(And All My) Work Be Praise

Nine years ago, I wrote names on a bunch of popsicle sticks, labeled a jar "prayer," and started praying occasionally with my then-very-little boys. You can read it about it here: http://workbepraise.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-prayer-jar.html.  Not long after that post, I unexpectedly got pregnant with Toby. To put it very mildly, that fourth boy in 4.5 years threw everything off kilter, and even little routines like the prayer jar fell by the wayside as we merely survived. Then we moved 800 miles across the country. Then we had two more kids. And while we have definitely developed routines of all sorts over the last decade -- our homeschool days have been predictable and manageable for two years now! -- I've had no success getting morning prayer (or morning anything, really) to stick. But here are at the end of our second month of school, and we're doing it! I really only made one major change: I don't wait for everyone to be at the table . I have kids who rise at ...

"Morning Time" (or circle time, or table time, or what-have-you) seems to be all the rage among homeschooling families right now. I've probably seen a dozen blog posts on the topic, each with her own master plan of what subjects to cover at the start of each school day. It probably comes as no surprise that my current routine is very simple. After all, I can only hold them at the breakfast table for so long, at their current ages! On our best days -- probably three times a week, if we don't have anything extra going on -- our list looks like this: 1. Bible story, with optional Bible song. This is most often taken from the ABC Jesus Loves Me two-year-old curriculum . I read from a variety of sources (a different one each day, when I can) -- first the Beginner's Bible , but sometimes from the "real" Bible, or the Jesus Storybook Bible , or a storybook of parables we have if one of them happens to correspond. Depending on how full little mouths are (I ...

At our church in Cincinnati, a high priority was placed on teaching children the basics -- and more! -- of our faith. (This is not at all to say that there is not such a high priority at our current church; the ways and means simply differ.) There was great emphasis on memorization of both Scripture and catechism, and an accountability/reward system in place to help parents stay on track. ( This is a good article on why to catechize our children, along with other arguments for regular family worship.) For several years, the whole church used the Fighter Verse program  for Scripture memorization, children beginning with a shorter set called Foundation Verses . It varied from family to family, but most were able to start working on Scripture memorization with their children as early as two years old. Levi completed the 75 Foundation verses before we moved, and last month we started from the beginning again as part of our morning table time. (More on that later.) 4-1/2-year-old ...

I have long counted the daily study for  Bible Study Fellowship as my personal devotion time, even though I have long felt a little guilty about it. Though there are plenty of personal application questions, it's always felt a little more "academic" than my ambiguous notion of "quiet time" allows for. (This is all very random and not really based on anything concrete, but there you have it.) This year, I felt rather challenged to do something more, say, introspective than BSF during Lent, so I downloaded the She Reads Truth app onto my new iPhone. I'd heard of the studies/devotions from Money Saving Mom and a few other sources, and since a number of the studies were free, it was convenient more than anything else. Long story short, I haven't been disappointed, and I highly recommend it if you're (a woman, and) in need of a source for daily devotions. All of the plans are free online (but some are paid-only through the app); the Bible readin...

Books: The Snowy Day   (by Ezra Jack Keats) , Stranger in the Woods   (by Carl R. Sams II and Jean Stoick) , Katy and the Big Snow (by Virginia Lee Burton) -- all books we own, so no library trip necessary Craft:  Shiny Silver S Food: snow ice cream Bible story: Moses and the bronze serpent Resources and printables: Read to Me & ABC  and Royal Baloo I really hadn't intended to be doing any preschool in the early weeks of January. I had, of course, expected to be having a baby at the end of December, and to take it easy (translation: dump out all the toys and watch a whole lot of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood ) for a while. But January 1 rolled around, all of our celebrating was long over with, we were all bored with being at home, and there was a big snowfall predicted for January 2. So I pulled up my "s is for snowman" packet, and the S page from our Bible curriculum, and threw together a few activities. The salvation stuff in ABCs for Godly Boys ...

A few nights ago, my four-year-old threw a temper tantrum the likes of which I've only seen once or twice from him, ever. He screamed until his voice was hoarse, until he was no longer making any sense at all, until all he had left was huge, hiccuping sobs. At first I thought he just needed space to calm down, so I took a few minutes to settle my two-year-old, a quick book he'd been clamoring for me to read and then an episode of Thomas the Train. I spent the better part of twenty minutes sitting behind Levi on his bed, arms wrapped tight around his little shaking body, whispering nothing of importance while he alternately screamed and cried and tried to explain why he was upset. His disobedience had been the original catalyst, but we were long past the point of any effective discipline, and the only thing to do was build the fences for him, to put up the boundaries around his emotions that his fledgling self-control couldn't yet construct. Though exhausting and a bit o...

