into my life that my beliefs do help guide my parenting. I do not wish to force my children to believe in God. They will grow up learning about God though. Because my belief in God is the most influential area of my life. How can I not teach them something that means so much to me? People who believe in fit

ness as a way of life teach their children to be fit. People who have strong ideas about what foods to eat teach their beliefs to their children. Teaching spirituality to children should not be viewed differently. It is another dimension of life. However, what is important is that children know that spirituality is a choice. I share with my children what I believe, but I also teach them that ultimately their faith is their own. Of course I hope my child chooses Christianity. How could I not when everything I have examined tells me it is truth? But that doesn’t mean I will force my child to believe. For then it is not an authentic faith, and above all I want my children’s spirituality to be a guiding force in their lives.

I just wanted to make that little sidenote and ask for your understanding, not judgement if you do not agree with the facets of Christianity. (Because I have been attacked on this blog before for my Christian parenting.) I hope that you can still read this and know that if you are parenting a difficult child, you are not alone! There are others who share your struggles and your pain. Blogs are all about being authentic, and the real me relies on Jesus to help me through my pain, and he does. If you don’t believe this is a valid belief system, that’s OK. If you haven’t combined spirituality and parenting and the idea intrigues you, feel free to email me (address in the bar on the right) I would be happy to answer questions, or just even pray for your individual circumstance with you.

I’m sharing my insecurities with you to encourage others. Your insecurities are just that. They are areas where your own personal lack of confidence makes you nervous or feeling discouraged. Don’t allow your feelings to be any more then feelings. Acknowledge this the way you feel, but hang in there! It is not a bad thing to have these fears – to a certain extent. Because in reality, a lot of the things I have mentioned above are points I need to remember because if I am complacent in my parenting, then I am not helpful to my son. If I absolve myself of all blame, I leave him on his own, when I should be doing everything I can to help him. But at the end of the day, I need to know that it is not my power that Jonty or the other children need. I am only human. I pray that they will connect with a Higher Power – God – and allow the Holy Spirit to assist them to becoming the people they are designed to be.

People with strong wills are designed to accomplish much. They have a tenacity to tackle problems and fight for the outcome to be achieved. That is a terrific characteristic to possess. Here’s to guiding our children into maturity and cheering them on from the sidelines as we watch them to develop into amazing people who make a powerful difference in the world.

Do you have a child who you find challenging? Do you have insecurities that buzz around inside your head? 
On Thursday, I will share some practical tips that have assisted me with parenting because it’s always good to have some ideas in your toolbox! I know there are some days I’m so hungry for a new strategy, because sometimes you just need a fresh perspective because your own toolkit just isn’t adequate.

Following up this post I have shared some strategies to parenting Strong Willed Children. See Part One and Part Two

I am linking up with Essentially Jess for I Blog On Tuesday

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Mummy's Tea Time Out

The triplets for the last fortnight have been absolutely beastly. It’s not their fault. They have caught colds, and it seems that they are teething. There has been relentless crying. And crying. And tantrums. And clingy behaviour. And crying. And crying. And wanting to be held constantly. Primarily by Mummy or Daddy. Did I mention there has been a lot of crying?
It truly has been exhausting. And I don’t know when it’s going to stop! But in the meantime, I’ve been trying to do as many varied activities as possible and lots of play to try and keep their little minds off their woes! For instance, this morning we made a special soft playdough. Kept their attention for 5-10 minutes. (More for the girl, less for the boys. In fact Toby, perhaps looked at it for 1 minute. Which is typical for him!)

 Before long this was happening. Again.

Yep. All three joined the refrain.

Jayden had got so dramatic that he had caught himself under the table. Not that it stopped him wailing at all. A rescue mission and consolation session was in order. Then I realised that Toby was missing.
Location. Kitchen. He had decided to mix himself up another batch of playdough. I keep forgetting that they cart stools around now. I shouldn’t, because open packages are dangerously messy.

By the time I got them down for their nap, I was exhausted. Trent had a little mate around, so I decided to do something I rarely do. Sit down and have a cup of tea. I’ve bought a new teapot recently, so I’ve been wanting to try it out. Since I was using a teapot (how la-di-da!) I thought I may as well make it an occasion, and use my Royal Albert tea cup. And of course one needs sugar and cream. And why not, I ask you, thrown in chocolate cake? I grabbed my Bible, and was all ready for the serenity of a few moments sipping tea and spending time with Jesus.

