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Trust God In The Details

“Don’t worry over anything whatever; tell God every detail of your needs in earnest and thankful prayer, and the peace of God which transcends human understanding, will keep constant guard over your hearts and minds as they rest in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7.” Philipps. 

 

Do you tend to worry, or trust God with every detail of your life?

Did you know that God cares about every detail of your life.  There is a calm peace that floods your soul when you have a calm conviction that God is present and available every moment of the day. He is always with you and He is always available. He is totally trustworthy.

So, teach your kids to turn to God with every intimate detail, need and concern. I remember when my daughter Angela was about six years old and she had a desire to learn to dance.  We took her need for ballet slippers to God in prayer. Imagine how her faith grew when the next week we found ballet slippers in her size at a garage sale. She began to feel a deep conviction that if she prayed and believed God that He would hear her prayer and answer.

Now she is 20 years old and has just returned home from a summer on missions. She is still listening, praying, and believing God to be intimately involved in the details of her life.  It’s so much fun to live this way: walking and talking and believing God!

 
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3 Ways for Moms to Live the Golden Rule in Matthew 7:12

by Sue Detweiler

Mother Teresa was a tiny woman who transformed a continent. Taking a vow of poverty and answering the call within the call she began a movement of nuns who cared for those dying of Leprosy and AIDS. This feisty woman knew how to live the Golden Rule in daily life. This is what she said,

“People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.

If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.”

― Mother Teresa

Be a Mom that Changes the World

As a mom, you may never win a Nobel Peace Prize for feeding your children waffles for breakfast, but you can transform the next generation by following Jesus’ example and living your life by the Golden Rule. Even though mother Teresa did not have biological children, she impacted the next generation by the simple truth’s of her life. Her life was lived sacrificially.

The Golden Rule can be found in Matthew 7:12 where Jesus said “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets”. This Scripture has been called the Golden Rule because it is a summary of the Sermon Jesus gave on the mount and it is found in the teachings of many cultures. It is a standard that has helped form the moral code of society.

Rule 1: LOVE

Love is an active expression of your commitment to lay your life down for someone else. It is constant affection and unconditional regard. You are called to love your child as you would like to be loved. Sometimes you will feel the feelings associated with love… and sometimes you won’t. However, the biblical meaning of agape love is not based on emotion. You must love your child enough to disciple them in God’s ways, bringing truth to bear on every area of life.

Rule 2: Compassion

Compassion is recognizing the suffering of others and taking action to help. Teaching your child to have empathy towards another child’s pain is so important for their moral development. One way you can teach this is by taking time to be compassionate for how your child is feeling.

A wrinkle in your child’s sock will feel like nothing to you, but it may really bother them as they wear their tennis shoes. I made so many mistakes as a mom, by not recognizing and allowing my children to feel things. I would try to talk them out of their feelings and reason with them why they should feel differently.

It’s a tricky thing to validate your child’s feelings, and yet teach them about the bigger picture of the needs of children in other nations. A real change came for my daughter Sarah at age 12 when she and her older sisters traveled with Wayne and I and my mom to Brazil to adopt our sons Dre and Zeke. Being able to see poverty first hand and opening our home to boys that had been orphans for most of their lives changed my daughter from being an egocentric adolescent to care about the needs of others.

Ask yourself this question. Do you as a mom live a life of compassion that reaches across social economic and racial barriers? If you live a radical life of compassion, your children will see compassion in action.

Rule 3: Forgiveness

Forgiveness is a conscious choice to pardon the actions of someone who has hurt you. Although everyone’s natural instinct is to self-protect, forgiveness is a a gift of mercy and grace to someone else who has wronged you. Forgiveness is not a feeling, forgiveness is a choice. Forgiveness is an act of your will to extend to others what was extended to you by Jesus when He died for your sins. Forgiveness is motivated out of your obedience and love of God.

You can teach your child forgiveness by being a forgiving person. Do you hold grudges?  Does your anger or bitterness towards your spouse provide an undercurrent in the house that everyone can feel?  Forgiveness is not forgetting or sweeping things under the rug. but forgiveness is costly.

Be a mom of outstanding Character

If you are a woman who loves Jesus fiercely, you will obey His commands. His rule for you life will compel you to walk in love, compassion and forgiveness every day of your life. If you walk in this way, day in and day out, your children will learn the Golden rule directly from you. Even if your kid’s don’t seem to be “getting it” make the Golden Rule a standard of your life anyway. In the end, it’s between you and God anyway.

 

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Finding a Safe Place by Sue Detweiler

 

Finding a Safe Place

When my four daughters were younger I made up a cheer that we would say at different times: “2, 4, 6, 8 who do you appreciate? Momma, momma she’s so great!” Of course we would cheer for the different children by name – but I had my own cheerleaders who gave hugs, kisses, and smiles. I actually felt like a good mom back then.

If we, as mothers, are not careful, we can begin to find our identity in our kids and their behavior. The behavior of your children is not the measure of your value and worth as a person.

A typical book on parenting includes a step by step guide on how to discipline your children. Often, the underlining promise is if one parents “by the book,” the results are perfect children and a predicament-free family.

The problem is that every child has choice, and you and I can’t control what our children choose. We also live in a problem-filled world where stuff happens. God is the only perfect father. He put His children in a perfect garden and still they chose to rebel. In fact we are still dealing with Eve’s choices today. She was the first mom who really had issues.

If you are following this blog, I hope it is because you want to be the most life-giving parent that you can be. You want to realize your God-given calling as a mom. That result is going to take more than a list of “do’s and don’ts.”

As we begin this journey together, tell me about yourself, your kids, your life. Let’s make this a safe place.

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