Our Inspired Journey

Whew! John just returned from a 4 day trip to a conference in Texas and boy, are we glad Daddy is back!!! The pictures are from a playdate we had with some of our friends from church at the indoor playground while Daddy was gone...you see Ryder here with his friend Lanie :)...we're so thankful for frinds that help keep us sane during these times!!! John was at conference for College Band Directors and had a wonderful time watching concerts and meeting other college band directors, but is glad to be home again too! We did it...the kids and I survived 4 days alone together and I have to say the time parenting alone taught me a lot...and I knew it would. God doesn't waste opportunities to teach us new truths about who He is and transform us more into His likeness in the process, so I knew it was coming and in a strange way, welcomed this "spiritual boot camp" at this phase of the journey. Since Cora was born, I haven't been able to find my groove yet as a mother of 3 and as much as I LOVE parenting with my husband and wouldn't want to trade his presence in our life for anything in the WORLD, I knew God would bring GOOD from our time apart, strange as it seems. :)

My struggle as of late, has been to find time to "fit everything in"...I have lots of time with my kids, but what about the "others," like cooking, cleaning, exercise, time alone in the Word, time with John...it has been hard for me to figure this all out and not that I've got it all figured out now by any means, but the Lord shed a little light on it all for me these past 4 days...I think this time alone was a time of discipline for me from the Lord.

When the kids and I went to church Sunday morning before John returned home at 10:30 that night, God spoke this truth to me about His discipline through our pastor...
Hebrews 12:10-14 says...
Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. "Make level paths for your feet," so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

I was so encouraged by this message of hope for those of us who know we deserve to be disciplined! Hebrews says that God is treating us as sons and daughters of HIM, the KING, when he disciplines us and if He didn't, we would not be called his children...I can't speak for you, but knowing this makes me crave the correcting hand of my Father so I can be called his own and as the above verses say...share in His holiness and see HIM! How could we help but want to see the One we love more clearly. This is my highest desire in all the world...to be nearer, to see and hear more clearly the One who calls me His own. It is from more intimate communion with our God that we can love those around us more like he does. As a mother it is also my desire to discipline my children the way I am disciplined by Him....with patience, love, consistency and with good intention and purpose.

It says a harvest of righteousness and peace will come from the discipline that is often times painful. I want for my children, righteousness and peace...a peace that passes our understanding because it comes from the One who is greater than our minds can fathom. When John was away, the Lord showed me areas in my life that needed His disciplining hand of correction. These were things that on the surface seemed harmless, but as I prayed for deeper understanding, I saw that refining the way I spend my time would draw me nearer to the One my strength comes from. I understand now that it's not about "fitting it all in" in order to check things off a list and feel good about myself, but about giving God my time as an act of worship to Him because He is WORTHY of it....more worthy than so many other things that often times get the first fruits of my time, (TV, e-mail, blog, etc.) I'm not saying these things are bad at all, but I felt the Lord calling me this week to re-prioritize the way I spend my time to make sure it's the TV that goes unwatched before time with Him is unspent...e-mails can wait but if I am to share in His holiness and truly SEE Him, then He must be first on that list, not just make it somewhere near the bottom.

I love the way the Lord works...He moves us to Illinois, we find out Cole is deaf, and He provides a way for him to hear and receive therapy to listen and speak minutes from our home. Then, He gives us our little girl, I feel inadequate to mother 3 little ones and through this feeling of inadequacy I am shown how dependence on the Lord and an emptying of myself produces exactly the mother and wife my family needs me to be. Where God leads, He also provides a WAY...I have been shown that so clearly over the past 6 months. Obedience comes first though, and sometimes we must be disciplined into learning the process of obedience. Though it is not easy or comfortable, it is the way God says we can show Him we love Him.

This weekend the Lord drew me closer...showed me the narrower road...the one even less traveled than the one I was on. It doesn't have some of the luxuries I've grown comfortable with, but on it I get to travel that much closer to my Guide. He knows where we'll end up and cares even more about our journey together along the way...I know it is on this road that I will receive correction and discipline, all from the One who loves me more than I will ever understand, so I may love others with a more pure love in His name. Jesus, we need your refining touch on our lives, for the sake of our children...come now in your peaceful way and when you do, give us the courage to obey.