1. crock pot is your friend, its okay to use every day.
2. Spend time outside, fenced in. Parks sound like a good idea but they lie, they suck
3. Movies are okay in moderation. Don't feel guilty if you need a little quiet in your day
4. The healthier your kids eat the better behaved they are. Don't take short cuts and serve boxed mac and cheese. It makes them crazy.
5. Set the baby down, she can cry for a minute, that toddler needs a spanking more. Discipline and training are needed.
6. Bath time can be once a week, that's okay
7. Go shopping with people and if you go alone put them on a lease, those things are awesome.
8. Go on walks. The fresh air helps and its nice to have a change of scenery.
9. Kid proof your house. It makes it harder when everything is a no no don't touch.
10. Relax, you don't have to have the "perfect" family. The kids can be dirty and loud and crazy.
Our first and foremost job as a mom is to raise our children to love and honor God. So our attitude throughout the day is so much more important than whether or not we got the dishes and the laundry done. We need to discipline and train our children but remember they are learning and if we are getting overwhelmed maybe we need to lower our expectations of them. I find it difficult most days to have the patience to deal with my children in a godly way but i remember that God chose me for this job to raise these two boys to be godly men who serve the Lord and this little girl to be a wise and respectful women.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Saturday, January 26, 2013
"Submission, Suffering, and the Government"
Our pastor gave this sermon on Sunday that I found very pertinent to the current situation with our government. It was very hard to hear but you can't change the scripture. I want to write my notes out so that you can all read them.
(1 Peter 2:13-17) 13 Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution,[a] whether it be to the emperor[b] as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants[c] of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
God tells us to obey human authority because He rules over us all.
Submission in scripture has many forms: Citizen to Government, Employee to Employer, Children to Parents, Wife to Husband and Slave to Master.
How are we as Christians to respond to a godless government? Scriptures over arching theme is submission.
Submission (N): willing, joyful, obedience to the will of another, even if the will of another runs counter to our own will.
Theology of citizenship: How to live in the kingdom of God while also living in this world.
Nature of Submission
1. Motive: Be submissive because the authority of God, regardless of how we view the authority over us. Jesus was submissive, even to the point of death. Our lives are not our own, we do not direct our steps (Romans 13:1-2) 13 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.- Pretty straightforward.
2. Focus: Every human institution. All human authority is created by the ultimate authority. There is a God given purpose in government to discipline the bad and reward the good. However we, as Christians, feel we are exempt because government is run by sinful humans but this is not true, we are still held to submission.
3. Effect/Impact: Silence the foolish or slander of Christians Often Christians are seen as subversive to government so we need to change the image.
4. Freedom and Slavery: Don't use our freedom as an excuse to be disobedient, be servant to our authority. We don't need to find our hope in this world because we have Christ (Galatians 5:13) 13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Through love serve one another. The government will let us down but that has no bearing on submission to them.
5. Attitude: Have honor and respect toward our authority (1 Peter 2:13). Should be more focused on having the right attitude more than the right argument, even to unjust government.
6. Exception: If the government does something or tells us to do something against God's law we graciously disobey. Shadrach, Mechach and Abednego in Daniel only disobeyed when it went against God.
Application: submit for the Lords sake, repent of our disobedience, pray for authorities. Obey all laws, speak truth of God in a godly way. Not appropriate to bash the authority over us. Shine the glory of God. Suffer according to the will of God. By obeying the will of authorities we may suffer. We will not like everything they want us to do but we are still called to obey.
(1 Peter 2:13-17) 13 Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution,[a] whether it be to the emperor[b] as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants[c] of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
God tells us to obey human authority because He rules over us all.
Submission in scripture has many forms: Citizen to Government, Employee to Employer, Children to Parents, Wife to Husband and Slave to Master.
How are we as Christians to respond to a godless government? Scriptures over arching theme is submission.
Submission (N): willing, joyful, obedience to the will of another, even if the will of another runs counter to our own will.