I spent my junior year of college in a tiny town in west Wales. It was a year that would, as I imagine most study abroad years do, forever shape how I saw myself: capable, independent, confident. There are days when I still get a little nostalgic, missing my dorm-window view of sheep-studded hills and the familiar call of the chapel bells ringing, summoning one and all to the Anglican services I grew to love. I could write about half a dozen different facets of my year abroad, but there's one I want to focus on particularly today. Towards the end of my year, a friend and I traveled northeast to the big(ger) city of York, England. I (very briefly) considered graduate school in Britain, and the University of York had a fascinating music program, the title of which I can't remember now. While we were there, we took in the sights, which included the local cathedral. Now, I grew up in a very pretty medium-sized stone church, but by late junior high, my family was involved in ...

Nestled on the kitchen shelf with the popcorn and basmati rice. I am not an exceptional pray-er. Never have been. I wish I could tell you that having children has driven me to my knees more than ever, and in truth it should  have, but it hasn't -- or, at least, not to the extent I'd like it to. We pray as a family at bedtime, but that tends to be more simplistic, "thanks for this day" type of stuff. It's a tricky business, then, to teach one's children something one does not do well themselves. I first saw the idea for a prayer jar on Pinterest , but it wasn't until a friend posted the same idea on my Facebook wall that I decided to follow through. The picture she posted was much, much cuter -- painted terra cotta or something equally crafty -- but I'm all about using what I have in the moment (an old applesauce jar, construction paper, packing tape, a Sharpie, and some leftover colored craft sticks from another failed project). We have sixteen ...

Please note, local friends, that this story, though true, is not about a member of our church, not someone you've ever met, so please, no gossipy speculation.  I love Palm Sunday. I know that it's a minor celebration, compared to the swelling joy of Easter morning, but I love it all the same. I love explaining to my children's choir that Palm Sunday is their  day. Easter has big words; Easter is death and resurrection and conquering the grave and it is big news but it isn't easy news. Palm Sunday, though -- Palm Sunday is waving branches and a parade for a King and shouting "hooray for Jesus!" and all of the songs talk about the children. This year, Palm Sunday was also my dad's birthday and so it was also blowing out candles and wearing party hats and singing "happy birthday, dear Grandpa" and lunch that spilled into nap time and eating cake for dinner. It was Levi's first palm branch and sitting in church with Grandma so Mommy and Daddy...

Feeling rather worn out these days. This song isn't about motherhood, but for me, this week, it was.  Jesus, draw me ever nearer As I labor through the storm You have called me to this passage And I'll follow, though I'm worn Jesus, guide me through the tempest Keep my spirit staid and sure When the midnight meets the morning Let me love you even more Let the treasures of the trial Form within me as I go And at the end of this long passage Let me leave them at your throne It's a Keith Getty song , but Margaret Becker wrote the lyrics.

My God is reconciled; His pardoning voice I hear; He owns me for His child: I can no longer fear. With confidence I now draw nigh --  With confidence I now draw nigh And "Father, Abba, Father," cry. ~Charles Wesley, Hymns and Sacred Poems , 1742

Last night I had the privilege of attending the senior voice recital of a friend who is graduating this spring as a music education major.  It was a lovely recital (and a pleasant opportunity to get out of the house without children!), and I was glad to be able to support her, along with several others from our church family. It was funny, though, walking into that little recital hall: I was immediately hit with an overwhelming sense of belonging; though I went to an entirely different university, simply being in the space caused me to breathe out, " yes! This is what I do! "  I watched the accompanist (for that is what I did) diligently and thought snide comments to myself about the page turner's mistakes and reminisced about the half-dozen or more recitals I played myself, even as I reluctantly acknowledged to myself that not a single formal gown still hanging in my closet would ever fit my post-baby body. And then I looked around at the people I knew, all of them f...

Levi and I had one really bad day this week.  It was only half a day, really, but compared to our normally rather peaceful days, it was bad .  I know in my head that his defiant "NO, Mommy" and his refusal to obey on things I thought we'd conquered months ago and his naptime shenanigans are merely the combination of innocent toddler-hood and sinful human nature, but on this particular day, I was angry.  "How dare you wake up your brother" angry.   "You MUST obey"  through clenched teeth angry. When I realized that I was actually looking for reasons to punish  (not discipline) him rather harshly -- trying to enforce rules that hadn't been in place previously -- my oh-so-angry heart sank.  Make a quick mental list of all of the ways parents are NOT supposed to treat their children; I'd violated every one in the space of a few hours.  And in an instant, I knew what he'd needed all along: a little more attention, a little more patience, a who...