When hey presto, of course the two little amigos appeared. Hungry. The tea was left to infuse a bit longer while food was collected, and of course they were keen to join me at the table.

 It didn’t take long before they were scampering off into the garden. To catch monsters, snakes and a tiger I was informed. I’ve never felt so safe. Although I felt safer after they were given the strict instructions to never touch a real snake. Which they totally thought was unreasonable so they received the full Mummy lecture until their opinion changed.

Finally. It was time for my French Earl Grey tea and a moment of alone time.

And during this little interlude in my day, God blessed me. Right from the moment I opened my Bible and caught a glimpse of a little post it my fiance had stuck inside my Bible before I went overseas while we were engaged. Which brought a little more meaning to Psalm 103 as I read it. My heart has truly been satisfied with good things. And I am grateful. And even at that moment, drinking from my good china, I could feel my soul being refreshed, (I hope my youth too!) And I will praise the Lord and not forget the good things he has given to me. Despite the crying and the trials. I am blessed. I am loved. I am happy.

What good things have you felt blessed by recently?



Graced Simplicity

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On My Knees

I have always believed in the power of prayer. I believe prayer changes situations and I believe prayer changes people. I believe every prayer is answered, but I think that sometimes the answer that we receive may not be the answer we expected. I believe in the sovereignty of God and that His will is always accomplished.

I believe there are some things that would not be accomplished if it were not for the fervent prayer of believers. There are times I believe God requires us to pray not because he is unwilling to activate his power in our lives, but by because He knows that the humility required to ask a higher power for intervention makes us stronger and better people as we recognise that on our own, we are not enough. We have been designed to be in relationship and to rely on a Heavenly Father. Prayer puts us in a position of reliance, hope and expectancy.

At the moment, my church has designated 40 days of Prayer. So many of us in the congregation are being pushed to a new level of prayer as we hear encouragement and are challenged by sermons on Sunday mornings. There are many of us who are also reading the book, Draw the Circle by Mark Batterson. It’s a great book and very easy to read the daily reading. (Even though I must admit I often fall behind and end up doing several daily readings in one day. Hopefully I’ll get better as the days progress!)

On Day 3, I was reading how the author kneels to pray, he was relating a story where he was challenged to kneel and pray in a busy airport. (Which he was obedient and did.) I am quite good at praying. (Recognising that I still have room for improvement.) Generally I pray all throughout the day.  I love that feeling of communion with God as I progress through my day. Coming from a charismatic background, kneeling isn’t my usual posture for prayer. It’s not that I don’t agree with it, or haven’t done it, it’s just not the usual prayer position for me.

After reading the chapter, I was challenged to pray on my knees. I actually set the timer on my iPhone and told God I wanted to pray fervently for 10 minutes. I know it doesn’t sound like much, but it’s easy to be distracted, especially since becoming a mother. I wanted a tangible time that I would dedicate to praying for specific requests. I figured that nothing to horrible should happen to the kids if it were ten minutes, (Especially when the triplets were in their cots, otherwise, I must admit that a lot of damage can happen in ten minutes!), it was just going to be ten minutes of me 100% focussing on God, and not a prayer that I am multi-tasking while saying it.

Wow. Powerful. Powerful stuff.

Turns out that ten minutes is a totally adequate time to connect to God in such a way that I could feel his heartbeat and as my ear felt it’s pulse, it brought change to my life. I was praying for change and the Holy Spirit was whispering how I could change within in order to initiate change. (Also turns out that once the iPhone beeps, I keep praying on regardless…)

On my knees, there is a sense of abandonment. There is subserviance, humility, there is an eagerness to be heard and to hear. And there is power. Almighty power.

I have had no great answer to prayer. Yet. I have a list. I will continue to pray. There will be change. Maybe within me first. I will share testimonies of that change. I have faith that it will occur.

But most of all I am in awe that the God of the Universe is interested in me. Hears my cries. Sees my tears. Delights in my thankfulness. So I will continue for ten minutes each day to connect with Him. On my knees.

During today’s church service. The kids were being sermon illustrations!

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Photo A Day – "Routine"

OK, so I know the real title is “Daily Routine”, but Chantelle did say it could be open to interpretation. So, since this is a Sunday. I thought I’d photograph a part of our Sunday routine. Church.

