10

10

The number of children killed in the Oklahoma Tornado a few days ago.

10

The number of families that hugged their babies goodbye one morning but didn't hug them goodnight that night.

I can't even imagine.

I live in Kansas, I've lived here for 15+ years. I've seen tornado sirens, I've heard warnings and I've heard tests but to live through a tornado...I've never done that. I can't even imagine the terror those families went through. We live in a mobile home...there have been pictures on the news of mobile homes completely torn apart. I can't even imagine. I can't imagine covering my babies with my body to keep them safe. I can't imagine running from our home in pouring down winds, driving rain to our storm shelter 4 spots down. I can't imagine.

But the fear is there. The fear that sits in my throat wells up every time I hear a sound that sounds remotely like a tornado siren...what if we're next? I sit on my hands when I hear a siren because they want to scoop up my children and run for cover...I subconsciously nail my feet to the floor while in walmart and an electric cart goes by that sounds like a tornado siren...

I can't imagine the sheer horror those families went through but I can imagine doing it with my children. I can picture sending my kindergartner off to school for the first time and wondering if she'll come home.

The thought of these things makes me want to cry and scream into my pillow at night. It makes me want to go into my children's rooms at night and snuggle close to their warm sleeping bodies. It makes me want to yell to the heaven's and ask...are you going to keep us safe? You never sleep...does that mean you'll keep them safe?

I don't know why this had to happen...I don't understand why families are burying their babies this week...so today I just focus on the love of God. I hold my babies tight and I pray. A lot.

This week there are families that are not celebrating. There are families that are crying out in anguish for lives lost. There are families looking up to the heavens and screaming at God. There are families holding tight to the thought that one day they will see their children again. This week..'family friday' makes some mommas want to break down and cry...so if by chance you are one of those momma's...

I'm praying for you. I'm praying and crying and holding you through the expanse that is the Internet. I'm holding you and letting you cry...because that's all we really can do..pray and cry.

So thankful...So much for which to be thankful...

Good afternoon, Ladies!  I am a little behind on this cool, muggy Thursday but I a still thankful...there is SO much for which to be thankful!!!

Our Beautiful Bike...we call her 'Belle!'

Today, I am thankful for the opportunity to slip away for the weekend with my handsome hubby.  Every Memorial Day for some 20 years now we take the weekend and go to gorgeous Eureka Springs, AR on our motorcycle.  Arkansas has some of the most beautiful countryside and we love taking a few days to enjoy all God's creation.  The time that we are away gives us a chance to regroup and reconnect with one another before the very busy summer ahead.  And goodness, it's going to be a killer this year. 

We have 4 grandsons playing ball, Jim plays ball and there are many activities going on at church!  There will be very little time to sit and relax this summer.  But I guess I like it that way.  I love that there is so much 'life' going on.  I am thankful that there are people around me that want to include me in their activities. 

What are you thankful for on this Thursday before Memorial Day?  Is your summer busier than other times of the year?  What do you do to relax during your busiest season?  We would love to hear from you.

Have a great day!!

Word Filled Wednesday - Will you Accept God's Gifts?

Photo Credit

We are so blessed. Blessed beyond measure. God grants us with so many gifts everyday, yet often times we are unwilling to accept them. 

How many times do we miss out on the little things...the obvious?

The cool morning air.... the refreshing spring breeze, the sound of the crickets far off in the distance, the picture perfect daffodils swaying in the breeze.

What clouds our vision and makes these things hard to see? We do.

We get so caught up in Satan's lies that things are not going our way. So overwhelmed with anxiety and fear over the what if's that we miss out on the what is.

God is. 

God is with us even when we think He's not. He's with us through the storms, He's with us through the darkest hours. He's waiting for us. Waiting for us to accept His goodness, His love, His faithfulness, His grace. 


"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." ~John 14:27

Friends, don't let the author of lies keep you from missing out on what's right in front of you. Don't let him trick you into thinking that because your life hasn't necessarily gone as planned, that all lost. 

All is not lost.

Turn to the Savior's outstretched hands, accept what He is offering. Let His ways and His will become your own.

When we do this...that's when true peace will be found.

That's not to say that we won't have trials or to negate the struggles you may be going through, we all have times like these. What matters is how we react to them and how we perceive them. 

