I love beginnings. It is so nice to have a fresh start. God must have known how we need beginnings and endings. January is a great beginning place for fresh starts. After journaling this morning and looking at a friend's blog, I just realize how thankful I am for the tapestry God creates in our lives and the lives of our kids. It becomes beautiful as He is the weaver. If we try to do it ourself, it is immature and sometimes ugly. At best, it looks good, but with His hand, He creates. He is Creator.
My friends from church adopted two children from Ethiopia a year ago. Over the past hour, I have been reading her blogs from the past year. It is so apparent to me how God uses people as they turn to Him and desire to glorify Him. He is glorified. With all the hurts that two little children in an orphanage endured, God has given them such joy. It is so obvious from the pictures. God also brought those two little ones into a saving knowledge of Him. Amazing how He works.
I look forward, Lord, to your tapestry this year. Weave your hand, and I will submit. More and more I see how foolish we are when we go our own way. How ugly things can get. How chaotic the threads can look, but really, how beautiful things can be. Worry, anxiety, panic, frustration... all of this is of our own weaving.
I am thankful that you said "Give us this day our daily bread." This day. And use us to help feed others.
You are good. Bless this day. Thank you for the gift of it. You are the Creator. Create this day as you will, God.
Psalm 14-16 (New International Version, ©2010)
Psalm 14
For the director of music. Of David.
1 The fool[a] says in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;
there is no one who does good.
2 The LORD looks down from heaven
on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,
any who seek God. 3 All have turned away, all have become corrupt;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.
4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?
They devour my people as though eating bread;
they never call on the LORD.
5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
for God is present in the company of the righteous.
6 You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor,
but the LORD is their refuge.
7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restores his people,
let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!
Psalm 15
A psalm of David.
1 LORD, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?
2 The one whose walk is blameless,
who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from their heart;
3 whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to a neighbor,
and casts no slur on others;
4 who despises a vile person
but honors those who fear the LORD;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
and does not change their mind;
5 who lends money to the poor without interest;
who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
Whoever does these things
will never be shaken.
Psalm 16
A miktam[b] of David.
1 Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.” 3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.
5 LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
7 I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful[c] one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Reflecting on a New Year
So, here I am thinking of the New Year, of course, as it is the first of January. What will be different this year? What will be the same? What did I want to change in 2010 and did not?
2011 goals...
* Spend more time one on one with my girls. Take one out one-on-one each week. This will give me one date with each per month. Really listen when they are talking. Stop what I am doing to answer them. Be there.
* Spend less time cleaning. (Really?) Point being, it just gets messed up within an hour anyway. What is the point? I really am truly wondering about all the vain hours I spend getting annoyed with my kids and with myself... and cleaning up. So maybe if I go more slowly about my day, maybe I can just do a better job with putting things away AS I GO. Just an idea.I look around and see suitcases, piano books, coats, shoes, pillows, gloves, mittens, and Christmas decorations that I still have not put away. How do I keep up and stay sane? Not sure. I will never be an expert on this. I have come to this conclusion. So, if anything, in 2010, I have learned that as much as I can, I need to simplify in order to keep less "stuff" around my house. If that is possible with 4 girls, a Korean exchange student, and my dh to clutter it all up. BUT I need to thank the Lord for the "clutter" of it all and quit whining. That is my point. Submit to this stage in my life because before I know it my house will be quiet and my kids will all be gone, AND my house will be clean... but empty. Submit to the clutter... the papers coming home from school, the library books, the dvds, the webkinz, the coloring crayons, and the fingernail polish that has all been left out. Find my refuge in God in the clutter. Psalm 2. :)
*Spend less money. Stay away from the mall. Stay away from Target. Stay away from Ross and the great deals there. The deals will be there next year. Submit my budget to God. Stay away from credit cards. Use cash only. There are no surprises with cash. When it's gone, it's gone.
*Read the Bible more. Daily. Use biblequizzes.com/readings for my daily read.
*Remember that my body is getting older and needs to be better taken care of. Be a good steward. Stay away from junk and processed stuff. Exercise daily. DRINK 4 BOTTLES OF WATER DAILY to keep myself hydrated. Take 11000 steps and burn 2300 calories daily. Limit TV at night. Go to bed with the sink clean. Make my goals for the next day the night before. Use my dayplanner.
*Pray for guidance with directing the girls in their gifts and talents and pray for provision for them.
*Check my messages more often and call people back. Maybe get rid of the home phone answering machine. All it does is create guilt. I never check it. Tell people to call my cell if they need me. Find my charger. Get new downstairs phone.
*Bodybugg daily.
*Go to Heath's class 2-3x per week.(5:30?)
*Bex daily... end of each day. Get 8 lb. weights.
*Bed by 10; up by 5. Walk 40 min. daily to increase steps.
*Be a good steward of what I have. Sell all I don't need.
*Embrace the opportunities God gives me and EVEN THE ONES I AM NOT SO SURE ABOUT. Some things, I am learning, God has for me to do that I don't want to, but there is a reason. Embrace his will for me and my family. Embrace.
*Put a guard on my tongue and use my words with discretion. Even with my girls. Watch my words. Use them to build up and for God's glory; not to diffuse.
*Connect with the important people in my life. Listen for God's prompting and respond to it.
*Rely on the strength of the Lord, not on my own or my husband's or the world's ways to gain my strength or peace.
*Clean my garage. Park my car in it so my lock doesn't continue to freeze.
*Do a load of laundry in the morning. Kids put it away at night. Do this daily.
*Fast once / week. Listen to what God lays on my heart.
*Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for me in Christ Jesus.
2011 goals...
* Spend more time one on one with my girls. Take one out one-on-one each week. This will give me one date with each per month. Really listen when they are talking. Stop what I am doing to answer them. Be there.
* Spend less time cleaning. (Really?) Point being, it just gets messed up within an hour anyway. What is the point? I really am truly wondering about all the vain hours I spend getting annoyed with my kids and with myself... and cleaning up. So maybe if I go more slowly about my day, maybe I can just do a better job with putting things away AS I GO. Just an idea.I look around and see suitcases, piano books, coats, shoes, pillows, gloves, mittens, and Christmas decorations that I still have not put away. How do I keep up and stay sane? Not sure. I will never be an expert on this. I have come to this conclusion. So, if anything, in 2010, I have learned that as much as I can, I need to simplify in order to keep less "stuff" around my house. If that is possible with 4 girls, a Korean exchange student, and my dh to clutter it all up. BUT I need to thank the Lord for the "clutter" of it all and quit whining. That is my point. Submit to this stage in my life because before I know it my house will be quiet and my kids will all be gone, AND my house will be clean... but empty. Submit to the clutter... the papers coming home from school, the library books, the dvds, the webkinz, the coloring crayons, and the fingernail polish that has all been left out. Find my refuge in God in the clutter. Psalm 2. :)
*Spend less money. Stay away from the mall. Stay away from Target. Stay away from Ross and the great deals there. The deals will be there next year. Submit my budget to God. Stay away from credit cards. Use cash only. There are no surprises with cash. When it's gone, it's gone.
*Read the Bible more. Daily. Use biblequizzes.com/readings for my daily read.
*Remember that my body is getting older and needs to be better taken care of. Be a good steward. Stay away from junk and processed stuff. Exercise daily. DRINK 4 BOTTLES OF WATER DAILY to keep myself hydrated. Take 11000 steps and burn 2300 calories daily. Limit TV at night. Go to bed with the sink clean. Make my goals for the next day the night before. Use my dayplanner.
*Pray for guidance with directing the girls in their gifts and talents and pray for provision for them.
*Check my messages more often and call people back. Maybe get rid of the home phone answering machine. All it does is create guilt. I never check it. Tell people to call my cell if they need me. Find my charger. Get new downstairs phone.
*Bodybugg daily.
*Go to Heath's class 2-3x per week.(5:30?)
*Bex daily... end of each day. Get 8 lb. weights.
*Bed by 10; up by 5. Walk 40 min. daily to increase steps.
*Be a good steward of what I have. Sell all I don't need.
*Embrace the opportunities God gives me and EVEN THE ONES I AM NOT SO SURE ABOUT. Some things, I am learning, God has for me to do that I don't want to, but there is a reason. Embrace his will for me and my family. Embrace.
*Put a guard on my tongue and use my words with discretion. Even with my girls. Watch my words. Use them to build up and for God's glory; not to diffuse.
*Connect with the important people in my life. Listen for God's prompting and respond to it.
*Rely on the strength of the Lord, not on my own or my husband's or the world's ways to gain my strength or peace.
*Clean my garage. Park my car in it so my lock doesn't continue to freeze.
*Do a load of laundry in the morning. Kids put it away at night. Do this daily.
*Fast once / week. Listen to what God lays on my heart.
*Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for me in Christ Jesus.
Ps. 1-2
Psalm 1-2 (New International Version, ©2010)
Psalm 1
BOOK I
Psalms 1–41
1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night. 3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers. 4 Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
Psalm 2
1 Why do the nations conspire[a]
and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth rise up
and the rulers band together
against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,
3 “Let us break their chains
and throw off their shackles.”
4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.
5 He rebukes them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
6 “I have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”
7 I will proclaim the LORD’s decree:
He said to me, “You are my son;
today I have become your father.
8 Ask me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession.
9 You will break them with a rod of iron[b];
you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear
and celebrate his rule with trembling. 12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry
and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Wondrous Things (WTs):
1. Place my delight in the law of the Lord. In doing this, life will be like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding fruit in its seasons. That is an amazing picture, actually. Lord, today let my delight be in you.
2. Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling. Kiss his son or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Wow. That is powerful. Fear the Lord.
3. Blessed are those who take refuge in him. Help me God to go to you and nothing else for refuge. You are a shield in the storm. You are our comfort. You are our protection. I take refuge in you, God, and place my family under your protection, as well. I trust in you, for you are worthy of being fully trusted. I trust in you today. You are good.
Psalm 1
BOOK I
Psalms 1–41
1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night. 3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers. 4 Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
Psalm 2
1 Why do the nations conspire[a]
and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth rise up
and the rulers band together
against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,
3 “Let us break their chains
and throw off their shackles.”
4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.
5 He rebukes them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
6 “I have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”
7 I will proclaim the LORD’s decree:
He said to me, “You are my son;
today I have become your father.
8 Ask me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession.
9 You will break them with a rod of iron[b];
you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear
and celebrate his rule with trembling. 12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry
and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Wondrous Things (WTs):
1. Place my delight in the law of the Lord. In doing this, life will be like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding fruit in its seasons. That is an amazing picture, actually. Lord, today let my delight be in you.
2. Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling. Kiss his son or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Wow. That is powerful. Fear the Lord.
3. Blessed are those who take refuge in him. Help me God to go to you and nothing else for refuge. You are a shield in the storm. You are our comfort. You are our protection. I take refuge in you, God, and place my family under your protection, as well. I trust in you, for you are worthy of being fully trusted. I trust in you today. You are good.
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