Here we are, all packed up ready to go home. Except for T-Star. He’s wandering. I’m constantly losing him at church. It kind of stresses me out a bit. Luckily there’s plenty of people who watch out for him, or go chasing him if I’ve got a baby in my arms and he looks like he’s about to get into mischief. In the photo J Boy is complaining that he’s hungry. Most kids do that sometime after the service is finished. There’s also the sweet Mandy. Mandy is brilliant to have around when you have babies. I think she’s the only adult I know who can outlast a kid when playing ‘peek-a-boo’. She is also a favourite with children because she makes them little bead bracelets which is a hit with many girls, including my neices. She makes the boys little plastic keyring thingies. My boys have oodles of them!

Today I was in the mother’s room for the entire service. I fed the first baby, packed up, opened the door to go back to the auditorium and there was my sister with a baby. So we swapped. She then appeared with the third baby before I’d finished feeding the 2nd. By the time I finished I got to sing most of the final song.

It’s not a waste of time going to church though. I know people who have stopped going to church when they have babies/children because they say it’s too hard. I think this is not a good move. Yes, you don’t have to go to church to be a Christian. However, being a member of a church will most often strengthen your faith and encourage you to be a better Christian. I have also seen many families who stop going when their kids are babies, and then never quite get back into the swing of it. Before you know it God has become a low priority in their lives. There’s something about being a member of a church, especially an active member, which will spur you on to achieve greater things for Him.

It’s not easy getting out the door with triplets. Church is no exception. However, we do it most weeks. Occassionally, especially at first, we gave ourselves a break if we were to tired due to getting up too much the night before. Sometimes we might hang out with friends who don’t go to church on a Sunday. On the odd occassion we might choose to do something instead of church. But most Sunday’s we are in ‘our pew’.

As a family, it’s communicating to our children that we place God as our priority and that we will be faithful in devoting this time to Him. Our kids also get to hear about God from other passionate people. It’s worthwhile finding a place with a good Sunday school program if you have kids. That’s the beauty of having different denominations and church groupings. There ought to be a church that, while not being perfect, suits you. When you find that church. Try to stick to it and remain faithful. Placing your roots with the one congregation will assist your accountability, growth and sense of community.

Community is a huge part of being in a church. The friendships I have formed through being in my church have affected my life forever. We are built with a need for community. It’s why we crave relationship – with friends, with a partner, with our families. A church provides you with a community who will support you when it’s needed and celebrate with you in the good times.

Most of all, every Sunday, it’s another opportunity for me to hear from God. Sure, I hear from God when I’m on my own. But sometimes I get presented a whole new perspective on a Sunday. Or I learn something new about God. Or I just get the chance to worship him corporately.

And that’s why we will continue to go to the effort of bringing our children to the House of God every Sunday. There is nothing I desire more for them, that they will grow up and make their own decision to follow God. This is one way I can ensure they know about him. Plus, I need church. I need my church family, and I need that weekly connection with God that is different to my own personal quiet time.

I’d love to hear your opinions about church, whether you’re a regular attendee or not…

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Teaching Children Compassion

J Boy made a comment yesterday which made me smile. He was carefully examining the ‘mugshots’ in a leaflet we had received from an aid organisation.

“Those little boys and girls are all waiting for people to send them money so they will be able to go to school and their families can have some food to eat.” I explained.

“Oh, is that why they are so sad?” J Boy questioned, “They look as sad as a snake who can’t find any mice.”

It was his analogy which made me smile. I have no idea what made him compare the faces of disadvantaged children to hungry reptiles, but it really wasn’t a bad association.

We feel blessed as a family that we have secure finances that allow us to support a child living in Brazil. We started before the little girl began school and this year she has commenced high school. It is always a thrill to receive her picture and updated information and we communicate regularly through letters. It would be our ultimate dream to one day visit her. Although with the prospect of travelling with triplets, I suppose this will have to remain in the long term dream box!

Our sponsor child is with ‘Compassion’.  We have been impressed with this international aid agency. Our money is used directly for the child and her family. Like many other programs, we receive regular updates, photos, (although I wish these came annually rather than biannually), progress reports, and opportunities to participate in other projects, particular during crisis periods. We are able to give extra at Christmas time which enables every child in the program to receive a Christmas gift.

It is important to the Accountant and I that this is a Christian based program. The program participants do not need to be a Christian to receive assistance, but we know that every child in the program is given the opportunity to learn about Jesus. Since it is our love for Jesus that prompts us to reach out to the needy, it’s nice to know that children will be taught about God and associate that it is God’s intervention that is making a difference in their lives, even more than assistance from humans.