Theology of citizenship: How to live in the kingdom of God while also living in this world.
Nature of Submission
1. Motive: Be submissive because the authority of God, regardless of how we view the authority over us. Jesus was submissive, even to the point of death. Our lives are not our own, we do not direct our steps (Romans 13:1-2) 13 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.- Pretty straightforward.
2. Focus: Every human institution. All human authority is created by the ultimate authority. There is a God given purpose in government to discipline the bad and reward the good. However we, as Christians, feel we are exempt because government is run by sinful humans but this is not true, we are still held to submission.
3. Effect/Impact: Silence the foolish or slander of Christians Often Christians are seen as subversive to government so we need to change the image.
4. Freedom and Slavery: Don't use our freedom as an excuse to be disobedient, be servant to our authority. We don't need to find our hope in this world because we have Christ (Galatians 5:13) 13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Through love serve one another. The government will let us down but that has no bearing on submission to them.
5. Attitude: Have honor and respect toward our authority (1 Peter 2:13). Should be more focused on having the right attitude more than the right argument, even to unjust government.
6. Exception: If the government does something or tells us to do something against God's law we graciously disobey. Shadrach, Mechach and Abednego in Daniel only disobeyed when it went against God.
Application: submit for the Lords sake, repent of our disobedience, pray for authorities. Obey all laws, speak truth of God in a godly way. Not appropriate to bash the authority over us. Shine the glory of God. Suffer according to the will of God. By obeying the will of authorities we may suffer. We will not like everything they want us to do but we are still called to obey.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
It starts with wives
Wives, or soon to be wives, there is something that I have been realizing a lot lately. Men have no idea how much influence we play on who they are and how they act. At first this idea was a little overwhelming, the fact that how I relate to my husband pretty much determines his mood and his outlook on life. but then I started thinking it could be really beneficial for our family.
Titus 2:4-5 states that women should be self-controlled, pure, work at home, kind, submissive to husband
when I am positive and encouraging to my husband he is more confident and more positive himself. When I am negative and always complaining I can start to see him become more negative and his motivation starts to diminish. This is why it is so important to be Christlike and to show respect and a positive attitude toward our men. But I must admit I fail often in this area and my family suffers for it.
A caution to this is we have such an influence on our husbands but they don't realize it, it is hard for them to adjust their attitudes if we don't adjust ours. We also influence their decision making. If we push too hard in one direction they may choose that way but it may not be the best for the family. Make sure you are only giving input and HE is making the decision. "It is better for a man to lead poorly then for a women to lead well" - Debi Pearl.
I found myself in this situation a lot, pressuring Thomas to make a decision and in the end it wasn't the best for our family. We need to trust our husbands and pray they choose correctly which is very hard for a controlling personality like me.
I always wonder how many problems in our marriages could be solved by a wife maintaining a positive, loving attitude, obedience to her husband, not controlling situation and having humility, having the ability to be wrong or even to be right but he decides to go the other way. This is a hard and often challenging realization, but I think it will only make our marriages stronger and happier in the end. Besides don't you want a happy and positive husband?
Titus 2:4-5 states that women should be self-controlled, pure, work at home, kind, submissive to husband
when I am positive and encouraging to my husband he is more confident and more positive himself. When I am negative and always complaining I can start to see him become more negative and his motivation starts to diminish. This is why it is so important to be Christlike and to show respect and a positive attitude toward our men. But I must admit I fail often in this area and my family suffers for it.
A caution to this is we have such an influence on our husbands but they don't realize it, it is hard for them to adjust their attitudes if we don't adjust ours. We also influence their decision making. If we push too hard in one direction they may choose that way but it may not be the best for the family. Make sure you are only giving input and HE is making the decision. "It is better for a man to lead poorly then for a women to lead well" - Debi Pearl.
