Today while I was putting Sweet Caroline (feel free to sing the chorus) to bed she kept pointing over my shoulder and when I said, "Show me," I thought of how God shows us all the time. I thought of Moses asking God to show him his glory. How bold was that? From Exodus 33:17-18, "And the LORD said to Moses, "I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and know you by name." Then Moses said, "Now, show me your glory." Read that again. "Now, show me your glory." Do you know what the Lord did? He directed Moses to a rock and when His glory passed by He put him in the cleft of the rock and covered him with His hand until He passed by. Not only did He show Moses His glory, He made sure that it didn't kill him! Are we allowed to say that to the Lord? "Show me?" I think we are. I think we can because of Jesus. When we ask if God cares about us or if He knows our needs or if He is really available and we say, "Show me" or "Prove it" He points to Jesus. Want to know if He cares that you were sin-sick and in bondage? Enter Jesus, the spotless, guiltless lamb born to die in your place. If He knows our needs? Jesus. "He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him graciously give us all things?" He offered His very finest, why would He stop there? Want to know if He is available? Jesus. He walked our filthy sod and when He left He promised to leave someone with us, the Holy Spirit. I challenge you to play the "show me" game with the Lord, I promise you will not be disappointed. We have thoroughly enjoyed this Advent Season. With our hearts focused on His, we have looked for Him and we have found Him. Just like the wise men so many years ago. Here are some of the great things he has shown me through these people I get to share my life with....
First there's my 10 year old boy, Anson. God has shown me that even when you spend every day with your children they grow up. Even when you teach them the right thing to do they will burp at the table and giggle about it. They will grow out of baby breath and look and smell like boys. They will out-read you if you don't stop to catch up and playing games will make their day. God has shown me that I am one fortunate Mom to call that boy my son. A peak into Anson. Just tonight as I was typing this he was reading in bed. As usual I forgot about him, so he wandered out at 9:30 and says, "Hey Mom, I think you'll like this book, "Homeschooling with less clutter and more joy." HAHAhaH I don't know if that's a peak into Anson or me!
Next is Julia. She's my 8 year old Martha Stewart. God has shown me that I don't have to have the gifts to nurture them in my children. If I am willing to help with a book club or a room reorganization, He'll do the rest. He has shown me He is the One working mightily in our children...not me. He has shown me that she is a beautiful girl that brings out a smile in all of us around here and that there would be a huge piece of me missing if she weren't here. Here's a peak into Julia. Getting ready for her American Girl club I said, "Julia, if there is one thing I hope you can learn from me I hope it's that you cannot wait for your house to be perfect before you entertain. Now, go put the dirty clothes in the bathtub and pull the curtain." "Mom, are you serious?" "Absolutely...go..." She came back, "You were right, it does look better now!" She is an incredible sister, daughter and friend.
Next is Ella. Ella is 6 now and she's a real 6. God has shown me that they are all different. My other kids were different than she is and I think it's a good thing that she's 6. I have to remember that she's only a kindergartener. She still likes to have bows in her hair. This is a great example of Ella. We were packing to go north for Thanksgiving and she had a pink dress with polka dots and I told her she needed tights. She knew just the ones and ran to get them. She came back with pink tights with polka dots. I looked at her and smiled. She looked back and asked, very seriously, "Do you think it's too dotty?" I replied, "No Ma'am. I think it'll look great." And it did. God continues to show me that I should stop and read with her and listen to her squeaky little voice and kiss her face and love her well. God has shown me that He breaks molds when He makes people.
Then Caroline. She is 18 months old now and she is everyone's favorite. Through Caroline He is showing me that babies don't make things too hard, babies make things messier and longer and more complicated...and better than before. She toddles around here chatting and pointing and she'll even sing if she has a sheet of music. God has shown me that I don't say, "Thank you" enough.
Mike. God has shown me that promises are for protection and marriage is a gift. Especially mine. Mike is working at River Ridge Elementary fighting in the war against childhood obesity. When he walks in the door we all yell, "Daddy's home!" We are not the team we can be while our coach is away. We are always glad to have him home. He got to spend a week in Honduras with Christian Medical and Dental Association and even though he got a late start due to arriving in Atlanta with the wrong passport...his time was profitable. We missed him, but glad to have a husband that can and will GO! After he came home he spent his summer in our backyard building bookshelves for our living room and they are beautiful! Apparently engineers are pretty good with numbers...who knew? We filled our bookshelves up and now our best friends are right where they belong...in our living room. We LOVE it. He is still gardening a bit and loves to reuse things around the house to make new things. He is rather resourceful and I have told him that it is true anything I can do he can do better. I think that's how it should be. God has shown me that He is a great match-maker.
Me? God has shown me that I can sit back and relax because I am not in control. I don't sit back and relax easily. Homeschool moms are pretty much self-confessed control freaks. We aren't all type A, but we like it our way! :) My kids are not mine and they are not for my glory. I am more than a wife and mother. I am a woman and a child of God. I got 2 haircuts this year and finished some books, although I'm not sure how many. I keep plugging along, though! I love how I spend my days. God has shown me that through Jesus, all things are possible!
That's pretty much it. I didn't want to do a "doing" update this year, but rather a "being" update. I have human beings living in my home. We are not human doings, although sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. I hope for anyone who reads this, you will ask God to show you His glory. That's what Christmas is all about after all, isn't it? God showing us His glory. It was small and underestimated...but it was all there wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. So, I am asking boldly for Him to show us His glory and then our task is to proclaim it to the nations!
Merry Christmas and Happy 2013
So, I just spent about an hour going through and choosing pictures to add to this and ended up with 114! Even for those who really know and love us...that's too many. So...here are a few...enjoy.