Something I have really appreciated as well is that Compassion gives me opportunity to teach my own children about other children who are less fortunate than themselves. This can happen not only by reading the letters to my kids or getting them to draw/write back to their ‘sponsor sister’, but also with the regular magazines that we receive. There is often a kids section. By using these resources we have been gently introduce J Boy to another world that is less fortunate then his own.  This week he was colouring in a picture of a child in South America after a discussion about how some children aren’t able to go to school, they don’t have clean water to drink or hygienic toilets to use.

Last year there was a particularly good booklet designed especially for children that we used. It had puzzles to cut out, cards with children from other countries to play memory with, short articles to share with children, games etc. These things can be wonderful springboards to helping children awareness of international concerns.

Teaching your child to have compassion for the needy does not have to be a heavy duty affair. It can be simple conversation. It can be remembering them when we say grace at night or praying for them during bed time prayers. It can be flicking through a magazine and pointing out a picture of an African child who is hungry or a South American child living in inferior housing. We don’t need to shield our children from the suffering in our world. We need to direct them to feel compassion for these people while at the same time knowing that even if it is only one child at a time, we can make a difference to others lives. These are the lessons of life that I consider an integral part of my child growing up to be a empathetic person who will be determined to make a difference in this world.

Do you have a sponsor child? How do you communicate to your children about those who are less fortunate?

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Be Expectant and Have Faith!

I have already mentioned I had a homegroup on Friday night. I have typed out what we discussed and thought since it’s all there, I may as well share it with the world, and if God can talk to you out of any of this, hooray! It’s always a good thing to receive a word from God, that’s for sure! So here’s a Bible study if you are short on something to use for devotionals this week!

I pray that God will increase your faith for what you are believing for!

2011 – A Year of Faith and Expectancy
I believe as a group God wants to take us to a new level this year. Two words that coming to me are EXPECTANCY and FAITH.
We need to be expecting God to intervene in our lives as a result of our prayers. Yes, the prayers may not be answered within our time frame or in the way we want – but so what! God is God. He is sovereign and in control. We need to keep asking and believing and be trusting in him.
This year, I want our faith to grow. We can go to the next level. God can only take us as high as we are willing to climb. Let’s climb to the Summit. Sure, the mountain may be treacherous, the slopes slippery and the prospects daunting. But with Him NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. (Matthew 19:26) We can reach the top, and when we do, will not just view the Promised Land, we continue until we are walking in it.
EXPECT, EXPECT, EXPECT! For to do so is HOPE. When we start to dare to hope, our faith starts to grow.
Now Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1
I want to start fostering that seed of hope that is already in you.
Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of God. Romans 10:17
Listen to the Holy Spirit, start building the Word of God in your heart, and start putting it to action. Start with the little things. Include God in your daily life, asking him first. Rely on God before all other advice you seek. Make him your first point of reference. Ask God throughout the day for what you need. Expect him to answer. Look for the events that you can report back on how God has answered your prayers. When you are confident with asking for the small stuff, move on with confidence to the next level, that you previously had doubted you would see a response.
Jesus granted requests according to people’s faith. Think about how each of these exhibited their faith, and ask God to show you what you can do to exercise and act upon your faith.
Matthew 8:5-13 The Centurion.
We need to pray with confidence that God has the authority on Heaven and Earth to answer our prayers. It can and will be answered in a moment. Remain in faith until that moment comes.
Matthew 9:20-22 The Woman with the Issue of Blood.
Matthew 15:21-28 The Canaanite Woman. Illustrated being persistent and bold.
Matthew 17:20 A little faith is a lot – it goes a long way. Why? Because a little of our faith taps into God’s infinite power.
Mark 11:22-26 Be encouraged to believe in faith for what you ask for.
Luke 12:28 We are deserving to receive of God.
Romans 4:18-21 Let’s be fully persuaded in God’s power.
Romans 10:17 Get into the Word! It builds your faith.
2 Corinthians 4:13 Speak out what you are believing. Don’t be silly or spiro about it, but in the right context, speak out words of faith.
1 Corinthians 2:5 …so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power. Come to God first. Put your confidence in Him before all others.
In Him and through Him we may approach God with freedom and

confidence. Ephesians 3:5

Let’s stay strong as a group this year and grow in faith with one another.
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some of us are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another. Hebrews 10:23-25
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