Instead of looking at these times as stumbling blocks, search for the good in them, search for the moments of truth.

Stop worrying about the life you think you should have had and start looking at the blessings you've been missing. Every single day, hour, and moment, He provides our every need.

God is right beside you. He listens to your every sorrow, as well as your every praise.

Look for the gifts, they will make the difficult moments, the painful moments so much easier to handle. 

Won't you join me in seeking the gifts that the Savior so abundantly provides?

What do you do that helps you to focus on God's blessings? Do you have any special verse that helps you to stay focused on Him?

"And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus." ~Philippians 4:19











Many Blessings~

7-Up Bisquits

I found this recipe on Facebook and I MUST try it...

7-Up Bisquits

 

2 cups Bisquick

1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup 7-up
1/4 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 450.

Cut sour cream into biscuit mix, add 7-Up.  Makes a very soft dough.

Sprinkle additional biscuit mix on board or table and pat dough out.  Cut in to 9 biscuits.

Melt 1/4 cup butter in a 9 inch square pan.

Place cut biscuits in pan and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

I haven't tried these yet, but I am going to.  I must make them when my hubby isn't around until after they are done...he doesn't like sour cream.  But, what he doesn't know won't hurt him...right!  He'll just think that they are very creamy! 

If you have made these before, please comment below and let me know what you think of them.  If you haven't but plan to...DO IT and then let me know what you think. 

Have a yummy day!

Marriage Monday - Power of a Praying Wife Week 18

To enter our current giveaway, a children's book Sammy Experiences God, click HERE.

 

 



 

 

We know motherhood is a beautiful thing. We know that it is also difficult. I continually think and pray about motherhood. I have these four precious children God has placed in my care. Everything I do and say shapes who they are. Our homeschooling shapes their future career path. Our Bible time and how I live my life influences their own walk with God. That is a big load.

 

Our men face the same thing. Often times the husband is the sole breadwinner for the family. His

family's livelihood is dependent on him alone. If this is not the case in your family, I would venture to say that he still feels this heavy load on his shoulders even if you are working as well or even if you are the sole provider. God wired men this way.

 

One of the greatest fear of men is raising children. If their own father was not a good one, they fear they will turn out like him. If their own father was a wonderful father, they fear they will not live up to that standard. They know that not only does their family's livelihood depend on him, but also how they will grow up. How their sons will treat women, how their daughters will treat men. If he is a Godly man, he worries about his children's faith. There is so much to fatherhood.

 

With such a large load to carry, we need to continually lift our husband in prayer. We need to pray that His relationship with God would be so strong. The best way for a man to be a good father is to get to know his Heavenly Father and learn to imitate Him.

 

This Week's Prayer:

 

Lord, teach {husband's name} to be a good father. Where it was not modeled to him according to Your ways, heal those areas and help him to forgive his dad. Give him revelation of You and a hunger in his heart to really know You as his Heavenly Father. Draw him close to spend time in Your presence so he can become more like You, and fully understand Your Father's heart of compassion and love toward him. Grow that same heart in him for his children. Help him to balance mercy, judgment, and instruction the way You do. Though You require obedience, You are quick to acknowledge a repent heart. make him that way, too. Show him when to discipline and how. Help him to see that he who loves his child disciplines him promptly {Proverbs 13:24}. May he never provoke his "children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord" {Ephesians 6:4}. I pray that there will be no strife or argument over how to handle them and the issues that surround their lives.

 

Give him skills of communication with his children. I pray he will not be stern, hard, cruel, cold, abusive, noncommunicative, passive, critical, weak, uninterested, neglectful, undependable, or involved. Help him instead to be kind, loving, softhearted, warm, interest, affirming, affectionate, involved, strong, consistent, dependable, verbally communicative, understanding and patient. May he require to inspire his children to honor him as their father so that their lives will be long and blessed.

 

Lord, I know we pass a spiritual inheritance to our children. Let the heritage he passes on be one rich in fullness of Your Holy Spirit. Enable him to model clearly a walk of submission to Your laws. May he delight in his children and long to grow them up Your way. Being a good father is something he wants very much. I pray that You would give him the desire of his heart.

 

Amen.