I found myself in this situation a lot, pressuring Thomas to make a decision and in the end it wasn't the best for our family. We need to trust our husbands and pray they choose correctly which is very hard for a controlling personality like me.
I always wonder how many problems in our marriages could be solved by a wife maintaining a positive, loving attitude, obedience to her husband, not controlling situation and having humility, having the ability to be wrong or even to be right but he decides to go the other way. This is a hard and often challenging realization, but I think it will only make our marriages stronger and happier in the end. Besides don't you want a happy and positive husband?
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Captive to Christ
"Make every thought captive to Christ." 2 Cor 10:5. As a mother and a wife sometimes I find myself going throughout my day so engrossed in my duties that I forget to honor God in them and I forget to praise Him for my blessings, especially when it is a busy day or I don't feel good. I was conflicted about this and was wondering how I could remember to be an example of Christ that my children can aspire to be. How do I take my thoughts and make them captive to Christ? Here are a few things I thought would help;
-get rid of meaningless worldly things (television shows)
-read my Bible in the morning (with my children)
-listen to praise music throughout my day
-do everything without grumbling or questioning (Phillipians 2:14), I find this one especially hard when my husband tells me to do something I don't really want to do.
-don't be that women who gossips and slanders, especially when it is disguised as a prayer request
-do the duties that God has designed for me, like being a help meet for my husband and a mother who instills godly values in my sons and has patience to treat them with respect and discipline to train them in the ways of the Lord.
-get rid of meaningless worldly things (television shows)
-read my Bible in the morning (with my children)
-listen to praise music throughout my day
-do everything without grumbling or questioning (Phillipians 2:14), I find this one especially hard when my husband tells me to do something I don't really want to do.
-don't be that women who gossips and slanders, especially when it is disguised as a prayer request
-do the duties that God has designed for me, like being a help meet for my husband and a mother who instills godly values in my sons and has patience to treat them with respect and discipline to train them in the ways of the Lord.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Maui trip, Day 9
We are leaving today, so sad. It has been a blast though. We went shopping at front street again an ate at the yummiest burger place again. We had to go back to the condo after and packed all our junk up again and try to fit everything into our suitcases. On the way to the airport we stopped at the best pie place ever. It was so amazing I would come to Maui again just for the pie. We have to drop the car off at like 650 and then wait for like 3 hours for our flight, but this might be fun. I am just so excited to see our boys. Yay I miss them so much.
Maui trip, Day 8 - Dinner Cruise
Super chill day. We all got up late and went to Lahaina and the boys went surfing while Mandy and I laid on the beach and tanned ad relaxed in the water. Once the boys were done we came back to the condo and got ready to go on a dinner cruise.
I was a little worried I would be sea sick but I did pretty well. We got to see the sunset and eat good food. After the cruise Thomas and I both got tattoos, I got a leaf on my wrist and he got a tribal design on his shoulder it looks super cool, pictures to come soon. Overall it was a very nice day.
I was a little worried I would be sea sick but I did pretty well. We got to see the sunset and eat good food. After the cruise Thomas and I both got tattoos, I got a leaf on my wrist and he got a tribal design on his shoulder it looks super cool, pictures to come soon. Overall it was a very nice day.
Maui trip, Day 7 - Zipline
Today was so cool. We woke up late because we were all so tired from the ride the day before. We ended up going to a place called Cheeseburger Paradise which was absolutely amazing, everything about was amazing. Then we dropped Jo and Mandy off at the condo and we took off to Mt. Haleakala to go zip lining. It was so flippin fun, Thomas took a video that I will try to post to Facebook soon.
That night Thomas and I got to go on a date on Front Street. We went to a fun upbeat restaurant called Longhis and ate way to much yummy food.
Oh and the picture below is a cool cruise ship that was docked outside our window for a few days.
That night Thomas and I got to go on a date on Front Street. We went to a fun upbeat restaurant called Longhis and ate way to much yummy food.
Oh and the picture below is a cool cruise ship that was docked outside our window for a few days.
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