I was just working on my Bible study  homework.  We're studying "Acts and the Epistles" this year, and this week we're in 1 Thessalonians.  I was so struck by this verse (NIV) that I had to share it right away: "We continually remember before our God and Father . . . your work produced by faith . . .  your labor prompted by love . . .  and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. " Faithful work, loving labor, and hopeful endurance: how I would love to be characterized by such things.  What noble pursuits.

Sounds like causing strife, doesn't it?  Let me give you the whole verse: let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works. It's what struck me as I was doing my Bible reading this morning, in Hebrews 10 (verse 24).  It's a little hard for me to concentrate on reading in the mornings.  Levi and I do it together at the kitchen table after breakfast: he looks at the pictures in his Jesus Storybook Bible  and listens (make that "listens") to a story, and I do a page in a devotional , in Hebrews right now.  There's nothing special about this particular Bible study book, and in fact I can't even say it's all that good.  But since I can barely concentrate anyway, I'm just trying to write down one thought every morning that catches my attention. As the devotional suggested, I took the verse quoted above as a command: consider how to stir up someone to love and good works.  My husband was the first person who popped into mind [that...

[God's] wisdom is my perfect peace. ~My Heart Is Filled With Thankfulness Keith Getty / Stuart Townend © 2003 Thankyou Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

I just finished re-reading Rachel Jankovic's Loving the Little Years *, and thought you should all hear this quote from her last page: From Ecclesiastes 5:19: Everyone to whom God has given wealth, and possessions, and the power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil--this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart. "[I]f you accept your lot and rejoice in your toil, God will give you the kind of overwhelming joy that cannot remember the details. Motherhood is hard work. It is repetitive and often times menial. Accept it. Rejoice in it. This is your toil. Right here. Those are their faces. Enjoy them. The days of your life are supposed to be full of things like this. But joy is not giddy. It is not an emotional rush--it is what happens when you accept your lot and rejoice in your toil. So rejoice in your children. Look them in the eyes and give thanks. You will not even r...

I mentioned  quite a while back that I've been thinking about love a lot recently, and one of the "minor epiphanies" continues to stick with me.  I'm almost embarrassed to admit some of my thick-headedness, but, well, this is who I am.  :) For the majority of my first thirty years of life, I have not been able to shake the notion that love is a feeling.  Sure, I know all (some of) the Bible verses about active and sacrificial love.  Yes, I was a part of the group in college that got really into taking the "5 Love Languages" test.  Even in the past five years as I've begun to think in terms of "covenant," I've somehow managed to separate the two (love and covenant) in my mind.  ("Covenant" therefore meaning something like, "I won't leave even if I don't feel like I love you anymore," or something like that. ) Anyway, as such, I've always relegated 1 Corinthians 13 -- you know, the "love chapter" ...

My apologies for the title and address change for the blog.  I know it's not professional to do so.  As I explained to a friend last weekend, I was dissatisfied with my previous title for several reasons: 1. The title didn't match up with the address, so people kept ending up at a blog of which the author was in love with her therapist.  Inasmuch as my husband occasionally functions as my therapist, I suppose that's true, but she isn't me. 2. You can't start writing a blog without titling the blog, and so I felt immense pressure to just choose something already  so that I could get my rapidly-accumulating thoughts down. 3. I have been surprised at the direction(s) my blogging has taken.  I didn't know what to expect, I guess.  I've found that knowing I have the opportunity to work through any given situation/thought process/teachable moment/experiment and present it logically to the public has caused me to be more thoughtful about, well, everything. I...

Flipping through radio stations the other day, I heard two songs back-to-back.  Both followed the same basic pattern: 2-3 verses, each a list of life's small annoyances, the choruses describing each artist's response to the annoyances.  The verses could have been interchanged easily (lyrics-wise, at least), a fellow driver's road rage, a stolen parking spot, lost car keys and cell phones.  The choruses, however, ended in very different places.  The first fantasized about life on the beach, pretty girls serving cold drinks, complete relaxation.  (Except for the pretty girls, it doesn't sound half-bad, does it?!)  The second pointed to the simple fact that even though life can indeed be downright annoying, most of us are blessed beyond measure, and anyway God uses rough moments to break our impatience. The juxtaposition of the songs got me thinking.  Frankly, at first it made me laugh, because the very fact that I was analyzing their similarities and...