Isn't it funny how children are almost always little clones of their parents? I get so annoyed with one of my girl's picking eating, yet I am SUCH a picky eater! Funny!
I heard something come out of one of my girl's mouths and sadly, it sounded just like me...I did NOT like the way mini-me sounded!
Everywhere those little girls go, they are a reflection of me...because they are mini-me.
Something to think about...
Who then, do I represent? Jesus! I am a Christ-follower, He lives in me. But the question is, do I spend enough time with Him to look and act like Him?
I wonder what He thinks about how I represent Him.....
Thursday, January 31, 2008
wow...
My 8 year old and I listened and read the Word at the same time... I started to quote something from what we had gone over and my daugther corrected me with the exact words from scripture!
The dual sensory take in of God's Word increased her retention of it by 100%! (and mine!).
Try it with your kids!
The dual sensory take in of God's Word increased her retention of it by 100%! (and mine!).
Try it with your kids!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Thursday, January 3, 2008
The Way of the Shepherd...by my hubby
My husband wrote this...
Dear Men,
From the fourth grade to the 12th grade I was class president and president of our 4-H club for many of the same years. 4-H is the smallville version of FFA where people like me learned to show pigs, cows, etc. I always had crazy ideas that I wanted to try. It seemed I had to work to get myself in charge so I could try out my ideas. The same thing has been true in college and my career.
One summer I was challenged to be a better husband and wanted to figure out what God said about love. God revealed to me through this study on love that Christ had called me to be a shepherd and not a leader. I am currently in the conversion process! Leadership seems to be about getting things done in this world. Shepherding seems to be about loving people out of this world. Leadership is about today. Shepherding is about today, generations to come and eternity.
There is a particular scripture in 1 Peter 5:2 that challenges me here. It says, “Tend (nurture, guard, guide and fold) the flock of God that is (your responsibility), not by coercion or constraint, but willingly; not dishonorably motivated by the advantages and profits, but eagerly and cheerfully;”.
Wow! God has delegated me to nurture, guard and guide His flock that He has given to me as my responsibility!
Guys, who is your flock? Is it your family? Is it your neighbor? Is it your old friends from high school? Is it your team at the office? Who is it? God is calling you to be a pastor of His flock. NO seminary required!
He is calling you to tender, nurture, guard and guide your flock. He asks us in verse 3 to do this simply by being examples, patterns and models of a Christ follower to the flock. He made you for this stuff! ty
Dear Men,
From the fourth grade to the 12th grade I was class president and president of our 4-H club for many of the same years. 4-H is the smallville version of FFA where people like me learned to show pigs, cows, etc. I always had crazy ideas that I wanted to try. It seemed I had to work to get myself in charge so I could try out my ideas. The same thing has been true in college and my career.
One summer I was challenged to be a better husband and wanted to figure out what God said about love. God revealed to me through this study on love that Christ had called me to be a shepherd and not a leader. I am currently in the conversion process! Leadership seems to be about getting things done in this world. Shepherding seems to be about loving people out of this world. Leadership is about today. Shepherding is about today, generations to come and eternity.
There is a particular scripture in 1 Peter 5:2 that challenges me here. It says, “Tend (nurture, guard, guide and fold) the flock of God that is (your responsibility), not by coercion or constraint, but willingly; not dishonorably motivated by the advantages and profits, but eagerly and cheerfully;”.
Wow! God has delegated me to nurture, guard and guide His flock that He has given to me as my responsibility!
Guys, who is your flock? Is it your family? Is it your neighbor? Is it your old friends from high school? Is it your team at the office? Who is it? God is calling you to be a pastor of His flock. NO seminary required!
He is calling you to tender, nurture, guard and guide your flock. He asks us in verse 3 to do this simply by being examples, patterns and models of a Christ follower to the flock. He made you for this stuff! ty
Book Finds
I am really not a big book reader...I mostly enjoy reading the Word of God. I love to read it like it was a letter written just to me...sorry guys! :O) However, I do have a few books on my shelf!
I have been bullet-pointing what I have learned about parenting (so far) and I will continue (so I don't forget), but really it all boils down to loving God 1st so that I CAN love my children with His love and see them with a single eye - God's eye!
We have to get out of their faces and into their hearts to really lead them anywhere. I love the picture of the shepherd...He leads them to greener pastures....he checks their paws (all 4 of them - on each sheep) to make sure they don't have thorns...
My oldest daughter and I share a journal - we put it under each other's pillow. I ask her questions about her heart, life, etc... I thought it would be fun at first, but I quickly realized that this book would open up a whole new window into her heart for me.
One entry said this, "mommy, I need more encouragement from you." Oh, this broke my heart. But, I praised God that I knew NOW and not after she moved out of the house. Now, I know that she needs much encouragement in her life!
One of my favorite books is The Way of the Shepherd (http://www.amazon.com/Way-Shepherd-Ancient-Managing-Productive/dp/0310250978) - it's a short, easy read. It's also great for leading in business, or anywhere.
My husband always says, "you lead a vision, but you shepherd the people." Profound - not many lead like this.
I have been bullet-pointing what I have learned about parenting (so far) and I will continue (so I don't forget), but really it all boils down to loving God 1st so that I CAN love my children with His love and see them with a single eye - God's eye!
We have to get out of their faces and into their hearts to really lead them anywhere. I love the picture of the shepherd...He leads them to greener pastures....he checks their paws (all 4 of them - on each sheep) to make sure they don't have thorns...
My oldest daughter and I share a journal - we put it under each other's pillow. I ask her questions about her heart, life, etc... I thought it would be fun at first, but I quickly realized that this book would open up a whole new window into her heart for me.
One entry said this, "mommy, I need more encouragement from you." Oh, this broke my heart. But, I praised God that I knew NOW and not after she moved out of the house. Now, I know that she needs much encouragement in her life!
One of my favorite books is The Way of the Shepherd (http://www.amazon.com/Way-Shepherd-Ancient-Managing-Productive/dp/0310250978) - it's a short, easy read. It's also great for leading in business, or anywhere.
My husband always says, "you lead a vision, but you shepherd the people." Profound - not many lead like this.
It's what we DO...
Interrupt this series to say...
It's what we do that our children follow. We can implement all the 'right' parenting tools, but they will follow our example.
Ps. 1 says to meditate on the Word day and night and we will be like trees by streams of water. Then, we will produce fruit in due season....and everything we touch will prosper! What an amazing promise!
Tonight, our 6 year old could not fall asleep. I got her up, held her and prayed over her. She said, "mommy, while my sisters and I were trying to fall asleep, I prayed that God would send a thousand angels to watch over us tonight." This is my same daughter that told her hunger to "go" so she wouldn't whine and complain about being hungry while we ran errands.
Above all, if we just do what Ps. 1 says - teach our children about God - and allow them to follow Him - make Him first in our lives, He will be first in theirs! They WILL produce fruit in due season! What a MIGHTY God we serve!
How and what do you teach your children?
It's what we do that our children follow. We can implement all the 'right' parenting tools, but they will follow our example.
Ps. 1 says to meditate on the Word day and night and we will be like trees by streams of water. Then, we will produce fruit in due season....and everything we touch will prosper! What an amazing promise!
Tonight, our 6 year old could not fall asleep. I got her up, held her and prayed over her. She said, "mommy, while my sisters and I were trying to fall asleep, I prayed that God would send a thousand angels to watch over us tonight." This is my same daughter that told her hunger to "go" so she wouldn't whine and complain about being hungry while we ran errands.
Above all, if we just do what Ps. 1 says - teach our children about God - and allow them to follow Him - make Him first in our lives, He will be first in theirs! They WILL produce fruit in due season! What a MIGHTY God we serve!
How and what do you teach your children?
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Birthday Box
We celebrate new boundaries with our children!
I got this idea from my Pediatrician Kelly Stephens. He and I seriously blogged on this the same time - crazy! http://drkellystephens.blogspot.com/2007/12/birthday-boxes.html Here is his weblink to the office.
Birthday Box
Each year, on our children's birthday, we give them a wrapped box with strips of paper that have new privileges, boundaries, responsibilities, character, etc. that we share with them and celebrate their new boundaries together as a family!
The kids love it and it's fun to purposefully celebrate the widening of boundaries and new privileges together! Try it! :O)
I would love to hear your ideas! Please share your ideas with me!!
Keep the Boundaries
We set boundaries and an expectation of 1st time obedience... How do we teach this?
We start at 18 months...(this is BY FAR the easiest age to teach it - later is harder and harder to reel them in if they don't have a strong foundation).
At 18 months, we mostly use time-out. If I say "come" and they don't, I say "when mommy says come you should obey me the first time." I place them in time-out for 1 minute. Then, we try it again.
As they get older, I have had to use a choice/swat method... "I asked you to "come." Now you can come with NO swats or 1 swat.... If they don't come, I swat once and then say, "you can come with 1 or 2 swats. etc... They are going to do what I asked and I stay with it until they obey the first time.
We did not do this with one child. To teach them 1st time obedience later, we had to "practice" - for example, "wow, you didn't obey me the 1st time, looks like you need to spend 20 minutes practicing listening to mommy and obeying the first time." We also use sentence writing "I will obey mommy the 1st time," and the choice/swat method to help enforce the boundaries we have established. Unfortunately, the later you start, the more reinforcement it takes for them to understand that the boundary is the boundary - no matter what!
We start at 18 months...(this is BY FAR the easiest age to teach it - later is harder and harder to reel them in if they don't have a strong foundation).
At 18 months, we mostly use time-out. If I say "come" and they don't, I say "when mommy says come you should obey me the first time." I place them in time-out for 1 minute. Then, we try it again.
As they get older, I have had to use a choice/swat method... "I asked you to "come." Now you can come with NO swats or 1 swat.... If they don't come, I swat once and then say, "you can come with 1 or 2 swats. etc... They are going to do what I asked and I stay with it until they obey the first time.
We did not do this with one child. To teach them 1st time obedience later, we had to "practice" - for example, "wow, you didn't obey me the 1st time, looks like you need to spend 20 minutes practicing listening to mommy and obeying the first time." We also use sentence writing "I will obey mommy the 1st time," and the choice/swat method to help enforce the boundaries we have established. Unfortunately, the later you start, the more reinforcement it takes for them to understand that the boundary is the boundary - no matter what!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
